USA Today, Lehman Brothers, Christopher Columbus (Mayflower departs England), and Dan Marino (birthday)
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| Bemidji, MN 2013 First Frost Date! |
While the first frost date for Bemidji, MN pales in comparison to other noteworthy events on September 15th, it does mark the conclusion of my garden’s harvesting season.
Even during a shortened year (109 days between last and first frost dates, 123 days is average for Bemidji, MN), 2013 was my first profitable year. So much so I was able to cover my expenses since my garden’s inception in 2011! With the recent addition of rain barrels, I hope to further expand my garden in 2014, improve my yield of green peppers and okra, and increase variety with the addition of rhubarb and asparagus.
Consistent with SMART goals and QAPI , I enjoy collecting and analyzing data. I find progress is very difficult without being able to measure outcomes and identify areas for improvement. Below is a summary of all data collected from my initial garden in 2011 to the end of 2013.
Raw Data Spreadsheet
2013 Goal Review
Profitable
- Total Profit: $110.54
- Revenue: $151.50 Expenses: $40.96
- Return on Investment (RoI): 3.7
- Does not include water and time costs
Learn how to grow plants from seeds
- Tomatoes and green peppers were successfully transplanted
- Plan to try okra and cucumbers next year
Build and test rain barrel watering system
- Building and installation complete, testing still underway
- 3 x 50 gallon capacity (150 gallons total), plan to add 2 additional barrels next year
- Please email me if interested in detailed instructions in building your own system!
2013 was a historic year for gardening success, expansion, and innovation (rain barrels). Next year I plan to expand my garden to 300 ft2, add rhubarb and asparagus, perfect my rain barrel system, and reach a RoI of greater than 5.0. While September 15th, 2013 pales in comparison to other historic events, I will remember it as my first profitable gardening year :).
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