Gardening can pay big dividends in the form of savings on your grocery bill, but not all garden crops will make for savings at the register. When considering savings, be sure to account for initial garden setup costs, tools, and other supplies.
Here are some of the best money-saving crops to include in your garden:
1. Heirloom tomatoes — These colorful tomatoes are known for their superb flavor, and their popularity has surged in recent years. Because farmer’s market vendors and specialty grocers can charge as much as $4 per pound for them, it’s worth learning to grow your own. According to Profitable Plants Digest, one healthy tomato plant can produce 25 pounds of succulent tomatoes for the miniscule cost of one seed.
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2. Culinary herbs — Any accomplished home cook knows the importance of having fresh herbs on hand. Herbs command high prices in stores. Growing your own is easy even for those with limited space, and it can save you hundreds of dollars in a single growing season, says Savvy Gardener.
3. Lettuces — The cost of lettuce is rising, and that is especially true for plastic tubs of gourmet lettuce mixes at your local grocer. Lettuce is easy to grow from seed and you will have a great variety. Planting just a few square feet of lettuce and harvesting the leaves gradually will ensure you have plenty of fresh salads in spring, according to Earth Easy.
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4. Garlic — A mainstay in any well-equipped kitchen pantry, garlic can cost up to $7 per pound at the supermarket, Earth Easy notes. When you grow your own, you plant individual cloves, and each single clove becomes an entire new head of garlic. Garlic is also easy to grow, and it stores well once harvested, so grow a lot.
5. Zucchini — Summer squash and zucchini plants are prolific at the height of the season. For the cost of just one seed, one plant can yield dozens of fresh squash. In addition to delicious fresh eating, zucchini freezes well and can also be used to make delicious zucchini bread to stretch the yields even further, suggests Bonnie Plants.
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Brande Plotnick is an ambitious home cook, gardener, beekeeper, writer, and speaker who started her website, Tomato Envy, to inspire others to find their deliberately decadent life at home. Brande’s down-to-earth style and approachable manner have been winning over the readers who follow her blog. Her work has been featured in Urban Farm Magazine, Natural Awakenings, Mother Earth News, and the Whole Seed Catalog.
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