How much do your tomato plants Cost? - Page 2

AlittleSalt · March 5, 2016

I really don't want to think about it

I just bought a $15 bottle of Daconil and a $20 water hose that's going back because it kinks just as much as the ancient water hose it replaced. I saw a 100' black one at Walmart guaranteed not to kink for $40.

Yep, gardening cost money

bower · March 5, 2016

Starting from scratch this year, I can get a bale of sphagnum peat 3.8 cu/ft, 107 liters for $10.50 and the compost is about $5.50 for a 22 liter bag. A roughly 50/50 mix works out to $3.90 each per 5+ gallon volume. Perlite is expensive so they won't get much of that. Kelp is free, only insofar as my time is free as in beer, picking kelp off the beach, drying and crushing it or chopping into sushi. Counting ferts, I would ballpark $5 per container plant, not overly generous soil volume.
I would be scared to start estimating the labour involved, after material cost.

Somebody mentioned in Salt's thread "you know you're a tomato lover when" everyone asks what's your secret, and the secret is you spend every available minute of your time..... ah yes.

How do you measure the labour of love and obsession?

And the labour involved in greenhouse maintenance and repairs, washing up pots and containers, also has to be reckoned besides the time spent watering, feeding, pruning, tying and oohing ahhing and muttering sweet nothings to the green fruit and beautiful leaves. If we're honest with ourselves. We do it for them.

Barb_FL · March 5, 2016

I don't want to think about it either; I do reuse my mix from year to year; last year I spent close to $60 just for the 3 ply bags to solarize my mix. But that is way cheaper than buying all new ProMix. I go through about 2-3 of the huge promix bales.

This year's added expense is 1 sticky trap per plant. I went through 45 for the fall season and never really got a handle on the bugs/white flies.

This alone adds $.80 per plant.

Need to find Salt's thread.

ContainerTed · March 5, 2016

You can't buy what we produce. Delicious heirlooms - most of which can't be purchased anywhere. Some will be found in farmers markets, but not many varieties. So, what is the value of the product we get.

Who cares?? It's all about spoiling ourselves with the best stuff available. If you try to compare grocery store garbage with the great tomatoes coming out of our gardens, you're not getting the point.

Why do some folks go for dinner at an expensive restaurant?? Yeah, I don't know, either. I'd rather go to dinner at Worth's place.

If you have to count pennies to grow a few tomatoes, then you need to go out and get a job.

How much do folks spend on their hobbies?? How much does it cost to go see a professional sports event?? How large is your liquor bill?? Do you smoke?? Do you gamble??

If we analyze it too much, the enjoyment will wane. Cry-key, just enjoy.

Okay, I feel better now

maxjohnson · March 6, 2016

Well I started gardening two years ago in Florida, the garden was all light color sandy soil and weeds. I didn't know anything about building soil. I went with the organic method, bought really crappy soil from Home Depot and ordering extremely expensive organic amendments from online. So I guess it was about $100 per plant. Barely got much worth of food out of it. The total cost during the first year was enough to buy a good condition used car.

Now I only use compost and mulching, so it's cheaper everyday, I pretty much stopped buying all amendments except for one general purpose fertilizer to make mixes and give to transplanted seedlings. I think it will be less and less each year. I make my trellis out of conduit pipes and nylon netting so they don't really need repair. With the mulching and rain barrels I won't be wasting too much water as well.

sjamesNorway · March 7, 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by ContainerTed

You can't buy what we produce. Delicious heirlooms - most of which can't be purchased anywhere. Some will be found in farmers markets, but not many varieties. So, what is the value of the product we get.

Who cares?? It's all about spoiling ourselves with the best stuff available. If you try to compare grocery store garbage with the great tomatoes coming out of our gardens, you're not getting the point.

Why do some folks go for dinner at an expensive restaurant?? Yeah, I don't know, either. I'd rather go to dinner at Worth's place.

If you have to count pennies to grow a few tomatoes, then you need to go out and get a job.

