What is your most cost effective crop?

[tdeveson]

I've set up four 4' X 8' raised planters and I'm ready to put my seeds in. I'll use the square foot gardening system which has worked very well for me in the past. Still, I only have 128 square feet of dirt and I want to make sure I use them wisely.

 

Obviously, it won't be all about the cost. Regardless of cost-effectiveness, I'm planting my own tomatoes, salad and leafy greens. Those should be eaten the same day they're picked on principle. :001_smile:

 

What are the most cost effective crops you plant?

 

TIA!

[Guest Alte Veste Academy]

Hands down, it's bell peppers. They're dd's favorite veggie but we all love them and eat them all the time. They are crazy expensive here too!

[tdeveson]

Yes! I'm thinking of doing an entire planter -- I can get 16 peppers in easy. My little guy eats the ripe ones like apples, right off the plant, and they're $3 or $3.50 apiece around here when they're cheap. And I can freeze all the green peppers I need to cook the rest of the year.

[Nicole M]

Yes! I'm thinking of doing an entire planter -- I can get 16 peppers in easy. My little guy eats the ripe ones like apples, right off the plant, and they're $3 or $3.50 apiece around here when they're cheap. And I can freeze all the green peppers I need to cook the rest of the year.

 

How do you freeze them? Do you blanche them first, or do something to them?

[tdeveson]

How do you freeze them? Do you blanche them first, or do something to them?

 

I don't blanche peppers. I wash them and cut them into strips about an inch wide, put them in a freezer bag and done. They last months and months, especially if you squeeze all the air out of the bag.

 

I also stuff them and put them in disposable aluminum pans ready to roast. I cover them well and freeze them. They also last for months like that. Great freezer meal.

[Kim in Appalachia]

I would also say peppers. I would also put Swiss Chard on top of the list, since it grows for so long where I'm at. We can have fresh greens all the way into mid to late November. Spaghetti squash is also good. It's a winter squash, so it keeps, and it is easy to cook in the microwave. I cook it when we have spaghetti and eat half squash, half pasta. All winter squashes are good because they keep. Beets are good. We cook them up, slice them and freeze them. My kids like beets so it's economical for us. And of course, tomatoes. I make sauce and I freeze a bunch. I love my tomatoes. :D

[tdeveson]

I would also say peppers. I would also put Swiss Chard on top of the list, since it grows for so long where I'm at. We can have fresh greens all the way into mid to late November. Spaghetti squash is also good. It's a winter squash, so it keeps, and it is easy to cook in the microwave. I cook it when we have spaghetti and eat half squash, half pasta. All winter squashes are good because they keep. Beets are good. We cook them up, slice them and freeze them. My kids like beets so it's economical for us. And of course, tomatoes. I make sauce and I freeze a bunch. I love my tomatoes. :D

 

Swiss chard is a great idea. I have seeds (bright lights from Burpee) and they will look beautiful. Here in South Florida it will grow practically year round.

 

How do you freeze beets? I'm planting some to can, and I'm going to plant a few just for the tops -- dh loves his beet tops!

[lynn]

We really like planting sugar snap peas. We get bunches and they're a good snack. My dd and ds are always go outside to grab a few to snack on, very few make it into the house but I will manage to grab a few for salad or stir fry.

[Firefly]

Stringless green beans are great. I get a bush variety called "Jade" and it just keeps on going. One 3x8 bed and I get buckets of beans all summer, and have plenty to freeze for the winter. Since green beans are a favorite here and $4/lb at the Farmer's Market, they are very cost effective for me.

 

I'll second the peppers-- particularly red bell, which are very expensive (the organic kind) in the grocery store.

[msjones]

We've had great success year after year with snap peas, green beans, cucumbers, and carrots.

 

I wish we could grow peppers, but our summers aren't hot enough up here.

[missmoe]

lettuce. It's easy and fast and pretty expensive at the store.

[LauraGB]

Onions! One year, I planted 8 squares with white and 8 squares with red (for the whole 4x4 bed). We started harvesting for immediate use when they were ready and then in the fall pulled them all - we ran out of white around March and red around May! You can really pack them in with the square foot garden.

[Caitilin]

Onions! One year, I planted 8 squares with white and 8 squares with red (for the whole 4x4 bed). We started harvesting for immediate use when they were ready and then in the fall pulled them all - we ran out of white around March and red around May! You can really pack them in with the square foot garden.

 

ditto!:D

[tdeveson]

Onions! One year, I planted 8 squares with white and 8 squares with red (for the whole 4x4 bed). We started harvesting for immediate use when they were ready and then in the fall pulled them all - we ran out of white around March and red around May! You can really pack them in with the square foot garden.

 

Yes to the onions! I go through them like water -- they go into practically everything I cook. How do you store them?

[LauraGB]

Yes to the onions! I go through them like water -- they go into practically everything I cook. How do you store them?

In fishnet stockings in the basement. :D

 

Really - it works really well. Drop the onion in, tie w/twist tie. Drop the next onion in, tie again, and so on until you fill up the leg. Cut the toe out when you use the first one, then after that, you just untie the twist tie and slide the next onion down. I hang them on hangers from the rafters in a dark corner (because its really wierd and freaky to run into those down there, you know? :lol:) The air gets to circulate and I haven't had a rotten one yet.

You can get the stockings right now on sale for 25-50 cents a pair with the after Halloween sales.

[Caitilin]

Yes to the onions! I go through them like water -- they go into practically everything I cook. How do you store them?

