First time poster
Found this on Aldi Page, last year the same product was $39.90.
Great deal for growing your own veggies.
Easy to assemble
Top and bottom safety edges to prevent injuries
Quality anti-rust, colour bonded steel for longevity
Available in Slate, Stone Brown or Eucalypt colours
Dimensions: 1200 x 900 x 300mm
That's… What he was correcting…
Holy shit how embarrassed are you right now?
Not really *Ashley lol
This is cheap! I got similar product around $45 earlier this year from Masters with 10% off coupon.
Masters at Canberra Airport have these marked down 75% to $12.50
Ah, the classic vegetable gardening boondoggle. Sure its fun, but if you don't keep a firm control on costs…it ain't cheap. Do you want a $50 tomato? Because this is how you get a $50 tomato.
Lets do the math:
- 3 garden beds (for crop rotation and variety) - $87
- soil to fill beds (1.2x.9x.3 = 0.324m3 x 3 = .972m3) - $100 (bulk delivery from landscape supplier, more if in 25L Bunnings bags)
- mulch (sugar cane bale) - $12
- fertilizer - $8
- seedlings (6 punnets at $3 each) - $18
- assorted things (stakes, ties, labels, watering can, misc) - $20
So you're $245 in the hole and at this stage you've bought the dream. Planted up your raised vegetable garden…now we wait…
Then the possums/rabbits/rats attack, the grasshoppers come, the caterpillars emerge. Back to Bunnings we go to buy netting/fencing/sprays - $$$, it is a heat wave and you just can't keep the water up to your wilting sad crops, it rains and soil disease spreads. The weeds take over.
But who can put a price on the smugness that comes from home grown vegetables?
thanks for the dream-steal, "enviroguy" !!!
ikr !! - the irony enviroguy !!
Ask an average housewife and they think $29 plus a little soil will get them the dream garden patch.
They may even be smart and buy ONE 25L bag from Bunnings and ask hubby to set it up. Oh what? one bag won't fill it? I'll go buy another bag.
Dropping truth bombs.
and don't get me wrong, you are not anything wrong!
you just made me lose my home-gardener boner
… or one can just go to any of the multinational companies and purchase pesticide ridden GMO products that cost you from the inside out ..
One does not understand the concept of GMO… Have you seen wild corn?
The ones you grow on your feet?
There are many different types of "GMO" such as Hybridisation, Selective Breeding and Crossbreeding (which you are referring to) and are not of grave concern. But when you are modifying a Tomato to have Anti-freeze properties by injecting it with a certain fish's DNA, well that's TOTALLY different to crossbreeding. This completely artificial form of GMO is new and not widely tested yet and has unlimited possibilities. 'Round Up' resistant corn & soy exist right now - this is NOT crossbreeding or selective breeding. So please consider this against your "wild corn" argument.
Well technically the term GMO really only applies to the type of modifications that would be done in a lab, of course people can choose to make up their own meanings to suit their agenda.
I guess you only eat bananas that look like this: https://designinspiration08.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/wild…
That's only one type of "GMO" - there are others, that are far from tested.
I generally stick to the stuff that grows like weeds and doesnt require much protection from pests, like cherry tomatoes, rocket, mustard, etc.
Yeah, cherry tomatoes are the shit. I put in my zucchini last weekend. I'm going to be that jerk in the neighbourhood pushing zucchinis on everyone. Leaving bags of zucchini's on people's doorsteps during the night.
Smart money is on herbs too.
I'm growing herbs at the moment.
And it's true I've probably spent close to $100 on set up.
But it's a hobby and it will be nice to be able to have fresh herbs on hand.
Yep 100% with the herbs. You'll never use enough veggies at once to make them worth growing but at the exhorbitant prices they charge for fresh herbs they are well worth growing.
Do you grow those "special" herbs?
Herbs, definitely. Chillis rarely require you to lift a finger. Mustard spinach is low maintenance.
I can't believe that people actually go to Bunnings to buy dirt. I just planted mine in the dirt I already had.
@dasher86: Herb can be a very lucrative money earner as well - but you can't just grow in your front yard.
This is my way of doing things.
Had probably 150 cherry tomatoes from one bush last year. Wasn't even one I planned for it just popped up.
Yeah I'd like to grow various herbs and chilli's as I hate buying a whole bunch to only use a sprig
Didn't know cherry tomatoes grew so easily!
We had some cherry toms randomly pop up from where the old septic tank was. Strange…
I just want to add that we got some basil seedlings last year and they just grew like gangbusters. Used them heaps over the entire year! We planted them in a regular planter box that we had lying around with soil that was already in it.
