• Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Policy
  • Guest Post
  • Archive

One Cent At A Time

A Personal finance blog to get rich

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Beautiful Life
  • Becoming Rich
  • Beginners Guide
  • Extra Income
  • Productivity
  • Saving Money

One Plant at a Time – Our Patio Garden and Square Foot Garden Update

April 21, 2013 10 Comments

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email

It’s almost summer over here in south Florida, I can’t believe days are so hot already. Just a couple of weeks back, I had to wear a sweater while coming back from a late night party. Nonetheless, our garden is enjoying the weather. The seeds I sowed early March was not growing much beyond tiny seedlings till beginning of April. Now they are growing thick and fast

Eggplant Seedlings

We are growing Basil, Cilantro, Eggplants, Tomatoes, Peppers and Lettuce this season. Since we are renting a second floor condo it’s a tough job to grow so many vegetables in a limited 7′ X 12′ space. I have grown vegetables and flowers in our patio since last few years. But, not so many in a single season. It’s kind of self test of my skills in gardening you can say.

I got my interest in gardening from my father, who was famous for his gardening prowess, we always had the best garden in our township.

Living in a condo and that too, on second floor is a big barrier as far as the gardening is concerned. We already have 12 pots by now and couldn’t buy any more without sacrificing the overall ambiance and cleanliness.

Tomato Seedlings

Thus came the idea of having a square foot garden set up, to save space. We learned A-Z of square foot gardening through YouTube and blogs, except how to do it in a patio, especially when you have 12 other pots occupying the space. I had to improvise.

We couldn’t afford a 4′ X 4′ sq. foot garden, the ideal size for it, so had to settle for lesser space. Space was eventually made for setting up a 2′ X 2′ square foot garden. The nails, lumbers and plywood came from Home Depot. Now, when it is finally ready, the garden looks really nice. It took half of my Saturday to finish the wooden structure and half of Sunday to buy and mix the soil.

Square Foot garden in Patio

You can judge yourself from the picture above. This is entirely self-made from scratch. I’ll write another post soon to describe step-by-step method to create one for your patio.

To buy one such ready-made garden container we had to spend over $100, where as, this self crafted square foot garden costed less than $25 and we had a lot of fun in the process of making it. I had a taste of plumbing after a long time as an added bonus.

The seedlings are growing in side the small green-house seed container. I didn’t buy any of the plants, rather I ordered seeds online. Total seed cost was around $12, where as local Home Depot charges $12 for two tomato plants alone.

So far the Burpee seeds produced excellent result with more than 80% of seeds germinated and all of them are in healthy condition.

Green house seed container

This year we put up some Marigold as a protection against white flies. Last year, our egg-plant and chilies were badly affected by white flies and I had to resort to insecticide. I ordered some white fly traps as well from eBay, they arrived last week.

So far all the plants are growing well without any sign of insect attack, I think it’s still not the white fly season yet. Whenever they come Marigold and traps would wait for them!

Looks like this season’s first harvest will be Basil. On the bottom left corner of the sq. foot garden picture you can see some basil leaves. We have around 30 Basil plants which we can’t use our self. A few of the plants would go to our friends and neighbors. A bunch of them would go to our first floor neighbors as they are the victims of my frequent over-watering. 🙂

It’s so much fun to see the plants grow, every day before leaving for work and after coming back, I spend few minutes observing and inspecting the plants. I so love to just look at them growing!

Oh yes, I forgot to tell you about Kafir lime plant we bought from Home Depot couple of months back. The plant had flowers when we bought it, now they grew in to limes. I just can’t wait to pluck them, a few more weeks looks like before we can pluck the biggest one (the one in the picture). Looks so juicy and fresh!

Kafir Lime in patio

I started drafting the post on our square foot garden already, stay tuned for that. This was my first post on gardening and I thoroughly enjoyed writing this. All pictures were taken by SMB and I, with our cell phones. If you want to reuse the pictures, do contact us first.

Readers, what are you growing this season? Do you like me to update on our garden on regular basis?

LIKE THIS POST?
I agree to have my personal information transfered to MailChimp ( more information )
Join our community of 8000+ subscribers to increase your net worth and build wealth
We hate spam. Your email address will not be sold or shared with anyone else.

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Email
The tool that changed the way I manage my personal finance - Personal Capital, The Best Free Personal Finance Tool

Want to start a WordPress blog now? The onecentatatime.com blog is hosted by Siteground Web Hosting. For only $3.95 a month, Siteground can help you set up and host your website/blog quickly and easily.

