It is tough NOW. So how are we coping

lauren_1

silvercharming wrote: »

That babyK stuff is lovely, but HOW much :eek: Babies neither know or care if they are trendy!

Extortionate indeed. I dont know how they can justify the prices of some things, but might be tempted to get one outfit (just for the pictures and from the sale of course)

mardatha

I'm finding my garden lettuce stays fresh in the fridge for a week easily. I washed it and put it still damp into a bowl in the fridge, under a damp tea towel, and that was last friday.

ceridwen

lauren_1 wrote: »

The thing that got me all excited was a leaflet for a baby craft club near me ' make do and mend, not spend spend spend' i think its run by a church group and it teaches all area's of sewing, knitting, repairing etc etc for babies and mums to be.

Now thats what I call constructive thinking - if I were in the Young Mum position (which I'm not/never have been....) I'd be in there signing myself up for it quicksharp.

ceridwen

mardatha wrote: »

I'm finding my garden lettuce stays fresh in the fridge for a week easily. I washed it and put it still damp into a bowl in the fridge, under a damp tea towel, and that was last friday.

...and then there is the best way to make sure one has fresh lettuce - keep it stored in the ground..

I have some cut and come again type lettuce growing and just take off the leaves I need each time - leaving the rest there in the ground to keep growing. I'm going to be thinking what gives me best food value per number of weeks spent in the ground come next year - and so far identified sorrel and perpetual spinach as growing quickly and being available for a large part of the year...so they are on the growing list for next year.

EDIT: a book worth borrowing if possible is "Grow your own vegetables" by Joy Larkcom - as she writes a lot in that one about maximising the usage of gardenspace and various similar foodgrowing hints and has got a couple of foodgrowing plans in there even for a family. Good to have someone who realises that many people have to put up with tiny tiny little gardens AND a lot of that might be in shade for some hours a day, etc, etc - ie all the problems a lot of us have to put up with ITRW because we havent got the archetypal small garden of 30' x 80' garden which also has full sun all day....and are having to make do as best we can with a lot worse garden set-up than that.

Primrose

ceridwen - agree with you that Spinach. Perpetual Spinach (and Swiss Chard) are excellent plants to grow all year round. The small leaves are ideal in salads & stir fries and for some reason in our garden the slugs & diseases just leave them alone (Always a big 'plus' point). For the same reasons, leeks are always good value for money as they are low maintenance and don't seem to suffer from many dieases. . You're right about thinking hard about what is best to grow when you have limited space, and gardens with a lot of shade. When it comes to growing vegetables I think most of us are trying to squeeze a quart into a pint pot in terms of garden space. I break most of the rules about crop spacing - just try to manure the soil well and plant everything as close together as I dare. It also helps to keep the weeds down and I always get pretty good yields.

Aril

I've joined a group of like minded ladies and we've set up a very informal group called Re-made and we're going to be having a bash at all types of hm stuff. So far we've done natural dyeing and making bags. It's great fun and I'm feeling more confident. I've just made a lined velvet scarf from an old hippy skirt which I've added beads to.
I'm also increasingly spending evening with friends making stuff-
I made biscuits recently with a friend and our future plans include making bracelets from jewellery we've got but no longer wear, runes and bath bombs. We're both of slender means financially.
Aril

Hippeechiq

ceridwen wrote: »

...and then there is the best way to make sure one has fresh lettuce - keep it stored in the ground..
EDIT: a book worth borrowing if possible is "Grow your own vegetables" by Joy Larkcom - as she writes a lot in that one about maximising the usage of gardenspace and various similar foodgrowing hints and has got a couple of foodgrowing plans in there even for a family. Good to have someone who realises that many people have to put up with tiny tiny little gardens AND a lot of that might be in shade for some hours a day, etc, etc - ie all the problems a lot of us have to put up with ITRW because we havent got the archetypal small garden of 30' x 80' garden which also has full sun all day....and are having to make do as best we can with a lot worse garden set-up than that.

Thanks for that ceridwen I'm going to make a note of that and have a shot at container growing next year - previous house owner laid both gardens with paving slabs :mad: - am guessing I'm pretty much too late for anything now, plus it wouldn't be easy for me to get the containers and compost at the moment as my car failed it's MOT in April, so I'm car-less at the moment. Would especially be interested in growing lettuce, tomatoes and peppers, I don't know how easy/difficult they are?

Aril wrote: »

I've joined a group of like minded ladies and we've set up a very informal group called Re-made and we're going to be having a bash at all types of hm stuff. So far we've done natural dyeing and making bags. It's great fun and I'm feeling more confident. I've just made a lined velvet scarf from an old hippy skirt which I've added beads to.
I'm also increasingly spending evening with friends making stuff-
I made biscuits recently with a friend and our future plans include making bracelets from jewellery we've got but no longer wear, runes and bath bombs. We're both of slender means financially.
Aril

That sounds fab Aril Love the sound of the dyeing, baking and making bracelets from recycled jewellery & the Runes & Bath Bombs :T

Larumbelle

Hippeechiq wrote: »

Thanks for that ceridwen I'm going to make a note of that and have a shot at container growing next year - previous house owner laid both gardens with paving slabs :mad: - am guessing I'm pretty much too late for anything now, plus it wouldn't be easy for me to get the containers and compost at the moment as my car failed it's MOT in April, so I'm car-less at the moment. Would especially be interested in growing lettuce, tomatoes and peppers, I don't know how easy/difficult they are?

Hippeechiq. It is not too late for lettuce - especially if you find it somewhere shady. Containers could be anything - an old recycling box, old storage box, old carrier bag.... compost could be soil from yours or anyone elses garden, wasteground etc. It's a bit late for tomatoes and peppers from seed this year but many seed swappers will be happy to donate 'starter packs' of seed to beginners from their own extensive collection away from the MSE boards Plenty of people grow too many plants then give them away too, so check out Freegle.

smileyt_2

silvercharming wrote: »

Hippeechiq. It is not too late for lettuce - especially if you find it somewhere shady. Containers could be anything - an old recycling box, old storage box, old carrier bag.... compost could be soil from yours or anyone elses garden, wasteground etc. It's a bit late for tomatoes and peppers from seed this year but many seed swappers will be happy to donate 'starter packs' of seed to beginners from their own extensive collection away from the MSE boards Plenty of people grow too many plants then give them away too, so check out Freegle.

If you're quick, you can sow runner and climbing french beans too.

ceridwen

Hippeechiq wrote: »

Thanks for that ceridwen I'm going to make a note of that and have a shot at container growing next year - previous house owner laid both gardens with paving slabs :mad: - am guessing I'm pretty much too late for anything now, plus it wouldn't be easy for me to get the containers and compost at the moment as my car failed it's MOT in April, so I'm car-less at the moment. Would especially be interested in growing lettuce, tomatoes and peppers, I don't know how easy/difficult they are?

I havent been able to get anywhere with peppers - lettuce and tomatoes seem to be pretty easy.

Anyways - since you have plenty of "planning time" before you're good to go then you might like to do a bit of "research" first - so you can start off on a good footing. Try borrowing these:

"The Patio Kitchen garden" - Daphne Ledward
"Self Sufficiency in a flat" - Joy O.I. Spoczynska
"Indoor Farming" - David Wickers
"The Indoor Kitchen garden - vegetable growing in limited space" - Joy O.I. Spoczynska

I suggest buying these:
"Window-box allotment - a beginner's guide to container gardening" - penelope Bennett
"Vegetable, Fruit and herb growing in small spaces" - John Harrison

EDIT: There's a couple of Joy Spoczynska's books on Amazon right now for 1p...so ..for that price...might as well buy them...