Get thrifty - Page 3

I have some tall pot holders that look nice but are too tall for the shallow pots of herbs I put inside them. I use old corks in the bottom of the pot holders to hold the shallow pots up. Corks work well because they have natural anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties. And while we're on the subject, that's a very good reason for preserving natural cork oak forests.

Emma

gardenersworld.com team

Instead of purchasing expensive potato growing bags for your patio, use Ikea bags.Punch drainage holes using a paper punch and use in the normal way. They are much more colourful and at 40p each will probably last just as long. I intend to use them in my greenhouse instead of plant pots for my tomatos and peppers.

Rod

Use old dark coloured sweatshirts or fleeces to line hanging baskets.

Use kids dark coloured cotton tights cut into strips to make plant ties that streach.

Recycle old plastic bins or wheelie bins, place next to a water butt and syphon water from the butt into the bin.

Sue

Use supermarket cream cartons as mini propargators.  Punch holes in the base, fill with compost and sprinkle with seeds. Place transparent lid over.  Remove lid each day to wipe off condensation and replce.  Remove lid completely as soon as green shoots are seen.

Kathleen Harrison

For anyone like me, living in the cold north and therefore growing everything on windowsills, if you've run out of trays, cut off the bottoms of 2L drinks bottles and stand pots in these.

I have bought wooden step ladders (at car boot sales for approx £3) and use them as climbing frames for my sweetpeas or climbers.....and whilst waiting for the climbers to grow, they have a plant pot on top with flowers in to give a little interest.

I have planted my baskets up and the birds have since been and have taken the edges of the baskets for nests and now the water pours out. So as not to disturb the plants so much I have had to cut up inch strips from an old one to now place around the edges.  I have also added a small clear plastic bottle without the lid on and the bottom cut off into the basket.  I now water through the bottle.  This ensure that the water stays in the basket and feeds water to the roots of the plant.  This has made such a difference to the conditon of theplants in the basket. 

go to the coner in your local garden centre were all the plants that are nearly dead are find some plants you like and remember don't judge the plant by what it looks like if you can find a bit of the plant which is still alive theres a chance that you can neure it back to life these plant are normaly cheap and the garden centre is happy to let them go.

Don't put hole in the bottom of plant pots etc put them up the side, the water doesn't run out of the bottom and it stays wetter longer. The deeper your pot the higher the holes. I hardly ever buy full price plants and always try to get cuttings from anything I buy. I got 40 petunia's for 30p recently. Just needed a water. I do wish the tv programme would show some 'on a budget' gardens, it is very extravagant and well beyond my pocket and although Monty Don is good I do miss Geoff and his cheap ideas.

I find vinegar makes a good weedkiller on paths and patios, the value supermarket brands cost around 30p i put in a spray bottle and spray on weeds, they die off in about a week. 

Whilst out shopping, popped into "the works" discount bookshop,found seeds, flowers & veg for 4 packets for a £1- bought 12 packets of seeds- annuals, perrenials & biennials for £3. Bargain

Same here local poundland - hanging baskets seeds - 6 varieties all germinated and now outside in baskets ( 6 ) Also Wilkies plant sale - acer orange dream was £1 - bargained them down to 50p it's now a handsome specimen in the garden .

Wilko's were selling Orange Dream Acer's - OMG that's the exact one that I'm after.

Hi, I save the clear discs that come with spools of CD and DVD containers used for recording on them they make excellent Brassica collars and do not show when in situ.

Save your teabags and use them to line pots and hanging baskets.They hold water and disintergrate into the compost.

Use your empty plastic bottles as "hot water bottles". I fill them with waste water and place them around my courgette plants. They get warm in the sun and keep the plants warm at night.

Hi marshmello our Wilko's in Lancs has sale on plants from now on The orange dream acer had lost all but some of its leaves so I told them it was half dead but I 'd give them 50p for it I bargain with them every year ! The acer is now about 4 years old and its gorgeous Our Wilkos have them all the time My latest purchase is a Salix Flamingo last week for a quid Try going to a larger store .

To protect soft fruit in pots (e.g. strawberries): I had to discard a growhouse, so I brought the rusted metallic frame to the tip and kept the staging grids. I Re-used them as support for a frame to protect my few pots of strawberries, fixing them at the edges with some garden wire and lined it with a thinner netting appropriate for bird protection. The frame is 3sides, and the top is only the netting, so that it's handy to lift the "cage", pick the ripe fruits, and put it back very easily. Oh, and I leaned it against a south facing fence, securing the netting with hooks to deal with the few gaps left. All this for free and freeing my conscience for discarding non-recyclable material.

PS: thanks to all of you above for contributing with your thrifty tips!

I want an Eddie J!! What youve made is amazing

weejenny wrote (see)

I want an Eddie J!! What youve made is amazing

Many thanks weejenny.

Perhaps I should show my other made for nothing or next to nothing projects.

Absolutely you should in this time of recession we all need to know it doesn't need to cost a fortune for garden features etc. I love your bench with the squirrel. Your work as I said is amazing!!

Here go weejenny, two projects that I was busy working on last weekend. Neither are finished yet, but you can get the idea, and the only cost has been time. I'll post up some other garden projects a little later.