How much do folks spend on their hobbies?? How much does it cost to go see a professional sports event?? How large is your liquor bill?? Do you smoke?? Do you gamble??

If we analyze it too much, the enjoyment will wane. Cry-key, just enjoy.

Okay, I feel better now

Well said, Ted! I couldn't agree more. What are a few dollars (or kroner = crowns) compared to the enjoyment and fun, which are priceless.

Steve

bower · March 7, 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjamesNorway

Well said, Ted! I couldn't agree more. What are a few dollars (or kroner = crowns) compared to the enjoyment and fun, which are priceless.

Steve

+1. Ted, so well said.

Growing fantastic tomatoes is one of those things, where I enjoy a standard of living I couldn't otherwise afford... if it was even available at all. It's like the matsutake patch..

you can't buy it, it tastes amazing, and why worry about how many hours it takes.... priceless.

Sun City Linda · March 7, 2016

I've had other obsessions that costs a good bit more and yielded much poorer results.

AlittleSalt · March 7, 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by ContainerTed

You can't buy what we produce. Delicious heirlooms - most of which can't be purchased anywhere. Some will be found in farmers markets, but not many varieties. So, what is the value of the product we get.

Who cares?? It's all about spoiling ourselves with the best stuff available. If you try to compare grocery store garbage with the great tomatoes coming out of our gardens, you're not getting the point.

Why do some folks go for dinner at an expensive restaurant?? Yeah, I don't know, either. I'd rather go to dinner at Worth's place.

If you have to count pennies to grow a few tomatoes, then you need to go out and get a job.

How much do folks spend on their hobbies?? How much does it cost to go see a professional sports event?? How large is your liquor bill?? Do you smoke?? Do you gamble??

If we analyze it too much, the enjoyment will wane. Cry-key, just enjoy.

Okay, I feel better now

+++++ you nailed it Ted. I agree with every word you wrote.

I personally worry about every penny I spend that isn't spent on my wife or to some point our grandchildren. I have a credit rating near 800 and complain when I need to go buy a $3 T shirt. I need to work on that.

Sun City Linda · March 7, 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by ContainerTed

You can't buy what we produce. Delicious heirlooms - most of which can't be purchased anywhere. Some will be found in farmers markets, but not many varieties. So, what is the value of the product we get.

Who cares?? It's all about spoiling ourselves with the best stuff available. If you try to compare grocery store garbage with the great tomatoes coming out of our gardens, you're not getting the point.

Why do some folks go for dinner at an expensive restaurant?? Yeah, I don't know, either. I'd rather go to dinner at Worth's place.

If you have to count pennies to grow a few tomatoes, then you need to go out and get a job.

How much do folks spend on their hobbies?? How much does it cost to go see a professional sports event?? How large is your liquor bill?? Do you smoke?? Do you gamble??

If we analyze it too much, the enjoyment will wane. Cry-key, just enjoy.

Okay, I feel better now

\

I didn't know Worth was having us all over for dinner. What a guy!

ChiliPeppa · March 7, 2016

I'm with Ted.

The thing about gardens and gardening is that in the beginning you are establishing the garden which takes a lot of effort as well as equipment and supplies whatever that may be. Like the old joke where the guy picks his first ripe tomato and exclaims 'This tomato cost me 50 bucks!' Until you have things down thats kinda true. For me, once my garden was established then its just maintenance stuff. This year I spent a small amount on seed (about $25 and have lots left) and purchased two large bags of potting mix (about $22). I also purchased solo cups in a large bag at Costco which I think was about $9. I potted up about 400 seedling and so far have sold 200 or so to the hardware store here locally. Not much money but it helped. I did buy a small bag of Tomato Tone just to try for my own tomatoes. But mostly everything I need at this point I get for free - used gallon pots and potting trays, horse, chicken and steer manure, hay for mulch etc. It can be done relatively cheaply, and compared to keeping horses its a drop in the bucket.

Worth1 · March 7, 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sun City Linda

\

I didn't know Worth was having us all over for dinner. What a guy!

