PH's 2018 Garlic Effort

TomNJ · August 22, 2018

I typically grow about 500 bulbs per year; 100 for a friend at $10/lb, 100 for seed, and we consume most of the remaining 300 and give some to friends. Considering the tilling, planting, fertilizing, watering, scaping, harvesting, curing, and cleaning it's a fair amount of work, but hey it's an enjoyable hobby.

Sounds like you will be growing some 14,000 bulbs or nearly 30 times as much as I do. Given that you also have the cost of tunnels, marketing, transportation, and perhaps labor and machinery, is that return of only $6,000 pre-tax per year (1,000 lbs @ $6/lb) considered worth your effort? Just curious as I have often fantasized about expanding to a large scale as you do, but am always held back by the low return on my invested effort.

August 22, 2018	#30
TomNJ Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2009 Location: Floyd VA Posts: 771	I typically grow about 500 bulbs per year; 100 for a friend at $10/lb, 100 for seed, and we consume most of the remaining 300 and give some to friends. Considering the tilling, planting, fertilizing, watering, scaping, harvesting, curing, and cleaning it's a fair amount of work, but hey it's an enjoyable hobby. Sounds like you will be growing some 14,000 bulbs or nearly 30 times as much as I do. Given that you also have the cost of tunnels, marketing, transportation, and perhaps labor and machinery, is that return of only $6,000 pre-tax per year (1,000 lbs @ $6/lb) considered worth your effort? Just curious as I have often fantasized about expanding to a large scale as you do, but am always held back by the low return on my invested effort.