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lbmoore_gw

how much to grow for a family of six?

lbmoore
19 years ago

We are looking at buying a home on 2.5 acres. I am wanting to grow and can as much food for us as possible, but I'm not sure how much of each vegetable to grow such as potatoes, green beans, and carrots and how much room it takes to grow each.

Does anyone know or know where I can find this information?

Comments (4)

  • ruthieg__tx
    19 years ago

    This is a really hard question to answer because there is not a real answer...It's things you have to decide...The first year you probably can't unless you devote full time to your garden but you also have to make decisions on how much you think your family will eat of everything...I know for me, I plant lots of potatoes....most people don't even bother because you can buy them cheap but I like growing them and I can tell a real difference in the taste...so I devote lots of space to potatoes...and green beans grow like crazy and are cheap but I love canning and freezing them and they are soooooo easy I just can't resist...I am devoting part of my garden to things like berrys and asparagus etc that will be there for a long time and fruit as well ...so My suggestion would be to thing in terms of what your family really likes to eat and start planting that...maybe you can't grow it all this first year but you will have a good learning experience and if you work it carefully you could get some second crops is depending on where you live...Good luck

  • robin_maine
    19 years ago

    The link below might be helpful. It's a chart of what to grow for a family of four. Increase that by 50% and you'll have a place to start.

    Here is a link that might be useful: What to grow for a family of six.

  • lbmoore
    Original Author
    19 years ago

    Thanks for the responses. The chart helps a lot. I guess after thinking about what I asked, the real question is how much yield will each vegetable bring. I can easily figure pretty close what we would consume. Just wasnt sure how much seed and how many plants to buy.

    Thanks for your help.

  • breezyb
    19 years ago

    The problem with estimating yields is always going to be dicey because of all the variables such as weather, predation, unexpected disease, poor germination.

    One year I've been inundated with tomatoes, beans, etc. - but didn't get much okra. Another year I didn't get as many tomatoes, but had bushels of eggplants. I do rotate my crops & follow standard gardening practices, but sometimes Mother Nature throws a monkey wrench into the loop.

    I usually grow more than I think I want of veggies I particularly like, & always set aside garden area to try new things every year. I never have any trouble gifting extra vegetables.

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