I read it and found it very complementary thanks.

What do you guys want?

I have been reading and waiting and looking and reading again this thread and it baffles me to no end.
The original thread starter started another thread some time ago about more or less the same thing.
Wanting to know just exactly how many nutrients it took to grow a tomato plant and the cost involved.
It is like asking what is the price of being happy.
In my travels I have seen many unhappy people and they all thought about one thing.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$.

I am going to quote something a wise man once said about taxes.
What belongs to Caesar give to Caesar.
Our money belongs to governments our happiness and lives belong to us.
It is something that cant be taken away but can be given away if we allow it.

Worth

wildcat62 · March 7, 2016

Something off of that smoker will do fine.

BajaMitch · March 8, 2016

Great response to this thread.

It appears that there are two distinct points of view with regard to costs.

Hobbyists. For many of you who grow tomatoes purely as a hobby, the notion of watching costs is not that important; even “scoffed” with an air of being a bit defensive. A good point made by this camp is that the pleasure derived from the hobby and great tasting tomatoes far out ways the costs, especially since this hobby is much cheaper than many other well-known and wide spread hobbies. Auto restoration, offshore or deep-sea fishing, fine dining, professional sporting events, concert going, travel, wine accumulation, aviation, stamp or baseball card collecting, antique or art collection come to mind. By comparison, growing tomatoes is quite literally “dirt cheap”.

For profit. For those of you who grow tomatoes for profit and income, costs are, in fact, a consideration…that’s rational. I was surprised to learn that many of you are grow seedlings for income…never thought of that. And yet, for others, cost is a consideration out of pure, common sense economics. I am in this camp.To me, to spend more than is necessary is simply wasteful and illogical.

The reason I started this thread is because I noticed a huge variance in Tomatovillians’ approaches to the selection of tomato growing resources and yet no one was pointing that out. For example, some people are buying ProMix BX and others are using common potting mixes. There is a vast difference in cost by multiples.Some are using expensive (way, way over priced) liquid ferts and specialty ferts like mychorrizae, bat guano, worm castings. And yet, others are featuring mostly self made compost or low costing composted chicken or steer manure, or limiting ferts to one or two dry granular tomato ferts such as Tomato-Tone or Miracle-Gro Shake n’ Feed. Again, a big, big difference in cost.Some are using 10 to 25 gallon containers for a single plant and others are using 5 gallon (or less) containers. The cost differential here is also in multiples.

I grow tomatoes as a hobby and because I love food. Home grown tomatoes can be fantastic. But, as a finance kind of guy, there is always a cost benefit factor.And, to make this hobby more interesting and challenging, the mission is to determine the most cost effective way to grow tomatoes in a container that will consistently yield a decent crop, optimizing cost to benefit. It’s a win, win proposition.

So far, my recipes for my concocted potting mixes (including ferts) are costing from $0.64/gallon to $0.99/gallon and my containers hold from 3.8 gallons of mix to 5.9 gallons. Also, since SWCs hold less grow media than non-SWCs (for the same size container), they are at least 25% cheaper to use.

I use seedlings. After settling on what is determined to be the optimal potting mix recipe and pot size, starting from seeds will save quite a bit of money.

I am enjoying this hobby immensely. Much of the enjoyment is coming from the challenge of saving money. It’s like fishing with light tackle.

Worth1 · March 8, 2016

I see your point and if you are just growing in containers myself would used the MG plant food and buy it in the 5 pound box for around $9.00 or so.
The only draw back is it isn't organic.
Another option would be to get a gallon of Alaska Fish fertilizer and use it.
This is what I am using in a 5 gallon container to see how it does.
Instead of mixing it with water I poured about 3 tablespoons around the plant and watered it in.
The darn thing is exploding.

