How Practical and Economical is Gardening?

Are you gardening purely for fun or to save money on your food budget? Are you planning to have simply a summer garden? Or are you expecting to freeze, can, and preserve the food grown there?

We come to the question, "How practical and economical is gardening for your family?"

• Do you spend time gardening that could be spent on earning a living?
• Do you spend a great deal of money for equipment, seeds and plants? (These items aren't cheap if you total all you spend.)
• How much money would you save? (Calculate the cost of seeds, plants and equipment, plus the cost of your time...unless this is family recreation. Then subtract what you might spend instead for the same foods.)
• If you're planning to preserve food, do you have the containers and other items you need? Or must you purchase them? If purchased, will these be used in future years or are they a one time cost?

This is not to say you shouldn't raise a garden. However, be practical about what a garden actually costs you and what you might spend elsewhere.

What do you think?