Gig Harbor woman eschews grocery store for backyard
GIG HARBOR, Wash. -- Most days you'll find Mavis Butterfield in her backyard, sometimes carrying the chicken she calls Black Fatty.
At first glance, you might think she's a pilgrim, judging by the way she's dressed.
But she's not really a pilgrim; she is a missionary for growing one's own food. We're talking tomatoes, string beans, beets, carrots.
It all began when Mavis totalled her grocery bill -- $800 a month.
"Last year in 2011, I was able to get down to $100 a month," she said.
That's $100 a month for mom, dad and a pair of teenagers.
Not everything she grows goes over well.
"I tried making a swiss chard smoothie," she said. "They weren't so excited about that."
So swiss chard was a bad idea. And swiss chard smoothie a really bad idea.
Her kids' reaction: "They think I'm on crack," she said. "My son would like to have a cupboard full of Doritos and Wonder Bread."
I got a feeling Black Fatty isn't all that keen on Mavis eating homegrown stuff. Don't play chicken, chicken; Mavis will only eat your eggs.
She hopes to grow a ton of food.
"I bet I'm going to get 25 hubbard squash, and I'm very excited about that," she said.
She's also going to get 500 pounds of tomato and the dreaded swiss chard.
And the truth is Mavis really doesn't like swiss chard. So what does Mavis do with swiss chard? She'll trade everything she doesn't need for meat, and perhaps for her son -- Doritos.
This garden has an upside even for kids.
"Actually my daughter and I just got back from a trip to Europe paid for by not shopping a the grocery store," she said.
Mavis says her neighbors love fresh produce. In one recent trade, she got American cheese, sausage, granola, organic peanut butter and a can of Coke.
At first glance, you might think she's a pilgrim, judging by the way she's dressed.
But she's not really a pilgrim; she is a missionary for growing one's own food. We're talking tomatoes, string beans, beets, carrots.
It all began when Mavis totalled her grocery bill -- $800 a month.
"Last year in 2011, I was able to get down to $100 a month," she said.
That's $100 a month for mom, dad and a pair of teenagers.
Not everything she grows goes over well.
"I tried making a swiss chard smoothie," she said. "They weren't so excited about that."
So swiss chard was a bad idea. And swiss chard smoothie a really bad idea.
Her kids' reaction: "They think I'm on crack," she said. "My son would like to have a cupboard full of Doritos and Wonder Bread."
I got a feeling Black Fatty isn't all that keen on Mavis eating homegrown stuff. Don't play chicken, chicken; Mavis will only eat your eggs.
She hopes to grow a ton of food.
"I bet I'm going to get 25 hubbard squash, and I'm very excited about that," she said.
She's also going to get 500 pounds of tomato and the dreaded swiss chard.
And the truth is Mavis really doesn't like swiss chard. So what does Mavis do with swiss chard? She'll trade everything she doesn't need for meat, and perhaps for her son -- Doritos.
This garden has an upside even for kids.
"Actually my daughter and I just got back from a trip to Europe paid for by not shopping a the grocery store," she said.
Mavis says her neighbors love fresh produce. In one recent trade, she got American cheese, sausage, granola, organic peanut butter and a can of Coke.
Nice story. How ever this person is not the only person who grows there own food! millions of people do this is a non story!
Here come de IRS!
Great story. She's has a fine garden going there. Go Mavis! I started mine when I was ten years old. I had a hard time keeping the rabbits out at first. The dirt was a rich deep black color as it was the midwest. Two feet down it was still black. There are parts of Iowa where this rich dirt goes down eighteen feet in some places.  Feeling it and squeezing it in your hands is a pleasure to behold.Â
I wish I had the room for a garden- there are many thing I would love to grow instead of buying. No way could I grow as much as this lady- hats off to her.
@MomOf2 have even a small raised bed and grow something.
Believe it or not plants don't need dirt to grow. Try hydroponics. It needs a lot of equipment and lighting though. Another idea would be to grow vertically. I used to grow tomatoes, carrots, beans, and peas this way. Sort of like on shelves and a trellis against the side of the house facing the sun. I saved some money although not a whole lot it was something and I could splurge on my grandkiddies.Â
eschews? spare your pompous garbage...
 @Theonedog Hmmmmm Not sure how I feel about this. I had rather hear a word like eschews than well duh. Any attempt to keep our language alive has merit. Watch AMC sometimes and note the proper use of grammar and a better way of speaking. The world today, both music and literature, thinks that four letter adjectives are proper english. During the thirties and forties there was a effort to lift american english from the gutter, now we seem to be headed the other way. I failed english all the way thru high school, two years of summer school to graduate and then only because the teacher got tired of me and gave me a D minus. I would also suggest that on your next trip to the library that you read a chapter from Gibbons Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, this man was an english snob but eloguent. The is a good reason newspapers write at a sixth grade level.
I eschew your comment.Â
She'd like Zuccini better. and you can make awesome fat free sugar free muffins from them.
i think we all better plant a garden of food next year as the prices will be very high. even if it's in containers we can grow stuff. all you lucky people who have acreage should plant corn in the spring and make bank in the fall.
 @32jim2 I live in Port Angeles and everything is trucked in, the cost of fuel and new trucks means that we are putting in a garden again next year. Advice for new gardeners, buy seeds grown in the N.W. (Ed Hume for example.) Don't plant anything that takes longer than 60 days to grow in the mid-west, unless you have a green house to start them. Most of Western Washington was forest with evergreens dropping acid filled leaves for thousands of years. Start this fall and roto-till in steer manure to help cut down the acid effect on your garden. Buy the Western Garden Book. Start seeds in the green house in March.
What about all the time to grow and process the stuff and the money for water (even a well would use more electricity) and canning supplies and/or a controlled environment for the fresh vegetables.
I guess they can use the swiss chard to replace the TP costs...
I do believe they are doing a great thing and saving money, but get your head out of never never land get real.
 @alwayslast In the summer my water bill goes up $200.00 a month, my food bill goes down about $300 to $400. I like working in the garden, except for the pain, I am 72.
100$ a month isn't bad for 4 people. We get it down to about 35$ per week for two shopping at Winco and doing coupons at the major Krueger and Safeway stores for certain items.
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Time for the American people to rise up and tell the major food distributors to go to hell.
You just know they're going to try and raise all food prices over the corn-affected drought even though all that produce from Argentina shouldn't be affected at all. It's just like the oil companies raising prices when Iran gets in the news, total BS.
"eschews"??? So is KOMO trying to educate us on obscure words?
 @alwayslast Not an "obscure" word at all. Some of us know that "eschew" means "to shun or avoid".
Woot woot! Loyal mavis follower!!!! I hope to increase my Mavis-ness! :0)Â
Mavis has an amazing blog called onehundreddollarsamonth.com. Â She is hilarious and I hope she reaches her garden goal.