Worth

March 5, 2016	#19
ContainerTed Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: 6a - NE Tennessee Posts: 4,538	You can't buy what we produce. Delicious heirlooms - most of which can't be purchased anywhere. Some will be found in farmers markets, but not many varieties. So, what is the value of the product we get. Who cares?? It's all about spoiling ourselves with the best stuff available. If you try to compare grocery store garbage with the great tomatoes coming out of our gardens, you're not getting the point. Why do some folks go for dinner at an expensive restaurant?? Yeah, I don't know, either. I'd rather go to dinner at Worth's place. If you have to count pennies to grow a few tomatoes, then you need to go out and get a job. How much do folks spend on their hobbies?? How much does it cost to go see a professional sports event?? How large is your liquor bill?? Do you smoke?? Do you gamble?? If we analyze it too much, the enjoyment will wane. Cry-key, just enjoy. Okay, I feel better now __________________ Ted ________________________ Owner & Sole Operator Of The Muddy Bucket Farm and Tomato Ranch

March 6, 2016	#20
maxjohnson Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: OH 6a Posts: 592	Well I started gardening two years ago in Florida, the garden was all light color sandy soil and weeds. I didn't know anything about building soil. I went with the organic method, bought really crappy soil from Home Depot and ordering extremely expensive organic amendments from online. So I guess it was about $100 per plant. Barely got much worth of food out of it. The total cost during the first year was enough to buy a good condition used car. Now I only use compost and mulching, so it's cheaper everyday, I pretty much stopped buying all amendments except for one general purpose fertilizer to make mixes and give to transplanted seedlings. I think it will be less and less each year. I make my trellis out of conduit pipes and nylon netting so they don't really need repair. With the mulching and rain barrels I won't be wasting too much water as well. Last edited by maxjohnson; March 6, 2016 at 07:44 PM.

March 8, 2016	#29
BajaMitch Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: California Posts: 84	Great response to this thread. It appears that there are two distinct points of view with regard to costs. Hobbyists. For many of you who grow tomatoes purely as a hobby, the notion of watching costs is not that important; even “scoffed” with an air of being a bit defensive. A good point made by this camp is that the pleasure derived from the hobby and great tasting tomatoes far out ways the costs, especially since this hobby is much cheaper than many other well-known and wide spread hobbies. Auto restoration, offshore or deep-sea fishing, fine dining, professional sporting events, concert going, travel, wine accumulation, aviation, stamp or baseball card collecting, antique or art collection come to mind. By comparison, growing tomatoes is quite literally “dirt cheap”. For profit. For those of you who grow tomatoes for profit and income, costs are, in fact, a consideration…that’s rational. I was surprised to learn that many of you are grow seedlings for income…never thought of that. And yet, for others, cost is a consideration out of pure, common sense economics. I am in this camp.To me, to spend more than is necessary is simply wasteful and illogical. The reason I started this thread is because I noticed a huge variance in Tomatovillians’ approaches to the selection of tomato growing resources and yet no one was pointing that out. For example, some people are buying ProMix BX and others are using common potting mixes. There is a vast difference in cost by multiples.Some are using expensive (way, way over priced) liquid ferts and specialty ferts like mychorrizae, bat guano, worm castings. And yet, others are featuring mostly self made compost or low costing composted chicken or steer manure, or limiting ferts to one or two dry granular tomato ferts such as Tomato-Tone or Miracle-Gro Shake n’ Feed. Again, a big, big difference in cost.Some are using 10 to 25 gallon containers for a single plant and others are using 5 gallon (or less) containers. The cost differential here is also in multiples. I grow tomatoes as a hobby and because I love food. Home grown tomatoes can be fantastic. But, as a finance kind of guy, there is always a cost benefit factor.And, to make this hobby more interesting and challenging, the mission is to determine the most cost effective way to grow tomatoes in a container that will consistently yield a decent crop, optimizing cost to benefit. It’s a win, win proposition. So far, my recipes for my concocted potting mixes (including ferts) are costing from $0.64/gallon to $0.99/gallon and my containers hold from 3.8 gallons of mix to 5.9 gallons. Also, since SWCs hold less grow media than non-SWCs (for the same size container), they are at least 25% cheaper to use. I use seedlings. After settling on what is determined to be the optimal potting mix recipe and pot size, starting from seeds will save quite a bit of money. I am enjoying this hobby immensely. Much of the enjoyment is coming from the challenge of saving money. It’s like fishing with light tackle. Last edited by BajaMitch; March 8, 2016 at 11:36 AM.

