Do I save money by growing my own food?

There are a lot of really good reasons to grow your own food: it's local, it's usually pesticide free, it's food you like, it's good exercise, it's fun, it's often more nutritious, and it can save you money. Does it save me money? I mean really? I am determined to find out.

The gardener in me shouts OF COURSE IT SAVES YOU MONEY. If you grow your own food you aren't purchasing it from the grocery store. However, the farmer in me just laughs. It is extremely difficult to recoup your capital investment, not to mention variable costs, associated with agricultural activities. There is a reason farmers are never in the Forbes list of wealthiest individuals.

I've seen a lot of talk out on the Internet how people are estimating they can save up to $3,000 a year in grocery bills. Many are skeptical about that amount, saying it's probably half that amount. I understand the doubters. If you've ever grown food, you know a lot of it goes to waste. Crops aren't always picked on time (we've all had a 40 pound zucchini) or eaten right away. We gardeners are also overwhelmed with abundance and have to give away a lot of food or just toss it in the compost bin. There is also the problem of how to assign a value to what you grow. How much is one carrot worth anyway?

So here's what I am going to do. I have created a food log where I track everything I harvest. I then go to H.E.B. to see what it would cost to buy it. I am using the prices off of regular produce, not organic, to determine the value, since that mirrors my purchasing habits. I am not sure how I am going to track food I give to co-workers and the Food Bank, but will probably keep a separate tally.

I am also going to track all my capital and variable costs. I just moved to my house last April, so now is a good time to do it. So far I have costs for soil, soil amendments, hardware for my raised beds, plastic for my cold frames, plant purchases (like my trees and seeds,) and my rainwater capture system. Of course then there are property taxes and utility bills. It will be interesting to see at what point I break even. I suspect I will be much older when that happens.

January was a tough month in the garden. I lost some citrus trees and the vegetables stopped growing in the cold. Luckily I didn't lose any greens, beets, spinach, carrots, or Swiss chard, so we were able to eat yard food in February. I harvested my first radishes and Kale yesterday. Today I am making tortilla soup and I have my eye on some garlic greens that would be yummy in it.

I'll keep you posted as to how I am doing. My cost savings for February totals $16.15. Ha! Take that, H.E.B.! (Okay, work with me here people. You've got to start somewhere!)