Money Saving Tips For Gardeners

Gardening doesn't have to cost the earth. Here are five tips which will save you money...

What domestic activity burns as many calories as two games of badminton? I'll give you a hint: it's the same pastime that burns twice as many calories as a half hour run?

Still stumped? It's only gardening!

`Tis true. According to research form health insurer Bupa, not only are gardening activities such as seed planting and lawn mowing good for the environment (and, as many would add, the `soul'), but they can also form a part of that vital summer exercise regime!

Don't ditch the gym in favour of lawn mowing just yet, though.

Whether you are a novice gardener, a green fingered god/goddess or simply want to have a pretty windowsill, here are some foolish tips to save you some pennies this summer.

Starting out

There are also a host of websites out there that can help you ease your way into the gardening world. The Royal Horticultural Society has a very useful advice section which includes a number of downloadable leaflets on various aspects of gardening.

If you're a bit of an eager beaver, however, it's worth being a bit cautious when making that first stop to the garden centre.

Yes, those beautiful makepiece gardens are certainly a dream to look at - and not to prune anyone's confidence if you're new to the game - but it is unlikely that purchasing everything you think looks pretty on the display will have the desired effect in your own garden.

It may also prove pretty painful on the old bank balance.

Why pay expensive prices when you can wrangle lots of things you need for nothing more than a bit of friendly research:

1. As my fellow Fool Malcolm Wheatley pointed out in `Ten Ways To Cut Your Gardening Costs', cuttings are a great way to nab the plants or flowers that you have seen in full growth, and really like. So get snipping - but make sure you ask first!

2. Gardening clubs/societies - there are a number of online communities where members swap plants and seeds with each other. These forums are also great for gardening tips. Try the following:

• Complete-Gardens.co.uk, Plant-Traders.co.uk and Seedy People for swaps (you can usually list seeds you want as well as seeds you don't want).
• MyFolia.com (a garden tracking community where you can find out who is growing the same things you are, organise and track your gardening adventures and make `gardening buddies' for support, chat and swaps)
• GardeningUnplugged.com (go to their gardening forum for swaps - but they also have a list of events and recommended gardening centres)

3. While fashioning your own pitchfork might prove a bit tricky, there are other things that can be made at home. A popular money saving method is making seedling pots from newspaper - there's a useful demonstration of how to do it here. (Note: if you replace the demonstrator's seedling tray with an old meat tray, you've saved yourself even more money!)

Compost

Why buy bags of the stuff when you can make your own? All you need is a container, which you can buy from a shop or your local council. The Foolish option would of course, be to make a compost bin yourself - all you need is some chicken wire, some stakes and some cardboard.

Homecomposting.org.uk is a great composting website which offers advice on how to make your own container, as well as tips on what you can include in your compost.

A bit of home brewing

You probably didn't know this, but you can actually make your own weed killer. According to The Vinegar Institute, a simple spray of white distilled vinegar on weeds will do the job, although there are many other recipes online, a lot of which seem to involve mixing vinegar with dishwasher liquid.

The institute's website also offers a range of other uses for vinegar in the garden, which include a recipe for plant nutrient solution. That's certainly cheaper than forking out for a packet of the stuff from Homebase!

Contrary to what you may have gathered from gardening shows on TV, creating and maintaining a garden doesn't have to break the bank. With a little know how, you can make extra use of things that are likely to be lying round your house anyway.

Happy gardening!

More: Ten Ways To Cut Your Gardening Costs | Cheap Gardening Tips For Beginners