Balance Sheet Update - 1st August 2010

[Mrs Dobby]

Something I started doing a few years ago was to keep a balance sheet for our allotments, factoring in the costs of running the plots and then recording the 'value' of the crops that we harvested (using organic prices from the big 3 supermarkets as a base for the value), I know several folks from our blog (and another forum I frequent) have found it useful, so I thought I'd share it with you now.

I know that if we werent growing the fruit and veg, then we probably wouldnt buy as much quantity as we harvest from the allotments, certainly I wouldnt have spent £50 on organic strawberries, but just to give us an idea of how much value we get from out plots I recorde all the crops that we harvest, whether we eat them fresh, process them for storing (and later use) or give them to friends and family!

I hope you find it of some interest!

Currently we've had some decent harvests, but we've still got a lot of crops that are later harvesting, or only just beginning to ripen, such as the tomatoes and chillies which are starting to ripen, the peppers getting bigger, as are the aubergines, the runner beans are just about to start cropping, the dwarf french are still producing prodigious amounts of beans, the early broccolli is starting to harvest, the cabbages are hearting up nicely, the sweetcorn n squashes are looking great, all in all its looking like this year could be a good harvest!

Total Veg Plot Costs 2010

Rent + Subs for 2 full plots £100
Seeds £20
Seed Spuds £20
Onion Sets £6
Growbags £15
Chicken Manure Pellets £8
Plastic 'wannabe' Polytunnel £61
Bamboo Canes £8
Flower Plants £28
Scaffolding Boards £100
Watering Cans £8

Total Costs £ 374


Total Veg Plot Harvests 2010

Rhubarb £ 35
Fartichokes £ 4
Volunteer Spuds £15
First Early Spuds £15
Lettuce £11
Radish £10
Garlic £85
Strawberries £65
Raspberries £30
Peas £30
Broad Beans £35
Courgettes £55
French Beans £36
Red Onions £10
Cabbages £2
Peppers £2
Tomatoes £1
Turnip £2

Total Veg Plot Harvests £ 431

So, we're in a positive as far as the balance sheet goes, by a total of £ 57, but saving money isnt really why we grow our own fruit and veg (although it is nice to know that we are saving money and not putting extra profit the way of the big supermarket corporations), for us both growing our own is about much moe than saving money!

Its about having the connection to the land, feeling nature all around you, working with the land to care for it and safeguard its future, reducing our impact on the planet by reducing the food miles that we consume, sharing our enjoyment and companionship with other likeminded friends on the allotments, producing some amazingly tasty, ultra fresh organic fruit and veg, and of course eating some wonderfully tasty fruit and veg!

Please feel free to add your balance sheets, you may well surprice yourself with where you are!

[mugins]

i dont know how much i have payed out or how much i have saved but i do know the veg i have grown tastes grate and that do for me just fine