Shallots we grew from the roots. They're still growing and providing leaves all the time.
I think we spent all of $10 on all of them and they just keep giving. (Except for the Basil as apparently they're a seasonal thing and only lasted a year - looking forward to doing that again this year)
And since I'm a bloke who just hates having to tend the garden, I can tell you that they required absolutely jack @$!% in maintenance! FTW!
The cost of growing vegetables at home is definitely higher than buying in the supermarkets, but I treat gardening as a hobby and as a recreational activity. Growing your own fruits, vegetables and herbs is fun. Especially if you have kids. Gardening is a great way for children to learn new skills, the science of plants etc.
Gardening is not just about the final product. We don't keep pets just so we can eat their meat in the end, right? It's about the process.
For me, I love gardening because I enjoy watching my plants grow, enjoy singing to my dying plants and enjoy peeing on them. Worth it!
We don't keep pets just so we can eat their meat in the end, right?
Speak for yourself!
Woof woof!
You don't know me.
Then let me get to know you, dammit!
I hate gardening. Endless hard work and drudgery. And then you get a pile of vegetables when every shop and stall is selling them off at crazy cheap prices. What's that all about?
But that's just me….
I think it's a common, but short-sighted view.
When you're doing it right, the taste… oh-man… the TASTE of this homegrown stuff is what dreams are made of. Food that tastes like it should - Like it's been pumped full of magical chemicals that make it taste amazing <—- Is irony the word?
When done right, it's minimal effort, and I'd even go so far as to say the country would shed a million KG in the first year. Getting the flavours & tastes our mind & body is craving. Instead of eating a ton more, before we get it.
@Utopian: I've grown vegetables before and didn't get the high that you seem to get. Maybe you grow other 'vegetables.'
Spot on. Got to be smart about it. Grow from seed instead of buying seedlings and seed can last you many seasons. Don't need the mulch - its over rated.
Get a compost bin and a worm farm from the council when they have them free and make your own. Then use the compost next season
While filling up the garden beds, use a lot of cardboard, lettuce or veggies or whatever and coffee ground on the bottom then top up with soil. This way you will need less soil, and you'll invite worms to your garden bed a lot faster. As they breakdown, the garden bed level will drop and provide more nutrients into the soil. Next season, mix in the compost.
Just like the truth, home grown vegies are the bomb ;)
If you have the patience to wait, just go without dirt and fill it in the style of a no dig garden like this…
http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s867068.htm
You can get the mulch cheap from produce stores and it's really simple. No need to worry about trucking in dirt and it all breaks down beautifully. Sometimes I put a layer of dirt between the mulches but you don't really need to. (obviously you need some soil on top if you're going to plant in it right away though).
Also, check out local flea markets for seedlings. Way cheaper than going to Bunnings!
Soil last for a long time or plant straihgt into the gorund?
Compost is free scraps.
Seeds are free from friends and also from the tomoatoes you buy from the shops to eat.
you don't need fertiliser, mulch, other stuff…
All in all, I can do it for the price of my spare time (enjoyment of growing food) and watering the ground….
For me it's more about food safety. As an example all the broccolis I've bought organic or not have excessively high levels of nitrate.
Been struggling for years to get a viable herb garden growing but the resident possums keep getting them (The possum's should be tasty)
I have recently started having a win by putting a row of FREE milk crates on top of the FREE broccoli boxes they are planted in.
At least I am only out of pocket a few seedlings and a couple of bags of potting mix.
No one grows veggies because it's cheaper. You grow them to watch them grow, to show/teach young kids (if you have any), & to enjoy the true taste of "real" veggies fresh off the vine (so to speak).
It's also pretty easy to look up organic pest control spray. I used one that included lemon dish soap, tobacco dust, chewing tobacco (steeped), stain removing bar soap (steeped), & brown Listerine! Worked a treat & smelled great. Everything except the Listerine is an irritant to bugs & Listerine kills the mould. Add a bit to a spray bottle, fill with water, & apply a couple times a week. That's it.
:)
Instead of vegetables, use it to grow herbs that require little maintenance like basil, rosemary and shallots.
Are these portable? Or once planted they can not be moved? Thanks
Depends how strong you are.
Back of the ute - Vegetarian Lunch Van!
Seriously though, probably not portable once filled - I don't believe they have a bottom in them - you sit them directly on soil/grass, then fill them.
I just dug out and relocated two 13 foot long beds like this that had been in place for about 5 years. It only took me a few hours to dig out each one. These kinds of beds aren't really meant to be moved around though.
