Getting to know you........

wigginsmum

Welcome aboard

I'd love to talk to you about allotments - I'm on the waiting list for one. What kind of stuff do you grow? Do you go there daily?

comping_cat

Welcome thriftmummy, hope you will love it here!!!!

needmoney

Welcome from me too

lofty_cherrytree

I too am a newbie - I was made redundant in March when the hospital I worked for closed. We lost a third of our income whilst still having to pay for our son's nursery while I found some work (this takes ages for nurses as all the background checks etc take time). However, because I was home I discovered MSE and we have actually had money left at the end of the month!

Some of the OS tips I was already using, or had heard of & forgotten.

I am
-cooking from scratch
-buying things secondhand
-have joined freecycle to get rid of clutter
-thoroughly check supermarkets for offers and reductions
-growing some veg
-use soda crystals and vinegar for some cleaning (haven't been able to buy stardrops where I live)

I am now in the position where I am working very part-time doing some agency work and the family still have the benefit of an almost full time mum-at-home.

Thanks for all the tips everyone!

wigginsmum

Hope you both enjoy it here - I think OS is the friendliest part of the forum (although I flit through most parts on a daily basis).

GardenMillie

Welcome lofty_cherrytree

Sorry to hear about you losing your job, but delighted you found MSE and are already using tips.

I too cook from scratch, being a singleton I freeze portions but it's a great way to save money and control what your eating (i.e. fat and salt content).

I really like the old style forum.:D

thriftmummy

Hi wigginsmum,

With regard to my allotment, it took some time for me to find one (as my local council wasn't very helpful). I eventually found a private allotment about 5 minutes drive from my house. I pay £12 per year for half a plot, and it's fantastic I love it down there. This is the first year I've had it and I've already had rhubard, potatoes, radish, spring onions (all were extremely yummy) also I have carrots, tomatoes, more potatoes, lettuce, onions and turnip growing at the moment. I go down there on average about once or twice a week. I'd love to go down more often, but with a toddler and a part time job I don't always get time. I'd definatley recommend it, I haven't spent hardly anthing apart from buying my seeds. I got my manure free from a local stables and borrowed books from the library to learn how to do things.

wigginsmum

Thanks for that. I live 5 minutes walk from the site I'm interested in, but I work fulltime so I wondered in practical terms how many nights a week I'd have to visit to make it viable Definitely interested in growing rhubarb! Do you have a shed to keep your tools onsite? What are the watering arrangements?

thriftmummy

I don't have a shed at the moment, I just take my stuff down in the car when I go. My sister has one also which is near her house and she doesn't drive, I think she just leaves her tools there. As long as they're not expensive I don't think anyone would steal them. At the site I'm at because it's private they don't have a water supply as the landlord is not willing to put one in (too expensive). I take my own down there in old pop bottles (the really large ones with handles). Other than that I pray for rain! Council owned sites are more likely to have a water supply, or you could use a water barrel. With regard to the amount of time you've got to spend down there, once everything is planted up it's really just a case of keeping on top of the weeds and watering. Potatoes are really easy to grow and pretty much take care of themselves. The rhubarb on my plot was there when I got it and I've totally neglected it, haven't even watered it, and I had more rhubarb than I knew what to do with.

fluffynit

Welcome to mse.

I am a bit of a lurker but pop in most days to get ideas and advice.

I am f/t mum to a 3 year old and an 18 month old.

fluffynit