Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend

Makingabobor2

Or maybe you could leave your greenhouse task until tomorrow and have a well deserved afternoon at leisure. That's what I'm doing....we've visited in-laws this morning, before going for a nice walk, so I definitely need some "Me time" now....lol. 

foxgloves

Hello Diary Readers,
Well, I thoroughly enjoyed my greenhouse time once I'd got my backside off that chair! I took my envelope of February seeds  down with me & caught up a bit. It struck me while I was getting busy with filling trays & sprinkling seeds what a generally resourceful lot gardeners can be. Yes, I know I used to spend a fortune at garden centres back in the Spendy Decades & I can't deny that this will have contributed a fair amount to my 24-year-old overdraft, etc,  but it really isn't necessary, as there are so many things which can usefully be repurposed from stuff more usually destined for the council wheelie bins.
This afternoon, I've used plastic trays from meat & tofu as seed trays, having pierced them at the base with an old knitting needle. They are now covered with see-through plastic food trays which fit nicely on top as cloches. I've potted up a couple more chilli seedlings & covered them with cut down plastic bottle cloches & used a wooden 'disposable cutlery' knife as a dibber. Everything has been labelled with either a many-times washed & re-used bought plastic plant label, or a recycled one cut from spread tubs, & I've used a large sheet of bubble wrap saved from the packaging around a piece of furniture to add a layer of insulation. I also used old spread tubs for sowing tomatoes as I only have a very small electric propagator & can fit more in if I use those.
As for today's seed-sowing, only one packet was actually bought by me:
-Cerinthe, Poppy 'Coral Reef', a pretty white perennial mallow, hollyhocks & calendula were all saved seed from last summer.
-Tomato 'Alfresco' was a packet of seed I received free from a seed merchant for trial (new variety)
-Aquilegia 'Lime sorbet' & aubretia 'Rich rose' were free packs on a gardening magazine at some point.
The only seeds sown today which were bought by me was a packet of Tomato 'Oh happy day'.
It's always interesting to see how saved seed turns out. Sometimes the plants come true to the parent plant - in fact that's mostly been my experience - but sometimes they can be different colours, singles or doubles, etc, & I always like to see how they turn out. The white mallow seeds were saved from a plant my Mum bought me for my birthday some years ago. It was a much more delicate leaf-shape than the wild pinky-mauve mallow & looked pretty in one of my big borders. Then I suddenly lost it, no sign of it for a couple of years, but last year, a piece of it suddenly popped up & flowered! There must just have been a tiny piece of root which was still viable. Poppy 'Coral Reef' was another plant I thought I'd lost. I tried to move my original clump when we were making an extra veg bed, but it didn't survive. Then again, a little piece sprouted from its old space behind the chard & flowered last summer. I harvested a nice fat seed head & am going to try & get a few more going. Although I don't much like coral as a colour, this is a fab poppy with a dark purple centre. The hollyhocks seeds were from a single seed head I snaffled from a plant growing in a local supermarket flower bed. It was a deep cerise, which would be great if it happens, but other colours will be perfectly acceptable, so I will wait & see!
That was February's seeds - I will need to get onto my March sowing before too long.
F x

Sun_Addict

Glad you escaped the superglue 😆 Coral is one of my favourite colours to wear as well as plant wise, it suits my light olive skin tone, although as long as there’s some bright colour in my garden I’m not fussy which to be honest. 

Makingabobor2

I have been saving up a few plastic trays as well and also some large yoghurt pot that I thought might make a good herb pot. Its a pity we don't all live locally to each other and we could do a seed swap....lol.  I've not got round to planting anything yet, but hopefully now the snow has gone I can make a start. Trouble is we are away for a few days week after next and not sure how much water seedlings will need while still on the window sill. 

foxgloves

Sun_Addict said:

Glad you escaped the superglue 😆 Coral is one of my favourite colours to wear as well as plant wise, it suits my light olive skin tone, although as long as there’s some bright colour in my garden I’m not fussy which to be honest. 

I don't suit coral to wear at all, @Sun_Addict, but these are very lovely poppies & make me happy just seeing them. I do hope I can get a few plant babies going.
F

foxgloves

@Makingabobor2 - I cover my seedlings/young plants with home made bottle cloches. I usually find this means they need watering less frequently because the bottle cloches create a bit of condensation.
The big yoghurt pots are good for sowing beans. I do 2 to a pot & the depth means they put on good root growth before planting out time. It's amazing how much stuff can be repurposed for growing veg.
F

joedenise

I use toilet roll middles to start off beans - and then plant directly into the soil in the tube which breaks down nicely into the soil.

Makingabobor2

Great gardening tips...thanks FG & Joedinse. 

foxgloves

That's a good use for loo roll middles, @Jodenise. My friend always starts beans off in those. I used to make little newspaper pots which could also be planted straight into the ground, which like loo rolls, means no root disturbance. I stopped making those because the kit/method involved soaking the cut out newspaper shapes first & the black.ink got everywhere. I intended to buy one of the wooden pot-former thingies instead but never got round to it as we have a steady supply of yoghurt pots as well as a large stash of flower pots. 
Takeaway coffee cups also good for beans as by planting out time, the cup just rips away leaving pretty much an undisturbed root ball.
Hoping to get in a few good gardening sessions over the coming week.
F

foxgloves

@Makingabobor2 - You're welcome. One of the things I most like about these forums is the sharing of tips & ideas. 
F