About the Blogger Hi I am SB, a personal finance enthusiast with a career in software development. I am an immigrant to the USA since 2005, after being born and brought up in India. This 40 something technocrat lives and breathes personal finance whenever he gets time from the day job, job as a husband and a dad

Some links on this page may be affiliate links, if you make a purchase following the links, I may earn a commission. Read affiliate disclosure here
« Are Young Adults to Be Blamed for Not Having Retirement Savings?
Retirement Saving for Poor and Minimum Wage Earner »

Comments

  1. Maddy says

    April 21, 2013 at 10:46 AM

    SB I loved your update. We lived in condo before and grew vegetables thr. You are a terrific plumber! Do keep us updated on your harvest.

    Reply
    • SB says

      April 21, 2013 at 8:15 PM

      Actually I was plumbing something after really long time. Last time it was in India, my home country. Care to give some advice for growing vegetables in a condo apartment?

      Reply
  2. Bobby @ Ban Excuses says

    April 21, 2013 at 4:48 PM

    Nice! I need to get more into gardening. Definitely keep updating about your progress.

    Reply
    • SB says

      April 21, 2013 at 8:14 PM

      Thanks Bobby, I’ll

      Reply
  3. Connor Harley says

    April 21, 2013 at 5:18 PM

    Oh, I miss gardening a lot. This is one hobby I have left behind because of too much work. I would surely want to spend a weekend working to have one like this and the rest of taking care of it would take lesser time.

    Reply
    • SB says

      April 21, 2013 at 8:14 PM

      Don’t wait, do something in your garden next weekend. You can start by just digging the soil or buying a new plant. Once you start you can continue. Since you are missing it, you just need a trigger.

      Reply
  4. KC @ genxfinance says

    April 22, 2013 at 8:17 AM

    That’s amazing. Just look at them grow! And the lime looks good and so green and healthy.

    Reply
    • SB says

      April 22, 2013 at 1:57 PM

      KC I can’t wait to taste the limes!

      Reply
  5. Jenny @ Frugal Guru Guide says

    April 22, 2013 at 3:51 PM

    I can’t even think about a garden this year, with the baby coming. Disappointing, but true! I’m just hoping weeds don’t engulf all my flower beds.

    Reply
    • SB says

      April 22, 2013 at 4:56 PM

      Its a time to rejoice Jenny, baby coming. We have been waiting for a baby since last 8 years. Can’t you hire some help, just to weed out?

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.



Create your own blog in 20 minutes and $20

Personal Capital, a free tool to change your financial health today

I use and suggest Upstart, for your personal loan need

CreditKarma, a free tool to check your credit scorey

I use Coinbase, for my crypto investments

101 Cents at a Time

101 Ways to Earn Extra Money on the Side
201 Frugal and Perfect Birthday Gifts
101 Ways to Save Money Everyday
101 Ways to be Better and Successful at Work
101 Ways to Save Environment and Energy
101 Frugal and Romantic Anniversary Ideas
101 Low-Cost Men's Fashion Ideas
101 Personal Finance Tips
101 Ways to Reuse Household Stuff
101 Things to Do, When Nothing to Do
101 College Graduation Gift Ideas
100 Tips for Ecommerce Startup
101 Ways to Enjoy Indoor During Winter
101 Ways to Beat Procrastination

Popular Posts

Quick Cash - How to make $100 legally, in a day
Living well on less than $15,000 a Year
Top survey sites for side income
What to do when auto repair goes wrong
Where should I invest my money now?
20 Ways to be productive and happy at work
51 Ways to get out of debt
Be a better person in 15 days, 15 ways
Income ideas for retirees and senior citizens
51 side jobs for college students
Urgently need a large amount of money?
Should I buy or should I rent?
Best Personal loan providers
25 Ways to save environment
25 DIY car repairs to save money
How to decorate office cubicle
How to show your wife you care
50 Financial Rules for Success
51 Frugal weekend family activity ideas
Become Rich By Saving 1 Hour Of Daily Wage
How much do I need to save for retirement?
How to negotiate your salary

Follow us on FaceBook

About Author

SB

Blogger by choice and IT manager by profession. Finance is my passion and gardening is my greatest satisfaction. Born in India, settled in US, Husband and a father. I created this blog in 2011 with a vision to help others. Thanks for your patronage. More info on my "about" page.

View all posts


Subscribe

Join our community of 5000+ subscribers to increase net worth and build wealth

Advertisements

Personal Stories

How I got a new HP computer replaced
Was COVID circulating in USA in fall of 2019?
How my credit score went up 800+
Why I didn’t invest in Bitcoins
How I controlled impulses to buy things
Why this blog is named One Cent at a Time

Subscribe via Email

Site Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in this web site are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Read full Affiliate disclosure


One Cent at a Time is published by SB. The opinions expressed herein by him are his own and not those of his employer or anyone else. All content on One Cent at a Time is for entertainment purposes only. By reading this blog, you agree that SB and/or One Cent at a Time is not responsible for any actions taken after reading this blog. For the full disclaimer, click here .

Major Media Mention

One Cent at a Time Media Appearances

Copyright © 2023 One Cent At A Time · Designed by Nuts and Bolts Media