Back on the subject of Gardening on a budget, the other option apart from local garden centres etc is to buy online and this is where a review site like BView really come into their own I think, as checking reviews for online nurseries or Garden centres that sell by mail order can be a real boon. I have ordered from several online companies but I appreciate others might be nervous in doing so the first time, so to read a review first can make all the difference, and of course if the company are then offering vouchers or discounts via BView then you have even more of a bargain. I shopped at Crocus for the first time this year and the BView discount made it incredibly cheap.
My other tips for money-saving gardening are to use things you can pick up cheaply. This year I have cabbages and broccoli growing in old plastic storage crates that I just made some holes in, at the bottom, for drainage. They are easy to move around and hold a lot of compost which is perfect for veg. You can make your own plant food (if you don’t mind the smell!) from soaking nettles in water for a couple of weeks, and of course to propagate and get free plants, just take cuttings. I use old polystyrene pieces from parcels as ‘crocks’ at the bottom of pots which has the advantage of using something that doesn’t break down in landfill, and saves adding extra weight to the pots.
You can grow potatoes and leeks etc in thick bin bags rather than expensive planters; make your own garden accessories by threading shells onto string and driftwood or using old broken jewellery to hang in trees and twinkle in the sunshine. I am even using an old wardrobe mirror in the corner of the garden for added interest amongst the plants. At the end of the summer before it breaks or rots I will just take it to the tip where it was destined to go anyway!
Browsing gardening sites can often give you fabulous ideas that you can adapt to suit yourself. To make a small pond I just buried an old sink, surrounded it with flat stones to cover the edges and put in some rocks to give a different depth for any wildlife that might come. I found someone giving away a water lily cutting on freecycle and so there it was – a mini water feature for no outlay but my time!
So with a little imagination and by being a savvy shopper, you can have a garden to be proud of without spending very much money at all! And of course, any of the places you DO shop at, you can come back and review on BView to help others make an informed choice.
Check BView for the latest offers at:
GardenCentre.co.uk
Gardens and Homes Direct
Cotswold
Tags: bargain, cheap, garden, garden centre, gardenin, gardens, money saving, out doors
[...] Money Saving Gardening (Part 2) Share and Enjoy: [...]
I too have been gardening frugally this year and utilising everything I could find to avoid buying any pots. The only thing that I won’t be trying again though is using my own well rotted garden compost for growing seeds. There were definitively too many nettles in my salad this year!
[...] Money Saving Gardening (Part 2) [...]
To avoid gardenmad’s problem with the nettles in the compost. First, you probably did not balance the brown matter to green matter correctly in the compost, since it should be quite hot and so take care of problem seeds in the pile. Second, a good idea also is to lay clear plastic on your garden for 3 weeks in the Spring once it gets warm. This will heat the soil to kill off many pests.
On my site at http://www.how-you-can-save.com I have a pretty thorough explanation of both composting and the soil heating technique. Good luck!
Hi all!
Thank you to those of you who have linked back to this blog on other sites but please do not forget there is a part one that complements it. And I do think the two pieces work better together..
http://blog.bview.co.uk/2009/08/10/money-saving-gardening-part-1/
E.