3 Steps To Market Gardening Success

Market gardening success is possible for anyone

, with the drive to do it. Bringing fresh, natural food to appreciative customers makes market gardening the best job in the world. But success depends on what you do before you plant seeds in the ground. To be profitable, you must follow these 3 steps to a successful (profitable) market garden.

Market Gardening Success Step 1: Planning. This means setting goals and sales targets for your market garden. How much money do you want to make? How big a garden can you handle? The answers to these questions depend on your resources and equipment, your access to good land, and your experience as a grower.

If this is your first season as a market gardener, don't take on too much; you might start by just growing some vegetables for a few friends and neighbors.Your objective for the first year is to gain some experience, and (hopefully) cover your costs. In any event you need to establish how much you need to grow before you take on the next step.

Market Gardening Success Step 2: Marketing. Once you have set sales targets, you need to find the customers to buy your market garden goodies. If you are selling through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) box program, you need to sign up enough members to meet your income targets. Start with your friends, neighbors, co-workers, hockey buddies, in short everyone you know. Tell them you will be growing some fresh, delicious organic veggies, and if they hurry they can get on the list to get some. If they are interested, sign them up.

Alternatively you might want to locate an established farmer's market, and find out what typical sales are like there for products like yours. Visit the market, see how many customers attend, and talk to some other growers. Get a copy of the market rules to make sure it is a good fit for you.

Market Gardening Success Step 3: Management. You have now confirmed how many customers you need and how much you will need to grow. The next step is to verify your assumptions, and get the resources and organize them to deliver your product. This is management. With the information you gathered in the previous steps, you need to make an estimate of your income and expenses, to verify you can actually make a profit.

You also need to figure out your garden work schedule. When will you begin selling at the market, or start deliveries to your CSA customers? Your garden work schedule will be driven largely by your market day or CSA delivery day (s) i.e. you will be harvesting on those days. If you have determined you will need additional help to run things, you have to find that farm helper, and schedule their work as well.

Before you starting gardening for money, remember that planning, marketing, and management are the keys to market gardening success. Follow these 3 steps to have your own productive and profitable garden.

by: Scott Kelland

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