Reduce, Reuse Recyle, how many times have we all heard that...

BUT it can be a great way to do things.

 Things can get very costly out there if you have to buy everything new so I asked 

a few friends and had a few ideas of my own I thought I would share with you.

Be a scrounger! Containers and plant starting trays can cost a bundle. I found 4 huge plant containers in someones big trash! They now house many of my herbs. Need to start seedlings? Save your egg containers. The cardboard ones are great and will decompose.All those plastic tubs your strawberries and cherry tomatoes come in, perfect mini greenhouses! (wash well first)

We had a lovely gazebo, then we had a snow storm, we no longer have a gazebo. We collected the poles and they will now become extra poles for my pole beans. The netting? It will be used to cover my plants like broccoli and cabbage to keep the moths out of them. Awesome!

What about an old pool that has been well used but no longer any good. We cut it up into flat pieces and used it to cover our wood pile and the raised boxes to keep weeds down between seasons.

Have an old wheelbarrow and fireplace liner? We did so it now keeps our wood stove ash nicely housed and covered through the winter until they can be used!

I also got some great ideas from my gardening group friends!

Gardening Jones offered these suggestions! Reuse cardboard boxes and corn stalks to cut down on weeds, use an old garden shovel for your house numbers, glass bottles work as mini cloches to get a jump in the season, her garden gate is the foot board from an old metal bed, a broken windmill lawn ornament supports vining crops, plastic milk jugs painted black help hold the heat in the mini greenhouse.

You can check out her blog here, It's great! Gardening Jones Blog

And my friend Jack Sisler offered these,

Use three or four layers of old newspapers with straw on top between their rows of sweetcorn and other vegetables to keep the weeds down. Can be tilled in prior to the next growing season. Toilet paper and paper roll tubes are used by many for seed starting. 

I hope these suggestions help or inspire you to try some of your own. Happy Gardening!!

Of seeds,soil and containers

I don't know about everyone else, but my goal with gardening is to not only grow my own food but to reduce, reuse and recycle. Since my husband has been out of work for several years and we live on a fixed income I do what I can to save a bit here and there.I do usually end up buying a few seed starter boxes but came across this idea from a friend of mine. I use old egg cartons as well and cover with saran wrap, but this is even better .

Our city does recycling but will not take the plastic strawberry container, tomatoes etc (even though they are marked 1) and so I have been saving them for years. I give goodies in them and gifts but still have alot! And guess what, they are perfect mini green houses. They have holes for drainage and lids to keep them warm until they sprout! I make sure they are clean. We don't want any germs in the soil. Fill them with a seed started soil, put in the seeds, (here it was sugar pumpkins and Marglobe tomatoes) spaced appropriately and cover with soil according to seed size, bigger seeds, more soil.Then water well.

 

I poked holes in the small black ones because they didn't have any for drainage. Put the covers on and label them. No matter how bright you think you are you will forget what is in each one (ask me how I know =) I used that tape with string in it borrowed from hubby, and a black marker, it dries and doesn't rub off and just stuck it on the side. Then I wrote everything down in my journal.

If you don't have one of these then you should. A page for each veggie will work unless you are very eloquent. I just write the kind of seed, the date I planted and how many and app days until germination.

Then when they pop up I jot it down as well and make of note of how they are growing. I will note once they are transplanted outside and then journal their progress, the weather and when they bear fruit and how much. 

This will help you in the years to follow with your planting, and amounts you may need. I would like to thank my good friend Jack for this idea as it had never occurred to me!

Happy gardening all!