How much has my gardening made / lost me

Posted by admin | Posted in Personal | Posted on 20-09-2009

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Ok so I thought I would work out what has been spent.

  • Cains £40
  • Pots £20
  • Propagators £40
  • Greenhouse £20
  • Compost £30
  • Seeds £40

So about £190’s to get going. I have loads of seeds left so I think seeds could come down to £20. So £170’s is alot but apart from compsost and seeds they will be usuable for next year! What crops do I think I have got so far:

  • Tomatoes to date: 50 * 12 / 15 (per punet of shop baught) = 40, 40 * £1 = £40
  • Cucumbers to date: 80, 80 * £1 = £80
  • Potatoes: (not yet all picked) 12, 1 bag, £3
  • Chillis: 4, 1 pack, £3
  • Peppers, 8, 2 packs, £4
  • Dwarf beans, 200, 10 packs, £30
  • Runner beans, 80, 8 packs, £24

So without any of my other crops, onions, spring onions, sweet corn, betroot, carrots and loads of all the other to pick we are looking at an income / savings of: £184.

So I have all the equipment, seeds and still more crops to come and they have almost paid for themselfs!

Say ne more.

Urban gardening….

Posted by admin | Posted in Personal | Posted on 20-09-2009

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I love gardening now, its a fact. But when me and Gemma went to do this, I had grass, weeds and Gemma thinking it would not work to contend with. But its easy to do, in the climate we face, once you have the kit, home grown is cheaper, healthier and better for you.

I know I sound like a hippie but its true, the first thing is that once you grow it, you eat it. I hate tomatoes and I now eat them! dont like them much, they taste ok from backgarden but to be honest, if we had not grown them, I would not eat them. The biggest cost is pots, properagators, plastic greenhouses and cains. Once you have them, the cost per yeild will be lower and lower till you break even and even make profit, it will happen. Seeds are cheap if you pick the right places to buy them. I would suggest B and Q for the packets of everything that means you pay 33 pence a packet. That or the pound shop. This year I got plant food for 99pence and wish I got loads more as it works, cheap and most of all every penny counts, these cost alot less than the big chain versions and miricle grow.

Pick the plot, make sure that you give the plot good time to grow weeds, de-weed then carry on till it gets the normal amount if its a really grassy or weedy part of the garden. Then plant away, feed and away you go. There is loads more to it but I am just trying to say, I can do it, it was poor ground and it still works. Just give it love, care and attention. If you dont enjoy it then dont do it again, try it with herbs and potted tomateos first. A little tip, grow the tomatoes in small pots in doors first. Once about 24 inches tall, transfer to a bigger pot, 7 or 8 inches and put outside. Once they grow some more, transfer the plant and pot to the lawn or soil. Use canes to prop up the plant and support with ties as it grows. Dont tie it too tight but enough to hold it up. The roots should go via the pots holes in the bottom, into the ground and blossom without planting them at all. Its what we did with the cherry tomatoes thise year. I did my ones late and they did not grow like the money makers but they are really going some now. Its the mistakes that I do now that will help me and the reader of this blog get better results.

So with all that I thought that some pics from my garden. well more artistic ones in this post will go nicely. I do have loads of other pictures of the crops in my other posts but to be honest these ones are testing out my new camera to see what it can do, plus develop my picture taking skills.

Enjoy:

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Wine making…..

Posted by admin | Posted in Personal | Posted on 20-09-2009

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So, another type of drink for me to drink! I love the stuff! I will be doing, red, white and may be beer too. I have just done my rose wine, it looks like vinto but its really great. Its easy easy easy actually, wine consentration, water both cold and hot, sugar, yeast and a couple of other little packets of magic. It started bubbling yestserday and today its gone a little bit madder but by Friday I can add the other bits to take the wind out of it and then Saturday put it in bottles. Thats right just seven days, I get proper nice wine, home made! Cant wait.

So this is the home brew wine:

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Another weeks picks

Posted by admin | Posted in Personal | Posted on 20-09-2009

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This week has been a mad one,  loads of hours overtime, lots of back and forth and a ton of vegetables. I have got a load of potatoes, still loads to go, a carrot, 2 bowls of tomatoes, green peppers, dwarf bean and runner beans. We have some red perppers growing too, I knew that peppers change color but seeing it happen is really cool! Gemma made chili con-carny from our tomatoes, chillies and peppers so is a true homegrown dish! Lucky work colleges will get a few cucumbers as I am sick of them / cant eat them all!

I have given alot of stuff away but I think its time to work out what we have got back in value so far! my workings out will come soon.

Any way for now here is this weeks offering:

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