The 3 Best Ways to Save Money Gardening

So, lots of people get into gardening to save money on groceries only to find out you can spend LOADS more money growing your own food. Now, there are lots of great reasons to get into gardening besides saving money: exercise, fresh air, therapy, quality time with family, organic fresh food, etc. However, most of us need to pay attention to our budget. So, if you're thinking about getting into gardening, here are the three things you should start with. I'll give you an over view here and then go more in depth in future posts.

First: Loose leaf lettuce. Organic lettuce can easily cost $9 a pound at the store. You can grow your own loose leaf lettuce from seeds. I've grown all the lettuce we needed for six months of the year from a $3 seed packet. Here in central PA, you can direct sow lettuce seeds into soil at St Patrick's Day and enjoy it into late June when it will get too hot. Then, start planting again in August and enjoy your lettuce till almost Thanksgiving. Lettuce likes cool weather. Sow more seeds every two weeks to enjoy a continual harvest.

I also love it because there is much less waste. Haven't we all thrown out old lettuce? If you grow head lettuce (like iceberg or romaine) then you harvest the head once and you're done. With loose leaf lettuce you can just go out and clip what you need for the next day or two and none is wasted. Just don't harvest more than 50% of the leaves off of any particular plant at one time.

Image is of part of the herb garden at Mt. Vernon. George Washington knew what he was doing. 

Second: Fresh Herbs. Cooking with fresh herbs is so delicious but having to buy them at the store can really add up. Start by developing your perennial herb garden. Perennial means they will come back every year. In Pennsylvania, you definitely need to include Chives, Oregano, Thyme, and Sage. Plant them in a hot sunny, well drained area and enjoy for years to come. After that, try growing herbs from seed like Basil, Dill and Parsley. Your cooking will be fabulous!

Third: Raspberries. All berries are really delicious, really good for you, and really expensive. Even pick your own berries in season are pricey. What to do? Grow your own. Now, growing any berries will save you money but in my experience raspberries are the easiest. I just spent $12 for three bare root plants and I will harvest tons of berries for many years to come. This also goes for black berries or any other kind of "bramble". I've had great success with "Heritage" raspberries.

How about you? How have you saved money on groceries by gardening? I'd love to hear about it in the comments below.