I am working on a small program where I can grow vegetables for families in need of food, and at the beginning of the season I put their names on a "wish list". By the end of the growing season, I charge them $10 to pay for composting supplies and water, and they get boxes of different vegetables and herbs. I also offer the option to come help. The only catch is that they have to listen to me preach about nutrition and the important role having vegetables from a nearby garden will play in your diet.
My question is, does anyone have tips for growing a large garden, not big enough to be a farm, but big enough to feed a few families? Any ways to save money? I bought heirloom varieties this year, so I can save the seeds. My town is small, and there's not really that many horses around, so good horse manure is hard to find. Any ideas on composting a cheaper way? Does organic gardening have to be expensive, or is there a way to be organic and cheap? I would really like to provide these families with organic vegetables.
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sisterofafallenhero
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gixxerific
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Organic gardening does not have to be expensive. Have you priced chemical fertilizer lately! 
You don't NEED to have manure. You could make good compost with what you have around you. To be really basic all you need is the grass in your lawn and leaves in your trees, and you might as well throw your food scraps in there, (no meats though).
There is a thread on this site as well as another site I frequents where others as well as my self have gone out and picked up other peoples leaves during the fall, the same could be done with grass during the spring and summer. There is one person on the other site that dang near has enough free leaves that it is almost a commercial size operation. Of course going this way your compost would not be ready right now, but it would be good to start for the future.
Good call on the heirlooms to save seed therefore reducing operating cost for years following. I applaud what you are doing. Good luck I'm sure there will be many more people chiming in with great ideas.
Oh and welcome to the forum fellow Missourian.
You don't NEED to have manure. You could make good compost with what you have around you. To be really basic all you need is the grass in your lawn and leaves in your trees, and you might as well throw your food scraps in there, (no meats though).
There is a thread on this site as well as another site I frequents where others as well as my self have gone out and picked up other peoples leaves during the fall, the same could be done with grass during the spring and summer. There is one person on the other site that dang near has enough free leaves that it is almost a commercial size operation. Of course going this way your compost would not be ready right now, but it would be good to start for the future.
Good call on the heirlooms to save seed therefore reducing operating cost for years following. I applaud what you are doing. Good luck I'm sure there will be many more people chiming in with great ideas.
Oh and welcome to the forum fellow Missourian.
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gixxerific
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Don't forget to check out the [url=https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=11]Organic[/url], [url=https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=35]Compost[/url], and [url=https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=30]Permaculture[/url] sections of this forum you may find some answers their to your questions as well as answers to questions you didn't even know you had.
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applestar
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Check out the BROWNS and GREENS sticky at the top of the Compost Forum.
For a lot of us, fall leaves, landscape wastes (grass and weed clippings, etc.), shredded paper and other waste paper and pulp products (like egg cartons, TP and paper towel cores, etc.), kitchen scraps, used coffee grounds gathered from coffee houses, convenience stores, etc. provide the main ingredients to our compost. Those of us in a more urban/suburban setting don't have access to manure either. Dedicated folks get spoiled produce from grocery stores too.
I remember the University cafeteria had a regular agreement with a local hog farmer -- so perhaps in a more agricultural area, they would be spoken for, and some schools have compost programs already, but you may find schools in your community where you could organize cafeteria scrap donation as well. Get them to put compost-worthy things in a dedicated bucket/can for you.
For a lot of us, fall leaves, landscape wastes (grass and weed clippings, etc.), shredded paper and other waste paper and pulp products (like egg cartons, TP and paper towel cores, etc.), kitchen scraps, used coffee grounds gathered from coffee houses, convenience stores, etc. provide the main ingredients to our compost. Those of us in a more urban/suburban setting don't have access to manure either. Dedicated folks get spoiled produce from grocery stores too.
I remember the University cafeteria had a regular agreement with a local hog farmer -- so perhaps in a more agricultural area, they would be spoken for, and some schools have compost programs already, but you may find schools in your community where you could organize cafeteria scrap donation as well. Get them to put compost-worthy things in a dedicated bucket/can for you.
Last edited by applestar on Thu Jan 21, 2010 12:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
a few easy ways to save money...
- make your own compost from the gardens scraps or free local scraps( just be careful of sources)
- save seeds from your garden ( this can benefit you in more ways than you know)
- use natural local materials whenever possible(search for waste materials that could be free)
- encourage natural pest control
- make your own compost from the gardens scraps or free local scraps( just be careful of sources)
- save seeds from your garden ( this can benefit you in more ways than you know)
- use natural local materials whenever possible(search for waste materials that could be free)
- encourage natural pest control
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rainbowgardener
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Agree with all of the above. I almost don't understand the question "does organic gardening have to be expensive?" CHEMICAL gardening is expensive, buying lots of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides.
I'm an organic gardener and I buy almost nothing for my veggie garden. I use compost for fertilizer (made with all the garden remnants, kitchen scraps, and lots of fall leaves I collected from around the neighborhood, no manure), use leaves, grass clippings, and wood chips for mulch (and I make a lot of the wood chips myself, running brush through my chipper). I have a home made insecticide from onions, garlic, hot peppers etc and I just pull whatever weeds make it through the mulch. The only thing I usually buy is some seeds, but I do also save a lot of seeds...
Can't say I never spend money on my gardening hobby, but that's because I'm also doing a reforestation project and buy trees and shrubs for that, but that's separate from the veggie garden.
I think what you want to do is a wonderful idea. I'd suggest without a lot of experience doing it, you be careful and start small, and let the project grow as you get successes with it.
I'm an organic gardener and I buy almost nothing for my veggie garden. I use compost for fertilizer (made with all the garden remnants, kitchen scraps, and lots of fall leaves I collected from around the neighborhood, no manure), use leaves, grass clippings, and wood chips for mulch (and I make a lot of the wood chips myself, running brush through my chipper). I have a home made insecticide from onions, garlic, hot peppers etc and I just pull whatever weeds make it through the mulch. The only thing I usually buy is some seeds, but I do also save a lot of seeds...
Can't say I never spend money on my gardening hobby, but that's because I'm also doing a reforestation project and buy trees and shrubs for that, but that's separate from the veggie garden.
I think what you want to do is a wonderful idea. I'd suggest without a lot of experience doing it, you be careful and start small, and let the project grow as you get successes with it.
1)join the book club starting up. Look for the thread "teaming with microbes"
2)bokashi! It's a great way to involve everyone and make use of kitchen waste including meats. There are diy buckets your members could make. Just how them where to bury it next.
3)everybody compost/vermicompost. More involved, but worth a try.
4)municipal resources like leaf mold and park clippings and chippings.
5)get a grant!
6)borrow tools. Have members make them available.
7)don't start with a lot of tomatoes. Collards, kale, broccoli, lettuce, cukes, squashes, herbs, wild and regular rocket, corn if you got room... Those plants will do better in soil that grows grass right now. Build your soil into the next level, then do the nightshades.
2)bokashi! It's a great way to involve everyone and make use of kitchen waste including meats. There are diy buckets your members could make. Just how them where to bury it next.
3)everybody compost/vermicompost. More involved, but worth a try.
4)municipal resources like leaf mold and park clippings and chippings.
5)get a grant!
6)borrow tools. Have members make them available.
7)don't start with a lot of tomatoes. Collards, kale, broccoli, lettuce, cukes, squashes, herbs, wild and regular rocket, corn if you got room... Those plants will do better in soil that grows grass right now. Build your soil into the next level, then do the nightshades.