It’s true! I’ve done it! I’ve eaten a vegetable that I grew myself.
I planted last year’s vegetable garden on Memorial Day weekend. I was really excited to be growing my own veggies. The list included cucumbers, tomatoes, green and red peppers, oregano, basil, and an eggplant. My Airbnb guests thought it was really cool.
Initial start-up cost: $88
Includes: two bags of nutritious soil ($4.50 each), 13 plants for $2.50/plant, $4.99 for a roll of black landscape fabric (already had pins), 4 tomato cages at $2/cage, $2.95/panel+tax for 8 small garden fences, $2 for annuals, and $2 for a bag of mulch
All was going well (except the cucumbers, which got rained out and died within a week), and we seemed to have some tomatoes and peppers forming. Unfortunately, tobacco hornworms came and ate all the leaves of the plants. They literally ate the plants up within two days and left the garden with nothing. We got a special organic spray to keep them away, but it was too little too late. The garden was a goner.
I was on the fence about trying again this year, but figured it was worth a shot. We picked up the same organic spray, and much to my delight, this year started out significantly better! No tobacco hornworms!
Second-year cost: $48
Includes: two bags of nutritious soil ($4.50 each), 12 plants for $2.50/plant, organic spray ($6 for a bottle)
I have now eaten my own home-grown vegetables. Granted, I had four tiny red peppers, and it’s a far cry from accomplished farmer.
And then a different caterpillar came to eat my garden. We’ve decided to rip out the garden and put down pavers instead. The end.
Have you been able to successfully grow your own food? Any tips or tricks? Should we really try again next year?