Yahoo Finance Simple way to save $75 a month on groceries
With food prices on the rise and as cost-of-living pressures continue to stretch the average family budget, more Australians are turning to their backyard in order to save a bit of cash.
The country's most visited shopping site, eBay Australia, revealed that a growing number of Aussies had been turning to home gardening as a means to save some money on their weekly grocery run.
"We're seeing Australians become a nation of green thumbs as they look for ways to bypass costly supermarket bills, with veggie seeds spiking on eBay over the last few months," eBay Australia's Sophie Onikul said, adding that Aussies could save up to $75 a month if they jumped into the home-gardening trend.
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“As spring marks the start of warmer days ahead, lettuce, cucumber and broccoli seeds are proving popular on eBay with these springtime vegetable staples saving Aussies up to $75 on their grocery bill a month,” Onikul told Yahoo Finance Australia.
The e-commerce site had seen a huge uptick in the sale of seeds over the past few months – a clear indication many Australians were looking to don their gardening gloves as the country headed into spring.
Over the past four months, eBay disclosed there had been a 168 per cent increase in sales of potato seeds, followed by lettuce, which saw a 125 per cent increase in sales.
Seeds for green beans rose by 120 per cent, while cucumber seed sales grew by 80 per cent.
How much you can save
According to eBay, households would be able to save up to $75 per month by planting lettuce, cucumber and broccoli alone.
Once ready for harvest, households should be able to see that a head of lettuce per week could save up to $22.05 a month, based on recent supermarket prices.
Two cucumbers a week had the potential savings of $22.82 a month, while two heads of broccoli per week could shave up to $29.81 a month.
The numbers could increase further by planting other popular produce such as green beans and potatoes.
Many of these seeds are also fairly easy to grow, a spokesperson from eBay said.
“As Aussies prepare to get their hands dirty and start potting, gardening tools like gloves, shovels and compost are also trending on eBay,” Onikul said.
"With price hikes expected to stay, it’s easy to see why Aussies are now looking to reap the financial benefits of growing at home."
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