Growing Winter veg - is it worthwhile?

[Penellype]

Yes veg are cheap in the shops.
But generally you have to buy more that you need.
Carrots for example usually come in bags although some do sell them loose.
I hate waste!
So if I can pull one or two fresh carrots when I need them it's perfect.
Kale similar, only need a leaf or two.
Jimmy

This has always been one of my problems too, living on my own. A single cabbage, supermarket size, would feed me for a week, and I'm not that keen on cabbage. Same for things like kale, swedes and many other things that come ready packaged. There is also the issue of all that non-recyclable plastic packaging, but don't get me started on that one!

[Jimmy]

I think in Spar you can buy one carrot without any packaging.
I usually have two plastic bags one in each back pocket of my jeans.
They are always there in case of emergency purchases.
Jimmy

[bikermike]

for me there are many reasons to grown your own
1) Supermarket veg may look fresh, but lots of it (eg apples) are stored for long period (usually in nitrogen) - it's an impressive thing, but the vitamin levels drop off
2) Supermarket veg will be soused in pesticides - most are probably safe, but evidence changes over time, and any chemical that lingers may build up in you and then on to the environment
3) greenhouse gasses - those veg weren't brought to the shop by elves, but great big diesel lorries - every bit you grow yourself (and every bit of waste you compost) is a teeny bit less CO2 released into the atmosphere
4) keeping varieties going - commercial varieties are great, but they generally are optimised for one thing - growth at expense of flavour. Disease resistance may be compromised.
5) gardening is good for you mentally and physically
6) nothing beats freshness when it comes to veg.


there's nothing wrong per se with supermarket food, but it's better to grow your own.
If you really want to work out why it's a bad idea, try working out your timecost using minimum wage...

[Snoop Puss]

Mr Snoop has just come back from the market with a green cauli. There are lots of veg stalls at the market, so it's not a monopoly. He paid two pounds 30 p for a small one. Mine are rubbish, as I've given up watering them. Must do better next year at that price!

[Newt]

I think for me it's as much about the pleasure of being out on the allotment as it is about the cost of veg.

That, and I'm not convinced by the taste of a lot of the stuff I buy in the supermarkets. I seem to see a lot of mealy fruit, a lot of stuff that never ripens properly, and a lot of veg that *should* last weeks if stored well going off within a few days. I know supermarkets sometimes store food for weeks before shipping it to the shops, so a lot of the nutrition and flavour has been lost by the time it goes in my cupboard.

I think when you factor in quality, that makes a difference, and I wouldn't compare the cheapest-possible varieties of shop-bought stuff against my home grown to work out how cost-effective it is.

[Jimmy]

I think for me it's as much about the pleasure of being out on the allotment as it is about the cost of veg.

Very true. I don't now have an allotment but a nice patch at the side of the house.
Nothing more relaxing than pottering in the garden and greenhouse. Even digging the beds is therapeutic (big word!).
The veg is only part of it.
Jimmy

[veggiechicken]

OK, I think we're all agreed that its good to grow things over winter, even if its just for the pleasure of being outdoors.
However, does it make sense to grow the veggies that are in the ground for a long time and, maybe, are a bit difficult to get right, or should our efforts go into growing veg that are relatively easy.
Do we try to grow sprouts, parsnip and swede for Christmas because its traditional to eat them then or should we put our time and effort into growing other veg that may have a better success rate?
For example, I could have overwintering broad beans and peas in the ground that is full of puny swede and sproutless sprouts.

BTW I'm a shareholder in a local Organic veg farm and can buy my veg from them if I'm looking for organic, quality veg, so I don't have to buy cheap from the supermarkets. I used to have a vegbox from them but stopped because the contents often duplicated whatever I had grown myself!

Hope you all realise I'm playing Devil's Advocate here

[Kirk]

Unless in pots I have had little success with potato's, parsnips sort of once OK, cabbage no real interest in. Equally you have to ask is growing any "common" veg worthwhile. Reason simply that when we dig them up to eat it is around the peak time for them so they are likely at the least cost in a supermarket.

I tend to grow for the differences as in 3 or 4 varieties of tomato's. I do not grow to compete with those in a supermarket.

