But There's Just Dry Lightning on the Horizon Line

I have spent the last week and then some considering the financial implications, possibilities, and limitations of this project. One statistic I read says that if you put $70 into a garden, you can yield $600 worth of returns. This seems overwhelming in many ways, but I am baffled by the idea of $600 worth of produce. Even adjusting for the higher market price for fresh local goods, and some major error in plant cultivation, I can't imagine that I could ever have such a positive result. Is this realistic or negative of me?

Anyhow, if possible, I'd like to put $0 into this, and make $0 dollars in return. I see the whole transaction to be one of effort (what I put in) and edible and psychological rewards (what I take out). But then I got to thinking: is it really going to be possible to put no money into this?

First, there's the issue of seeds. The garden center nearby sells seed packs for about $3/pack, so theoretically I wouldn't run up too high of a price tag just buying them straight out of the store. But I want to do it for free. I haven't had any luck finding any yet, but persist in my trolling of craigslist/freecycle.

Then there's fertilizer (I assume, though am unsure, that if I get a good compost going, this won't be necessary). Then, there's the issue of soil. Okay, so I've got a ton of ground soil right out my back door, but I was avoiding that soil so I didn't have to go to the hassle of messing up the backyard and getting it tested. I can only imagine the look on my landlord's face when she comes by to check on things after we leave, and there is a six inch dip in the backyard where grass and even terrain used to be...!

Anyhow, since that weird rodent decided winter was going to go on another six weeks, I may not have to fret just yet. But I do think its time to commence thinking STARTS. This is the term for the beginning stage of plants, which you can initiate growth of indoors, before they are ready to be transplanted them outdoors. Hooray! Victory is: not using the word you are trying to define anywhere in the paragraph that you construct to define it.

Depending on the plant, you can get going on these starts anywhere between a few weeks and a few months before the last frost. So, here I am thinking summer, with half-numbed fingers and toes and fogged up glasses everytime I come inside! But the trouble is more in this question: when is the last frost??

I live half way between a city to the south which claims to have its last frost at the end of April (4/29) , and a town to the north which claims to have its last frost on May 26th. This complicates my calculations, but I've selected May 15th to be safe.

And so, I have a deadline of March 15th to arrange where and how I'll be getting all my supplies. This falls perfectly just days before a conference I'm considering attending on gardening (though there is a registration fee of $15...hmm...).

Between now and then, keep your ears open for me, and let me know if any sources float across your horizon!

P.S. Gillian, The Waifs