Systematic Planning Will Help Your Thrifty Gardening

With the economy as it is, many are talking about being thrifty. These frugal gardening tips may help save some "green."

Make a list of what you'd like to see in your garden and stick to it. A list will help your self-control when you are tempted to purchase something on impulse.

Soil is the key to a wonderful garden. Making compost is a low-cost way to improve soil.

If you're not already composting, look for a sunny, out-of-the-way spot in your yard to put a compost bin. Bins can be made of scrap lumber, chicken wire and even hay bales.

Look for free material to add to your compost pile. What can you put in the pile at no cost? Grass clippings (yours and your neighbors'), coffee grounds from local cafes and shredded newspaper. Also, watch for bags of leaves set at the curb for disposal. Toss in your vegetable scraps, egg shells and garden waste (spent annuals, shrub prunings, etc.).

Turn the pile every few weeks, and soon you will have rich compost to add to your soil.

Many expenditures for containers and equipment can be eliminated by reusing items already on hand. Egg cartons, margarine tubs and yogurt and cottage cheese containers are fantastic for seed starting.

Discarded windows can be converted into cold frames. Plastic milk jugs can be used to make mini-greenhouses. Cut a jug horizontally around the container, leaving it "hinged" under the handle. Punch holes in the bottom for drainage. Large soda bottles, cut in half, can be used to cover plants when a freeze is predicted.

Grow vertically -- tomatoes, climbing peas and beans are great options -- to make the most of your square footage.

Plants such as yellow squash, zucchini and peppers are notorious for their ample yields. Trade with neighbors for vegetables you didn't grow.

Many plants reseed themselves. My flower beds are full of seedlings from the old-fashioned petunias I planted last spring. Batchelor buttons, alyssum, poppies, violas, toadflax and larkspur also need to be planted only once. (In zones warmer than 4/5)

Members of the sedum family are some of the easiest plants to propagate. Break off a piece of the mother plant and bury the stem in the soil with some foliage exposed. You'll have new plants in no time.

Share the costs of gardening with a friend. If a packet of seeds is more than you need, divide it and its cost with a fellow gardener. Or trade seeds for a new variety you want to try.

Combine other purchases with a gardening partner, too. For instance, you can usually save by buying mulch and potting mix in bulk rather than in small bags.

Swapping bulbs and plants with friends, neighbors and family is a great way to garden with little or no expense. Cuttings for propagating plants, such as roses, and divisions of overgrown perennials can be traded to increase the variety in your landscape.

Steppingstones are an easy do-it-yourself project. For molds, use old cake pans or plastic storage containers. Embellish your steppingstones with marbles, old jewelry or leaf impressions.

Add more fun to your garden with wind chimes made of vintage forks, knives and spoons.

Wooden chairs, ladders, tricycles or wagons can serve as interesting garden accents.

Anything that can hold soil can become a planter. Old gardening boots, wheelbarrows and toolboxes make whimsical substitutes for expensive outdoor containers.

Discarded sinks, washtubs, water troughs and wagons make excellent planters. Drill holes for drainage, fill the vessel with potting mix and plant your favorite posies.

* Cover the soil with a 3- to 4-inch layer of mulch. It keeps the soil moist longer.

* When possible, use drip watering systems to deliver water exactly where it is needed.

* Group plants with the same water needs so you are not watering plants that don't need it.

* Capture and store rainwater for landscape watering. Plant a rain garden to capture runoff and keep the water in your yard, off the street and out of the storm drain.

* If you have an automatic watering system, make sure all parts are operating properly.

Glad to help! I used to live in San Diego, CA, where you can garden 365 days a year. I literally got BORED with it, LOL!

I like Zone 4/5 where I have four distinct seasons. Spring and Fall are my favorites. :)

Look into ‘Alpine Plants’ too. They thrive at that altitude. Granted, they’re not food producers, but Alpine gardens can be very pretty. Wouldn’t you love to see an Edelweiss or a Lenten Rose peaking out through the snow in the early Spring? :)

Here’s a pretty site I found for you:

http://www.thealpinegarden.com/

we have some 55 gal. plastic drums we could use

You have an excellent container to use for a composter, but here is what I'd do. Buy two small - medium door hinges. Make a single cut with a jigsaw about 2/3 across the length of the barrel. Mount the hinges with pop rivets now, so the door is not so hard to mount later.