Grow maybe 1 or 2 pots of potato's so I do not have to buy 2.5Kg of the things at once, as I can be sure 1Kg will go off maybe 1.5Kg. And agian I grow say PFA and/or Anja potato's I do not try to grow baking potato's.

Other items that may be considered as possible supermarket items such as leeks I grow again so I do not have to get a bag of 2 or 3. And waste easily 1 of them.

Celery is a pain. I might use a stick or two from a shop bought whole celery. The rest generally ends up as compost.

If you are going to go into competition with a supermarket then the only "win" option is that you can swap your time (free) against the supermarket cost. Or you simply want to and cost is not considered, cost being seed, manure, feed and whatever else.

Is buying a garlic bulb at £2.50 worth it when you add in the manure cost to get hopefully anything.

My last bag of manure was £3.50 so lets say 1/5 is in the garlic area, that makes £2.50 and £0.70, so £3:20 for a row of maybe 8 garlics, my bed is about 2 meters long. That is 40p a garlic IF they grow well. You can buy them at 25p and 30p. Which I suppose is why people split a supermarket on and plant it as you likely cannot lose and might win.

In effect I do not grow to compete with a supermarket, I grow for the differences to a supermarket.

[WPG]

The main winter veg I grow is purple sprouting brocolli - a thousand times better to pick and eat within an hour, than buy expensive wilting stems which have been flown in from south america or somewhere. I've grown a few different varieties this year so will have a constant supply from now until around April.

I also grow romanesco as a late autumn/winter crop - never seen it in our local supermarket. The plants take up so much space for a single head, so I'm not sure I'll bother next year.

I've got leeks overwintering, although they're less of a money saver than the broccolli. I've also grown sprouts by accident this year so will pick some on xmas day....again, not quite so excited by these because locally sourced sprouts and leeks are so cheap in the shops.

So I think some winter veg are worthwhile and others aren't really going to save money or air miles. But as I pay quite a hefty sum for my allotment I don't like to think of it lying empty for half the year.

[Snadger]

Ok, I'll put the cat amomg the pigeons!

The mark of a good vegetable gardener (in my opinion) is having something growing on all areas of his plot 52 weeks of the year.

Which makes me about a 60% gardener, but I'm working on it for next year!

[veggiechicken]

Does that include weeds, Snadger?
I agree in principle, its the choice of What to grow that I'm having difficulty with.

[Small pumpkin]

You better be growing sprouts next year



You know why

[Snoop Puss]

Is buying a garlic bulb at £2.50 worth it when you add in the manure cost to get hopefully anything.

My last bag of manure was £3.50 so lets say 1/5 is in the garlic area, that makes £2.50 and £0.70, so £3:20 for a row of maybe 8 garlics, my bed is about 2 meters long. That is 40p a garlic IF they grow well. You can buy them at 25p and 30p. Which I suppose is why people split a supermarket on and plant it as you likely cannot lose and might win.

I agree with a lot of what you say, Kirk, except when it comes to garlic. The good thing about growing your own garlic is that you pay for it the first year. Thereafter, if you're sensible, you keep a few decent heads over to plant the following year. Meaning no cost to you for the garlic.

[Snadger]

Does that include weeds, Snadger?
I agree in principle, its the choice of What to grow that I'm having difficulty with.

Weeds aren't included, unless you arer going to eat them,use them for a green manure or for cut flowers!
In retrospect I must appologise for the 'his' in my last post, I should have put his / hers!

[Snoop Puss]

So the questions are: what do you eat that is expensive to buy? And what do you grow that's better straight after being harvested rather than after being in transit for a few days?

Sounds like cost isn't an issue, given how cheap things seem to be in supermarkets, nor even availability of organic veg. So, what's better in terms of quality?

Everything I grow and pick over winter tastes better to me than shop-bought, but then I'm not exactly an impartial taster! Certainly, home-grown caulis and sprouts are better than in the shops. As are carrots and parsnips. And I love home-grown cabbage.

One year I did a good job of keeping us in winter salad. Miles better for taste and texture than the bitter stuff available in the shops. I keep meaning to do it again. My intentions are good but somehow I never seem to quite get around to it.

Leeks are probably about the same taste-wise, but one leek here at this time of year is at least 60 pence. I refuse point-blank to buy them.