 

We braid them and hang them on curtain rod over our back stairs. So for it's working fabulously. :) And very cost effective too...:001_smile:

[keptwoman]

I think tomatoes and lettuce absolutely are cost effective as well as plain ol delicious!

I like sugar snap and snow peas. Brussel sprouts are good if your family like them.

Garlic. Definitely garlic! So much more flavoursome than the bought stuff.

I like herbs. So thyme (excuse lack of commas no comma key is SO frustrating) sage rosemary parsley oregano and coriander (cilantro) at bare minimum.

Beets and radishes are very cost effective too. I love beets!

[helena]

For us it would be Heirloom tomatoes, and basil.

[NCMom]

My children love doing gardens w/smaller veggies so we have quite a few favorites. Obviously, you can either go this way or just have fewer large varieties.

 

For your situation I would look at determinate tomatoes unless you are dead set on heirlooms. The only determinate heirlooms I can think of are Amish Paste and Rutgers (1930's is heirloom right?:001_smile:). I'm sure there are more to be found on google, though. A 12 foot tall Brandewyne might be a bit much, lol.

 

Green beans - We grow Masai every year, GREAT yields, great taste, very compact plant

 

peppers- definitely a good choice!

 

Greens - more than lettuce is out there, you could try tyfon greens, corn mache, fun jen (I LOVE this one, we have a great crop right now), rose orach, spinach, purslane, claytonia, kale, or cress if they would work in your zone.

 

Tiny melons - we grew several new kinds this year, unfortunately I only remember one, a cantaloupe called Minnesota Midget, that we always grow. I do know that the others came from Baker Creek Heirlooms though. The vines might run out of the boxes, though they are not as huge as say, a normal watermelon.

 

Squashes- On years when we don't have squash borers (like this one!) we find that Papaya Pear Summer Squash and Eight Ball Zuchinni have smaller, more compact plants and taste great too.

 

Onions are good, though not cost effective here. Much tastier than most store bought though!

 

Herbs are very cost effective and take little room or care. I like dill, basil, parley and chives.

 

You're making me jealous... All we have left are greens in frames and cabbages.;) Have fun!

hth,

Georgia

[LibraryLover]

Pumpkins. We sold some of ours last year and people will pay big bucks for pumpkins.

[OrganicAnn]

Our criteria for growing things is 1) they taste better than what you can buy and 2) you can get things that are hard to find or 3) very expensive if you buy it. Somethings fall in more than one categories. These are generally how I 'd categorize them. But really I think everything tastes better when home grown, but the ones lists seem to be significantly better.

 

Taste better

Peas

Tomatoes

Potatoes

Garlic

Green beans

Carrots

Melons

Cucumbers

Herbs

 

Varieties hard to find

Squash

Eggplant

Tomatoes

Onions

Shallots

Garlic

Melons

Carrots

 

Cost more in store

Red, orange and yellow peppers

Shallots

Pea pods

Herbs

[myfunnybunch]

We looked at the vegetables we most like to eat first, to decide what to plant. We eat a lot of onions, potatoes, greens, carrots, squash and pumpkin, garlic, tomatoes, basil, raspberries, beets.

 

We saved a lot of money on onions. We belong to a CSA and were given some of the extra starts by the farmer who gives his extras to homeschool families, so we saved even more this year. We did not buy onions all summer. Next year I will be planting an entire garden box with onions.

 

Potatoes took up too much space and are inexpensive to buy. I may plant a small space with a couple potatoes just because my children had SO much fun helping dig them up, but if you've got limited garden space, potatoes aren't much of a money-saver.

 

Greens are expensive at the grocery, easy to grow, and we get multiple plantings out of one seed packet. We plant spinach, bok choi, Swiss chard, lettuce. I plant in waves so that we've got fresh greens almost all year. We start eating thinned greens in March/early April and I've still got greens in the garden. Ditto with beets. We plant in waves, start eating thinned greens early, then eat beets and their greens when they're ready to harvest.

 

Beets, many greens, carrots, cabbages, broccoli and cauliflower (some varieties) can be grown fairly easily in cool weather, so they can be a great way to fill in empty garden space before and after the summer vegetables.

 

Carrots and tomatoes taste so much better we'd plant them no matter what, so haven't bothered with the cost.

 

Squash and pumpkin are a part of our regular diet, and they keep well. I grow as many as I've got space for and buy more to store in the basement. The squash usually last until Feb/March, and I puree and freeze the pumpkin.

 

Green beans are delicious and inexpensive, and they are beautiful in the garden. I save seed every year, so it doesn't cost us anything to grow them. We do not like frozen green beans, so I only plant a small space, enough for fresh beans for ourselves and extra to share with the neighbors.

 

Basil is easy to grow. If you like pesto, it's far more cost-effective to grow your own basil.

 

Our raspberries just need space to grow and pruning. You may be able to find a garden friend with raspberry shoots to give away.

 

Cat

[Guest KaciMI]

Carrots, spinach and bush beans. We had great luck with grape tomatoes, too. I just had to get to them before the squirrels. We just moved but my garden was in central FL. It was raised.

[I talk to the trees]

If I had to narrow it down to the 5 crops that I feel have saved us the most, it would be tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, carrots, parsnips, and (lumping these together here, since they only take up a tiny square in our garden) herbs.

 

We also plant lots of cucumbers, pumpkins, broccoli, and lettuce....oh! and this year we had fabulous luck with our eggplants! But the ones I listed above are by far our favorites. Of course, the items you plant will have to be items your family will actually *eat*. Given our success with root veggies here, we could probably grow a fantastic crop of beets and turnips.... and then feed them to the local wildlife :lol: since no one in this house will touch them!

 

-Robin