Backyard Market Garden

Market gardeners grow diverse vegetables, herbs, and flowers on small plots (typically 1/4 to 2 acres) using intensive bio-intensive methods, selling directly at farmers markets, to restaurants, and through CSAs.

Market gardening emphasizes high-value crops, season extension, succession planting, and direct sales capturing full retail value.

Success requires diverse vegetable growing skills, intensive planting and succession planning, harvest and post-harvest handling, direct sales and customer relationships, and physical stamina.

Pricing at farmers markets captures full retail—$3-6/lb for greens, $4-8/bunch for herbs, $3-5/lb for tomatoes.

Successful market gardens can generate $30,000-70,000 per acre with intensive management.

Startup costs include land access (purchase, lease, or backyard, $0-20,000+ depending on location), basic equipment (tillers, tools, irrigation, $1,500-5,000), seeds and transplants ($500-2,000 annually), season extension (hoophouses, row covers, $1,000-10,000 optional), wash and pack station, cooler or cold storage, farmers market fees and tent, and potentially vehicle for market totaling $5,000-45,000.

Building customer base involves farmers market presence, CSA subscriptions for committed customers, restaurant sales for consistent wholesale, social media showing farm life and harvest, u-pick options for some crops, value-added products (pesto, salsa, dried herbs), farm stand if location permits, and reputation for quality and variety.

Revenue comes from farmers market sales, CSA memberships, restaurant accounts, u-pick revenue, potentially value-added products, or farm tours and workshops.

Operating costs include seeds and transplants (ongoing), irrigation and water, compost and amendments, market fees, fuel and delivery, equipment maintenance, packaging and labels, potentially hired labor during peak, and significant farmer time.

Challenges include physically demanding work, weather and pest risks, farmers market saturation in some areas, competition from hobby farmers, narrow profit margins without direct sales, and working 60-80+ hour weeks during season.

Success requires intensive bio-intensive techniques maximizing yield, diverse crops spreading risk and extending season, excellent quality and presentation, strong customer relationships at market, potentially season extension increasing selling season, detailed record-keeping and planning, efficient harvest and wash processes, and treating as business not hobby garden.

Market gardening builds viable business on small acreage through direct sales.