Now, make another cut parallel to the first, about 12 - 15 inches away. Get a small piece of flat metal about 3X4 inches and mount on the door, to keep it from falling into the drum.

Then cut each end of the door so it opens. Next, drill holes using a unibit (step bit) all around the barrel and each end.

Buy four 3 or 4 inch casters. Mount them on 4X4 base and use a 2X4 or 2X6 to hold them together. Make sure they are not too close to the door. Lay the drum onto the rollers, and start putting leftovers, clippings, whatever you want to use. Add water to get the process started.

If you can get some, throw a couple of cow patties into the compost. Make sure you break them with a shovel or spade before you throw them into the mix. Roll your drum every two or three days.

Yes that hurt!!! From then on I wore braids, was very careful about letting the hair fly around. Seriously, it could have broken my neck.

I do miss the long hair though. I didn’t cut it for about 13 years. Wearing breads was just easier. I braided it at night to sleep so I wouldn’t have a tangled mess to comb out in the morning. Fine hair is a pain.

The Love in a Mist does well here. My friend sent me seeds spring before last. They did well and came back up last year. I harvested seeds from them.

Maybe you could put them in a shady area. I have some in shade and some in sun, and they seem to do well in both areas. The past two summers here we had drought and they still thrived.

The friend just sent the Canterbury Bells this fall, so I don’t know how they’ll work out.

If you want me to send you some of the seed from the Love in a Mist I will be happy to do so.

The neighbors are okay, although they did lose about everything in the fire. I called them and asked them if I could do anything. I have some clothes to take by when I am sure this bug is over (don’t want to spread it to them at their age). I feel good today, but was sick, sick all week.

It is beautiful outside here today, in the ‘50s and sunshine. After being sick I really appreciate waking up well.

Thanks. I’m going to pass this on the the men-folks in my house. I have mostly been the gardening person in our home, but this year we are doing garden planning together, actually starting seeds indoors. They like “messing around with stuff” so maybe this will be a project they’ll enjoy.

Hey girl. Mr G and I just got back from a weekend off, so I have been out of the loop for a few days. We spent the weekend talking about our garden, and have decided to go with the Square Foot Garden method. We think we actually have a chance at making that work. I don’t have any seeds to share because I have so far managed to just kill things. I hope to do better.

Have your neighbors who lost their house been in contact with the Red Cross? Did they show up the night of the fire? They should have been called by the fire department. They should be able to give them food, shelter and clothing to help them get through the start of this catastrophe. That is what they are there for. They can also help replace some of their other stuff. Call them if they haven’t talked.

I see you got in trouble with some long hair. Since I used to be able to sit on my hair I know what you mean. When I finally cut it I cut off 3 feet, and it was still down to my shoulders.

I got mine caught in a wringer washer one time and it scared me good. Fortunately, I got it turned off before I was hurt. Between that and getting it caught on the buttons of people walking the other direction and having my head yanked backwards, I decided a braid was the answer.

Thank you for being a friend.

I am only partly back, while using an old computer and waiting for my normal computer to be fixed.

In post 9371 on our thread, we have permission to continue as we were, with the survival thread.

[Smile]

Thank you for your kind words.

I did give up on Free Republic, when ordered to post only links to recipes.

And then God gave me a timeout period, my computer broke and is still in the shop.

This 98 Windows, had Free Republic as the home page and sometimes it will connect and others it takes the day off.

Our survival thread is active again, but not with new and exciting posts, as I can’t surf the internet on this one.

It did work fine for the million games of Solitare that I have played on it for the past month..

granny

Granny!

I’m so glad you’re back! We missed you!

My computer isn’t broken, but I’ve been trying to not spend as much time on it. :) On freeper, anyway. Grin. I spend way too much time online. I’ve been trying to finish a couple of books and I’m still writing my articles—one due next week. LOL

Besides that, the greenhouse is cranking up again. The guys got it cleaned for me and new floor cloth down. Going to try and replace the plastic next week. Have cabbage, lettuces, broccoli, cauliflower, chard, bak choi, spinach, beets, turnips, and rutabagas started. They put the “incubator”—a greenhouse within a greenhouse up and we put some peppers and maters in.

Not sure why the mods got upset, but I never thought about hitting abuse and complaining to them. My apologies. Glad they recanted. A bunch of the crowd was trying to get a petition going to Jim to get you reinstated. ((((HUGS)))))

Anything I can do to help you get yours up and running?

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