In search of cheaper food, gardeners run down supplies in Frank...

William Dorman has known his way around a garden before he could crawl or walk. With the rising cost of food and fuel, he won't be the only one farming for a family this summer: Gardening is taking on a new ...

[A Talking Horse]

Just another tree hugger who thinks he going to save the world. Shheeesh.

[SBE]

Nothing in the world like home-grown tomatoes and peppers and corn and cukes and green beans. C'mon Memorial Day, so I can get these plants in the ground!

[SBE]

Only 2 things that money can't buy, and that's true love and home-grown tomatoes!

[Pearly Blue]

Why so cynical horsey?

[Former Chambersburg Girl]

would be nice if the world had more do gooders..think what a happy place it would be talking horse...

[Hippie Chick Earth Mother]

Tree Hugger?
Don't think so, how about "just another guy trying to save a buck and eat healthy by DOING THE RIGHT THING!"
Geesh.
More like a "Talking Horse's behind".

[A Talking Horse]

Hippie Chick Earth Mother wrote:

Tree Hugger?
Don't think so, how about "just another guy trying to save a buck and eat healthy by DOING THE RIGHT THING!"
Geesh.
More like a "Talking Horse's behind".

I was being sarcastic...sorry.

Im currently growing red romaine, buttercrunch, spinach, endive, black-seed simpson, broccolli, beans, peas, cukes, zukes, tomatoes, raddishes, peppers...and more.

I really need to learn more about preservation...

[Mort]

The "little roadside stands" are not all that you say they are. Some of these fellows have been passing their costs on to us for years, and I'm sure will jump prices again this year. They should be lowering prices--no transportation costs, longer growing season here, no middlemen.

[SBE]

It's really easy, just sounds like a big job. A good place to start is with the Ball Blue Book. You can probably get that in the aisle that has canning jars at the grocery store. If not, I know they sell 'em at WallyWorld! Go ahead and invest in a VillaWare strainer - it makes things so much easier. I use it for my tomatoes, my applesauce, my pumpkins, a lot!

[Carol1]

If we come help you weed, do we get a share.

A Talking Horse wrote:

<quoted text>
I was being sarcastic...sorry.
Im currently growing red romaine, buttercrunch, spinach, endive, black-seed simpson, broccolli, beans, peas, cukes, zukes, tomatoes, raddishes, peppers...and more.
I really need to learn more about preservation...

[come on]

I'm going to have to disagree with you Mort. Local food, which is usally much fresher, helps our local farmers survive. It should cost the same or more than the big box stores, just do to the volume. If you want to complain about high food prices then buy your mass produced, flavorless, grade B veggies from Wal-Mart. I'll pay the same or extra to get my food local and keep my money in the "my" community.

Local roadside stand farmers have increased cost just like the rest of us.....

[SBE]

come on wrote:

Local roadside stand farmers have increased cost just like the rest of us.....

And they will be worse this year; between the cost of his gas to get it to the roadside stand and the fact that his "supplies" cost him a lot more. For example, a ton of fertilizer is costing farmers $800 this year, and a 100-lb bag of alfalfa seed is over $200. You may ask why I care about alfalfa, but that's good feed for the cows - could affect dairy and meat.

There will probably be lots more "organic" veggies because of it. That means the appearance of your veggie might not be perfect, but it will taste as good as ever, and you won't have to worry about eating pesticides. Yes, labels warn not to use within so many days of harvesting, but I've always wondered how much is in them anyhow. I don't use pesticides mostly because we eat stuff while we're out working in the garden, and my husband cannot walk past a cherry tomato plant without picking a handful - he calls them candy.

[SBE]

Mort wrote:

no transportation costs

Well, unless they are Amish, there's lots of transportation costs. It takes gasoline for the tractor (or tiller) to turn the garden over, weed the rows (in small gardens), pick the produce, and haul it up to the road to sell. Also, a lot of those roadside stands sell at different location than where they grow.

[Mort]

These are exactly the kind of responses I expected from the local pro farmer cry babies. Just pass all the costs on to the people who can't afford to buy healthy food, and keep collecting your subsidies.

[come on]

The only local producers who are collecting subsidies are one who produce cash crops like corn, soybeans and so on........you go ask the local vegetable producers how many subsidies he or she gets. You only get subsities if you report your crops to the Farm Service Agency.

Since when does an industry NOT pass the cost on to their customers, I'd like to see you run a business and not pass on your cost...wait, let me guess, you would "out of the goodness of your heart" keep your prices low......... and then RUN YOUR BUSINESS INTO THE GROUND.

Do you think vegetables pick, wash and sort themselves all on there own?

I'm not sure what fantasyland your living in but food is not cheap, and its about time America starts paying up, year after year Americans have had the privilege of cheap food, those days are now over.........get over it, or better yet, learn to grow your own

[SBE]

Mort wrote:

These are exactly the kind of responses I expected from the local pro farmer cry babies. Just pass all the costs on to the people who can't afford to buy healthy food, and keep collecting your subsidies.

You obviously have larger farmers in mind than the ones I'm talking about. The farmer I spoke to who gave me those price quotes works a 30-cow dairy farm with just himself and his wife, and a brother who helps on weekends and some evenings when he can. His wife cleans houses and has a couple of other small jobs to help supplement the income. Last year, he had to put in a new well because the old one had bacteria in it and he couldn't sell the milk. And that doesn't include the cost for parts if his tractor or milking machinery breaks. AND he doesn't get any subsidies. He has a mortgage on the farm, and payments on his equipment. He also has to pay for his own health insurance.

He told us that a gallon of milk weighs 12 pounds, and he gets paid $14.00 for 100 pounds of milk.

I would be willing to bet my ranch that most of the people on this board couldn't work as hard as he does and live on the little bit of money he makes. So I'm asking you to please back off on the small farmer criticism until you've walked a mile in a small farmer's shoes.

[SBE]

No, I'm not a small farmer, I'm just an avid gardener. We have some acreage, and we let him use the fields we don't use in exchange for hay for our two pet goats. It helps him, and we don't have to worry about brush-hogging our fields.

[Mort]

come on--next week you'll be complaining about all the rain we just had, then the upcoming drought season next. Don't forget the plight of the bees. I have worked just as hard as any farmer in my lifetime. So have many other posters. If you don't like the business, get out of it.

[SBE]

That's OK, I'm not in "the business" for money, I do it because I enjoy it. I have a job to pay for my hobby.

Why must people always be so mean and critical on these boards? I did not think my comments were mean (at least that was not my intent - if you thought they were, I apologize), so I don't understand why you're being that way towards me, Mort.

There are lots of people who think that they can only eat food that comes from a grocery store, and those people have no idea of the amount of work and money it takes to grow a garden. Yes, even out here in the country. My comments were meant only to "educate" those people.

[Older Person]

A reasonable size personal garden is a delight. A wonderful hobby that suddenly has become a real money saver. Amazing what you can grow with a $1.29 pack of seeds.
Greene Twp.