The Great 'Re-use from the house into the garden' Hunt

sarerb18

tenuissent wrote: »

Newspaper and cardboard. Lay thickly on field grass to supress the weeds and grass while you dig out your new allotment. Lay thickly between raspberry bushes to supress weeds. Lay thickly anywhere you might otherwise use Mypex woven plastic at £0.95 a metre (a metre wide). If you can't bear the look of it, add thin layer of woodchips/straw/soil.
/anything you can bear the look of.

:T
Thanks for this I will try this under the scalpings we are about to lay as I have a big problem with raspberries. They don't produce much and grow all over the garden and I mean all over. This might deter them long enough to stop regrowth. I live in hope.

I do have decent fruit bearing raspberries as well in case you are wondering.

Sarer

http://http://www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/sarerdavis

Cacran

I have just made a frame to grow my beans on from the framework of my old rotary washing line. I took the big central post out ( used that with some long bolts drilled into the top for a new washing post and concreted it in) then used the pivoting arms, (umbrella type bit) and poked the ends into the ground, firming it up with a long bamboo. I had already removed the actual line. I then threaded string through each of the clips for the beans to be tied to. Looks really smart.

Kay_Peel

Bump!

There are so many ingenious, cheap and effective ideas here that it would be a shame to lose it.

Kay

Jayar

Very true Kay
I just thought of another one - don't know if it's already been mentioned because I don't have time to trawl through the whole thread
I use an old kitchen sieve - with the holes slightly enlarged to "sift" a fine layer of compost on top of seeds.

looby-loo_2

Yesterday I cleaned my greenhouse and I'm determined to keep it that way. I took along several cup hooks and screwed them in along the end frame. I've hung up:-
a dustpan and brush
scissors
pen
These are the things I always have to go back to the house for, then leave up there and have to go and collect from the greenhouse later. Now they will always be to hand and wont get wet on the shelf.

Also hung up a bag made from a teacloth for rubbish (always suprises me how much I can make in a small greenhouse!)
And left one for my jumper/coat which so often gets left out for several days 'cos I leave the house cold and get hot aftr 5 mins and strip off.

Kay_Peel

It's too early to plant up my (wire) hanging baskets round here, so in the meantime, I've covered them in clear plastic and I'm using them as cloches.

Kay

Jayar

What a great idea Kay, just what I need to get a few things put in tomorrow.

I broke the tip off my best kitchen knife today
So, I wrapped the handle in that bright orange sticky tape - you know the kind?
1 to make it easier to grip
2 so that I know it's a garden knife and not for kitchen use
3 so that if I put it down I'll not lose it

looby-loo_2

Have you ever noticed how plastic soon goes brittle and breaks? I did a few years ago and now a make a real effort to keep plastics out of the sun.
I store the watering can behind the shed, I've a storage box with a lid under the shelf in the greenhouse where I store sprayer, labels, ties, plastic tools. Also, as soon as I've finished using plastics trays/saucers I hide them in the shed where it's dark.

I got 6 quite old, large trays out today and they are as good as new but the 7th I keep cacti on all year round has split.

looby-loo_2

I store all my plant pots and trays in bin liners over winter so the slugs and snails can't hide away in the corners underneath

(but ps - remember to tell OH it's not rubbish!)

Cacran

They are hard to get rid of so make some use of them. Use them to grow potatoes in. Start off with just the one, fill with soil and plant up a few seed potatoes. as the stems grow put another tyre on filiing it with more soil and so on and so on.
You can also use them for composting. Just pile them up (Motor cycle tyres are best for this as they are generally bigger. Fill up with your kitchen waste or garden waste and after about a year, lift from the bottom with a spade and your compost should be there, waiting to be used.