March 5, 2016	#16
AlittleSalt BANNED FOR LIFE Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 13,333	I really don't want to think about it I just bought a $15 bottle of Daconil and a $20 water hose that's going back because it kinks just as much as the ancient water hose it replaced. I saw a 100' black one at Walmart guaranteed not to kink for $40. Yep, gardening cost money

March 5, 2016	#17
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,794	Starting from scratch this year, I can get a bale of sphagnum peat 3.8 cu/ft, 107 liters for $10.50 and the compost is about $5.50 for a 22 liter bag. A roughly 50/50 mix works out to $3.90 each per 5+ gallon volume. Perlite is expensive so they won't get much of that. Kelp is free, only insofar as my time is free as in beer, picking kelp off the beach, drying and crushing it or chopping into sushi. Counting ferts, I would ballpark $5 per container plant, not overly generous soil volume. I would be scared to start estimating the labour involved, after material cost. Somebody mentioned in Salt's thread "you know you're a tomato lover when" everyone asks what's your secret, and the secret is you spend every available minute of your time..... ah yes. How do you measure the labour of love and obsession? And the labour involved in greenhouse maintenance and repairs, washing up pots and containers, also has to be reckoned besides the time spent watering, feeding, pruning, tying and oohing ahhing and muttering sweet nothings to the green fruit and beautiful leaves. If we're honest with ourselves. We do it for them.

March 5, 2016	#18
Barb_FL Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Indialantic, Florida Posts: 2,000	I don't want to think about it either; I do reuse my mix from year to year; last year I spent close to $60 just for the 3 ply bags to solarize my mix. But that is way cheaper than buying all new ProMix. I go through about 2-3 of the huge promix bales. This year's added expense is 1 sticky trap per plant. I went through 45 for the fall season and never really got a handle on the bugs/white flies. This alone adds $.80 per plant. Need to find Salt's thread.

March 7, 2016	#23
Sun City Linda Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: SoCal Inland Posts: 2,705	I've had other obsessions that costs a good bit more and yielded much poorer results.

March 7, 2016	#26
ChiliPeppa Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: Mojave Desert - California Posts: 368	I'm with Ted. The thing about gardens and gardening is that in the beginning you are establishing the garden which takes a lot of effort as well as equipment and supplies whatever that may be. Like the old joke where the guy picks his first ripe tomato and exclaims 'This tomato cost me 50 bucks!' Until you have things down thats kinda true. For me, once my garden was established then its just maintenance stuff. This year I spent a small amount on seed (about $25 and have lots left) and purchased two large bags of potting mix (about $22). I also purchased solo cups in a large bag at Costco which I think was about $9. I potted up about 400 seedling and so far have sold 200 or so to the hardware store here locally. Not much money but it helped. I did buy a small bag of Tomato Tone just to try for my own tomatoes. But mostly everything I need at this point I get for free - used gallon pots and potting trays, horse, chicken and steer manure, hay for mulch etc. It can be done relatively cheaply, and compared to keeping horses its a drop in the bucket.

March 7, 2016	#28
wildcat62 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2014 Location: Zone 6 Northern Kentucky Posts: 1,094	Something off of that smoker will do fine.

March 8, 2016	#30
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	I see your point and if you are just growing in containers myself would used the MG plant food and buy it in the 5 pound box for around $9.00 or so. The only draw back is it isn't organic. Another option would be to get a gallon of Alaska Fish fertilizer and use it. This is what I am using in a 5 gallon container to see how it does. Instead of mixing it with water I poured about 3 tablespoons around the plant and watered it in. The darn thing is exploding. Worth