2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Any garden requires maintenance, which, in turn, takes time and considerable investment. But with the right approach, you can always save at least a little, but save money. Here are some helpful ideas for reducing gardening costs
To grow vegetables and fruits, you need gardening tools, seeds and other planting materials, for which you will have to shell out a considerable amount of money. Is it possible to reduce garden costs? And what should be done in this case? There are a lot of options. And, for sure, every experienced gardener has their own tricks to save money. Our advice will also not be superfluous:
1. For the arrangement of the garden, you can use the construction waste remaining after the repair
After repairing or building a house, a country house, at least a little paving stones, bricks or scrap wood will certainly remain, which should not be thrown away in a hurry. They can make great adaptations for garden beds, flower beds, greenhouses, patios and other garden objects. Thrifty summer residents specially arrange trips for construction waste, exploring the area near construction sites, landfills, village outskirts and summer cottages.
2. Independent production of fertilizers
It is popular to use bone meal as a fertilizer, which is especially good for growing tomatoes. Bones are first cleaned of bone meat, fat and cartilage are removed, and then they are baked in an oven at 140 degrees for about 3 hours. This will make the bones more fragile and can be easily broken into small pieces with a hammer. Do not forget to protect your eyes with goggles before doing this! And after that, use a meat grinder or a pestle in a mortar to turn the bones into powder.
To enrich the soil with phosphorus, potassium and magnesium, you can mix it with ground coffee beans or crushed eggshells.
3. Protection of cuttings with plastic bottles
In order to protect the cuttings from external influences, you can cut off the bottom of plastic bottles and, covering the cuttings with them, make for them a kind of mini-greenhouse.
4. Growing plants from seeds
Of course, it is much easier and faster to get fruits from purchased seedlings than to wait for sprouts from seeds. However, seedlings are more expensive than seeds. So it's best to have a little patience and grow your own seedlings from seeds. In addition, plants grown in this way are much better quality and more durable.
5. Self-made organic spray
A spray made from natural, alkali-free soap (a teaspoon), neem or lavender oil (two teaspoons) per liter of water will help protect plants from fungal infections and insect pests.
6. Making a watering can from plastic containers
It is enough to take any empty plastic bottle or canister, make 10-15 holes in its lid - and you don't have to spend money on buying a watering can in the store.
7. Saving on containers
You don't have to spend a lot of money on large street containers. Get creative and you will definitely find a cheaper and more original alternative. For example, regular bins without handles can be a good container for large ornamental plants.
8. Growing vegetables from scraps
Some vegetables (potatoes, lettuce, celery, green onions, and others) can be grown from cuttings placed in water and then transplanted onto the plot.
9. Weed control with cardboard
To make a weed barrier, you can use flattened cardboard boxes that line the paths between the plants. Cardboard has the property of decomposing in the ground, therefore it is an excellent protection against weeds, at the same time serves as a mulch for cultivated plants.
10. Saving money on the ground
You can save money by buying soil for container gardening. To do this, the bottom of a large container is abundantly filled with homemade drainage (for example, plastic mini-pots). So much less soil is needed.
11. Using garden markers to save money
Ordinary acrylic-coated tablespoons can be used to make great markers and unusual items to mark planted plants and create original garden decorations.
12. Savings on watering
Watering plants in the morning or evenings, you use less water - the air temperature in the morning and evening is low, so the moisture evaporates more slowly than in the middle of a sunny day.
13. Installation of self-humidifying devices
If for some time you do not have the opportunity to regularly water the plants on the site, fill clean empty bottles with water and, without closing the lids, dig into the ground. Water will gradually enter the soil and watering will not be needed for a long time.
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