[slow_worm]

I am pretty sure most allotments are not cost-effective i.e they never pay for themselves.
even if you exclude the cost of one's labour the amount you spend on them (seeds, fertilizer, equipment etc.) seems to be more than the equivalent value of produce you get off it.  Does anyone have or has ever costed their plots and what value of produce they grow?
I consider mine an expensive hobby as I buy fresh seed etc.  I guess with some cunning plant/equipment choices you could recoup what you spend and make a bit too?  I think too  that you would need more than 126sqm like I have to never have to buy some veg from a shop.
Maybe one day I will add up the weights and price up everything I grow...?  But for me half the fun is experimenting with things to grow or watching things fail!  So there is an element you can't add a cost too.

[aelf]

This subject has come up before and my reply is the same - for me it isn't about cost, it's about fun and enjoyment, excersise and relaxation, escape from a busy life. How do we put a cost value on all that?

And the satisfaction of picking and eating home grown veg.

worth every penny 

[Jonajo]

for me, the most important things are: enjoyment of the whole process and flavour/variety of produce. The money side of things or the "value for money" is not much of an issue for me. Almost any hobby is going to incur costs in terms of money and time....and the latter is a huge part of the fun of it all.

That said, apart from buying a shed, a greenhouse and tools/netting types initially, I spend very little on things on the plot - merely seeds and the very occasional bag of compost/fertiliser.

And for the stuff I grow, and what I would normally have bought from the shops veg and fruit-wise, I am more than happy with the flavour, providence and, in some cases (raspberries, strawberries, asparagus....) the cost is much more in my favour than had I bought those in anything like the quantities I grow.

And my allotmenteering works out FAR FAR less than my main hobby/passion : the theatre!. In fact, the costs on the allotment are wholly insignificant compared to that hobby.

But crucially, I love it!

[mumofstig]

Here is the thread for the last time it was discussed

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=25837.msg305739#msg305739

[stompy]

Apart from my initial dose of Glyphosate at the very begining of starting on the plot, i don't use any chemicals at all, so in effect im as organic as can be on an allotment.
Imagine how much it would cost to buy all organic veg from either a supermarket or greengrocers?
I spend on average £30 on seeds (etc) and £60 on composts and manure.
I got my greenhouse for £10 and the upkeep is around £10 a year on average for broken glass and cleaning (etc) and then £40 a year rent.

So thats a monetary cost of £150 a year.
We as a family of four spend on average £40 a week on fresh veg (not organic) so after 5 weeks we are already overtaking the cost of the allotment if we buy our veg, and like i said thats not organic.

The veg from the allotment also tastes far far far superior from shop bought  produce and it is as fresh as it can be still full with all it's vitamins and minerals.

Now on the other hand, if you take the time spent working it, sowing seeds and bringing plants on (etc) then it is most certainly not financially better, but thats where the enjoyment of bringing seed to plant to plate come into play.
I get tremendouse enjoyment from my allotment and also the kick from most the people i know looking with envy at what i've got and what as a family we do there.

So on a financial side of things i think it's far cheaper than buying your veg.
On a quality side of it it's far better fresher better tasting veg.
And on the enjoyment side of things, well you normally have to pay alot more to get so much from a hoby.

[fatbelly]

My Lottie probably just about pays for itself, I am very frugal when purchasing things (except seeds which I try and buy the best quality).

To me my Lottie is about more than just cost saving.

However I think if I went to our local discount supermarket where Veg is very cheap I could get Veg cheaper than it costs me too produce, but have you tasted Veg from the discount suppliers, to me it tastes so very very bland.

[stompy]

fatbelly, are you calculating your time into the equasion?

[Christo]

For me, it's one the the most enjoyable things in my life. I really can't imagine my life without it now. I think about the allotment when I'm lying in bed before dozing off and I think about it on the train to work in the morning (dozing off again). I love everything about being there, growing living plants from dry seeds, looking after them etc etc.

And of course, there's no end of scope for projects and general tinkering..!  

[Ian_A]

there is no reason why having an allotment cannot be cost-effective, aside from the variation in annual charges.

We grow more than enough for the family and for friends, we don't buy veg or fruit at all (apart from those we cannot grow given our climate) and our food bill has plummetted dramatically since owning an allotment. Yet our overheads on the allotment with seeds and the like really are not that much.

As for time, well I don't spent a lot of time down there (and I love it when I am there) as you don't need to if you are organised. But I am ignoring the occasions when I am there lounging about, chatting, soaking up the atmosphere.

Sure, you can spend a fortune on those super posh raised beds, and other fancy constructions if you wanted to. But do you need to? If you want to, then great.

Our allotment more than pays for itself a couple of times over based on what we'd normally have spent on produce in shops. But as folk have said, it is more about liking what your allotment does for you.

[fatbelly]

fatbelly, are you calculating your time into the equasion?

No I didn't, on occasions at work I have turned down the chance of overtime because I had already set my heart on a day at the Lottie. For me the Lottie is a hobby and a pleasure , which also provides me with quality food.

[bigben]

Well put Stompy!

I think if we went back to what allotments were set up for it was for the poor to be able to grow their own veg, this was revisited during the war with the dig for victory campaign.

My grandfather a miner - used to use the whole of his back garden to grow veg and would hump horse muck from neighbouring fields to enrich it. Apparently people would plant bits of potatoes rather than proper seed spuds, and save a lot more of their own seed. Everything was done by hand - no gadgets!

I think for many it has moved out of the realm of survival and so we spend a lot on expensive F1 hybrid seed that we can then not save for next year, we splash out on expensive labour saving devices like petrol strimmers, hedge cutters and tillers. But that is fine.

As others have suggested - today for many of us -growing cheap veg is only one element of the reason for an allotment. It is not perhaps the first one. I am sure I spend more on stuff than I get back in savings on veg. But for me that is not the reason for having an allotment. I dont think of it as an expensive hobby - the price of a gym membership or golf club membership would certainly be more than what I spend on stuff over the year.

[archibtbm]

The amount of friendships forged on allotments...priceless.  

Our site has given a plot to the local school and this bring the generations together...priceless.

Escapism from the rat race.......priceless

Growing expensive shop priced fruit  , Rasps £3 per Ib...canes cost £0.99 each and bear a lot of fruit each year.

Try and follow the ethos of allotmenteering and not be suckered by Gardening sites who offer posh raised beds, come on!  plenty of scrap wood can be recycled...think environmentaly friendly

[Jonajo]

Try and follow the ethos of allotmenteering and not be suckered by Gardening sites who offer posh raised beds, come on!  plenty of scrap wood can be recycled...think environmentaly friendly

Absolutely. Don't get me wrong, there are some plot holders who have the most immaculate, impressive looking plots, perfect linearity everywhere and a plot enhanced by those really stunning raised beds, perfect wooden borders/mini fences around every bed and around the plot, pristine archways and so on and so forth, from the more upmarket gardening establishments...... And boy they are impressive to be sure and good on those plot holders who prefer that approach. But personally I like the more rustic approach: tidy with things in their place, but rustic and inexpensively sourced.

[stompy]

The reason i asked fatbelly, is because i only spend around £130 a year on the lottie and that supplies us with around 80% of our veg and i wasn't accounting the fruit in there (raspberrys, strawberrys, blackberrys, apples, pears, plums (etc etc))

So i was just wondering how you only just break even?

[Aunt Sally]

I have about a 9 rod plot and we very rarely need to buy any veg.  I buy some salad stuff out of season and cauliflowers (I'm not good with those), but that's about all.  All in all rent and seeds cost me about £1 per week.  Perhaps another 75p per week for compost and fertilisers