Poverty Gardening. How To Survive The Recession With A Home Garden

posted December 30, 2008 - 12:21pm

Poverty Gardening. How To Survive The Recession With A Home Garden

It might seem that winter will last forever but now is the time to start planning a spring garden.
The term poverty garden was used during the Great Depression and the term Victory Garden during World War II. Now may be the time to renew the idea of the poverty garden. This year seed sales are projected to be greater than any other year since the 1950's according to the Burpee Seed Company. More Americans than ever are planting gardens to fight high food costs and offset the effects of the recession. This may mean that some kinds of garden seeds will be hard to come by. Now it the time to order garden seeds in case supply becomes an issue.
If you don't already have a space laid out for a garden you can begin planning now. The site needs to get full sun for at least four hours per day and partial sun for the rest. Avoid parts of the yard near shade trees, walls and play scapes.
Start by removing lawn grass and tilling up the soil. You may need a pickax to bust up heavily packed soil. Rake out rocks and grass roots and try to break the soil up at least a foot deep. If your yard is rocky and going deep is not possible you will want to use landscape timers or old railroad ties to build up a border and fill the area with soil that you buy. It may be much cheaper to get a load of organic topsoil delivered than to buy bags at a home improvement store. It all depends on how easy it is for a truck to offload a large pile of dirt and how you will get that dirt into the back yard. It may be that the "one sack at a time" approach is your only option.
You can grow potatoes and tomatoes in containers without the need for a large garden. See the following article on how to grow potatoes in old car tire: http://ehelpfultips.com/how_to_grow_potatoes_in_old_car.htm
You can grow all the tomatoes of potatoes you need in just a couple of containers but for crops like squash, cucumbers, corn and beans you will need a larger garden.
Growing your own vegetables assures that they are fresh and if you avoid pesticides, that they are organic.
There are many non chemical pest control methods you can use, such as diluted dish soap to kill aphids so there is no reason that you would ever have to use chemical pesticides on your garden. Your "poverty garden" can help you save hundreds on your grocery bill and can be a fun family project as well.
Why wait until spring to start planning your garden? You'll be ahead of the game if you get your seeds now and have the soil ready to plant.
For more tips on how to save more money see: http://waystosavemoremoney.com/

Author: doodlebugs

Comments

Gardening is a great skill to learn

jdubhub - Tue, 2008-30-12 12:33 pm

A person who can grown his own food doesn't need to rely on trips to the market to buy food, at least not the most nutritious. The great thing about gardens, too, is that they don't require a lot of space to have big yields. There are varieties of tomato plants that can be grown in a large pot with a trellis for support. The other part to this skill and one that I believe is just as important (something that I am learning how to do myself) is canning. It is not difficult per se, but it does require it be done right to avoid botulism for less acidic foods. The best way to learn I've found is to find someone in your family that knows how to do it or take a class at the local community college, since it is something that is best learned by doing and not so much by just reading about it in a book. As for the actual seeds used in the garden, I'd stay away from the hybrid seeds at the local Home Depot and order heritage seeds online, since heritage seeds can be taken from the harvested fruit and vegetables and replanted the following spring. Hybrids are pretty much a "one and done" planting situation. Great article! +1 JOIN US IN TOASTING YOUR FUTURE SUCCESS!