Is growing vegetables cheaper than buying them?
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)- Prices at the grocery store may have people thinking about starting their own vegetable garden. They may also be wondering if it's worth it. Popular vegetables found in home gardens like cherry tomatoes, peppers, or strawberries can be costly in a grocery store but is it cheaper to grow them?
The six most cost-effective vegetables to grow in a home garden are curly kale, tomatoes, lettuce, broccoli, potatoes, and asparagus, according to Country Living. While starting vegetables from seed may save the most money, buying plants may also save some money depending on the amount yielded.
"Growing a garden has the potential to reduce the amount of money spent on groceries. But this 'potential' depends on the costs involved in growing the crops, types, and amounts of vegetables grown, yields that are derived from the garden, and other factors," according to Iowa State University.
A jalapeno plant can grow between 25-35 pods, according to Colorado State University. A pound of jalapenos, based on the Hannaford website, costs $2.99 a pound. There are between 12-20 jalapenos in a pound, according to Walmart. Jalapeno plants are available at Home Depot for $4.78 a plant.
If there are 12 jalapenos in a pound, the price of a single jalapeno would be $.25. To make back the money spent on the plant, a home grower would have to get a yield of at least 19 jalapenos. If a grower gets 35 jalapenos from a plant at a cost of $.25, they will come out ahead. They will have made enough to cover the cost of the plant and put $3.97 in their pocket.
A pack of jalapeno seeds costs $2.89 at Home Depot, which has the potential to put more money back in home growers' pockets. If a grower gets 3 plants from a pack of seeds with each plant yielding 20 pods, they will have made $12.11 supposing each pod cost $.25, minus the cost of the seeds.
This doesn't consider the cost, however minimal or watering a home garden, or the time spent tending to it by pulling weeds. However, improved health could be an added benefit of having a home garden.
Gardening decreases stress, promotes exercise and healthy eating, as well as improves concentration, according to Resources to Recovery. "Humans have long known that being engaged in the natural world of growing plants is good for us, but there is also plenty of research to back this up. While gardening can be tough on your body, it’s a mental massage for your mind and emotions."