Not portable, too much flex in the side walls and feeble plastic base to move it around once full of soil.
Put it on two skate boards, then it's portable.
It's not very big, not very comfortable. Would not recommend.
Don't be a sissy tree hugger and get a normal bed.
+1 for this review.
It is only for a vegetable. dont buy it for yourself. Unless you are a vegetable.
Still too small for me :(
bahaha!
Thanks dad…
Thanks op. Was about to buy one for 99 rrp at bunnings
This one? http://www.bunnings.com.au/the-organic-garden-co-180-x-90-x-…
I actually like the extra depth. I have the one above and the ones in this post and the bigger one is my favorite. But bang for buck, those are awesome!
Yeah although I recall circular ends. Must just be bad memory.
Yup extra depth is nice but is it worth $70 or so?
Not really. But they are also 1.8m as opposed to 1.2m long
"The Organic Garden Company" - what part of a 'zincalume' is organic exactly? I only use organic zinc aluminia steel alloys in my garden - because I deserve the best.
Its organic bullshit that they use in their promotional material.
Use GMO metal at your own risk sheeple!
You're welcome
Was going to buy the same one myself and thought I'd look around a bit.
So these have no bottom? I was thinking about getting one for my concrete space at the back of my apartment.
They have a bottom plastic tray that the side walls slot into. (unless the '$10 lower than last year' Aldi sales cry means they now don't come with the tray)
mine from last year had no such plastic
neither did mine. not sure what the point of the plastic would be. it would turn it into a bathtub rather than a garden bed
@brazen00: There is a lip on the tray about 5cms high. It allows excess water to drain over this lip. I find this works well for strawberries as you can give a big water and the tray will retain some runoff, like a water saving pot.
Why not just use the ground? Why raise up? Apart from the elderly, etc.
From wiki: "Raised beds produce a variety of benefits: they extend the planting season, they can reduce weeds if designed and planted properly, and they reduce the need to use poor native soil. Since the gardener does not walk on the raised beds, the soil is not compacted and the roots have an easier time growing. The close plant spacing and the use of compost generally result in higher yields with raised beds in comparison to conventional row gardening. Waist-high raised beds enable the elderly and physically disabled to grow vegetables without having to bend over to tend them."
"Prolonging the season" apparently results because the bed receives sunlight on its sides and therefore the soil stays warmer, longer. Vegetables are more closely spaced so that has a marginal effect on heat retention as well.
Basically the main advantage is that cats, dogs and children will not run over the beds. If you can fence off your vegetables this will work just as well. If you have poor drainage, a bed will definitely help, although there are ways around that.
The native soils of our cities are often extremely good. This is because traditionally people founded cities on prime agricultural land. Nowadays those soils have been colonised by suburbs and grow nothing.
I don't know about your soil, but mine is backfill from the hole they made in the hill to level our block.
Easier to fill up a garden bed with soil than have to spend forever digging into the ground.
People that live in units/apartments that dont have any soil in their yard?
There are lots of reasons.
Would like to ask if this suitable to be used as sandpit? Thanks
It would be a tiny sandpit
Not really.
The plastic "Clam Shell" makes a great sandpit. Can cover (with the other side) to prevent cats getting in, & doing their business.
$10 cheaper and slightly longer (4cm) than Stratco http://www.stratco.com.au/products/hardware/raised-garden-be…
These sell out quick on the day. Get there early!
I bought 5 from ALDI last year. My neighbour filled them up with leftover soil from his driveway makeover. I used mowed grass clippings for mulch. The worm bin is free from the council. The seaweed solution is just a big bucket of soaked seaweed from the beach.
And this is my garden today (just out of winter).
http://files.ozbargain.com.au/upload/109901/33190/image.jpg
Asparagus in the last plot, an abundant harvest of cherry tomatoes, beans, peas and sunflowers last year. The joy of it is priceless.
The bin is perfect sized for "square foot gardening" method. The height is not too shallow that the soil dries up, nor too deep that it takes too much soil to fill up. It doesnt disintegrate like the wooden types. I'm very happy with it. Highly recommended for all gardeners out there.
nice pic of your garden porn
Yeah pretty jelly
Can't afford garden estate thesedays
Tip: Use the cardboard box as a biodegradable weed mat floor to your bed, if placing the bed directly on grass.
Don't forget the greenhouse cover ($25) that looks designed for the bed. A must if you have bird issues with new seedlings
We got one last year and made a sandpit for the kids works well
Must resist urge to make a comment.. I am better "then" that…