Trying really hard to OS but the prices keep going up

Pipkin

MRSMCAWBER wrote: »

Evening all

Hi Pipkin.... now you mention it when i was in ALDI yesterday i did notice the signs on some of the dairy stuff... but because i didn't need any i didn't pay much attention :rolleyes:
I literally can't wedge another item in either the chest frrezer in the basement, or the one over the fridge at the moment..so i can't take advantage of any more bargains mind thats only because i have soooo many super bargains in there allready :rotfl: ..where about are you by the way? did you get any of the boil in the bag rice? 4x150g bags in a box for just 49c i don't get through much rice but i still grabbed 4 boxes just in case

Well after reading this thread this morning i had a tootle to the garden centre and picked up some more seeds ..got some more beetroot, some curly kale, some asian salad mix and some yellow courgettes ....
Don't know about a "veggiecycle" thing happening ..but there was a thread the other day about that village where lots of folks were growing there own and then once a week they went to the village hall and sold the extras to each other for a nominal amount -i think its brilliant..
back in the UK my mum has recently had 3 huge raised beds put in and when we move back we we are planning on swapping crops, and my uncle who beats at local shoots is going to give me all his game (as no-one else will use it :eek: )... im going to make him game pies or cakes in exchange.. my brother is going to gut n pluck (he is much faster than me) and in return i will bake for him too
I really think that more and more people are going to end up doing the same.

I really feel for those with families who are allready at the top end of how much they can afford to spend on food. At the moment i am cutting back through choice so can put up with the increases (begrudgingly) but heck knows what it will be like when we move back to the UK :eek:

Hi Mrs M

I'm in Lower Saxony, how about you?

It was Lidls I was in, not Aldi, so no cheap rice for me.. I always seem to forget about Aldis (I'm a creature of (bad) habit) , but I will say we went shopping somewhere different a few weeks ago and ended up in the Aldis there and I was very impressed, and it seemed to be distinctly cheaper to me... they have been steadily increasing the prices in Lidls for a long time now I think, things are signifigantly more expensive than when we first came here... pure orange juice for example was about 65c when we arrived and is now about 1.08 euros :eek:

JailhouseBabe

I read about this website in the Times yesterday, selling organic young vegetable plants that you then plant and grow:
https://www.rocketgardens.co.uk
As a complete novice who has never grown anything, it sounds quite tempting. Can anyone tell me if the prices are reasonable though? If something is organic or not doesn't bother me, I certainly wouldn't pay extra for it.

MRSMCAWBER

Hi there JailhouseBabe

What sorts of veggies would you be looking to grow? only things like salad leaves and herbs i wouldn't buy as plants .... salad leaves or sooooo simple to grow and herbs... a way around buying seeds it to get those small pots from the supermarket of growing herbs and put them into a bigger tub and they will soon get bigger -thats what i have done with a lot of my herbs ..

this is only my 2nd year and im growing everything in tubs, pots n troughs... carrots, lettuces, raddish, spring onions, beetroot..would all be very simple for you to do..

Do you have a homebase or similar near you? only they generally stock small veggie plants if you aren't happy to have a go with seeds..the plus point there is that you can pick your own plants rather than getting what you are given..

hope thats of some help

JailhouseBabe

I was thinking of something along the laines of the patio vegetable garden, where you can grow things in containers. We eat lots of veg, I usually use lettuce, cucumber and peppers in my lunch at work and then carrots, onions and celery in sauces, brocolli, cauli, peas, sweetcorn, sprouts, courgettes, leeks etc. with any cooked meals.

At the moment DD has a part time job in a local greengrocer so we've been getting a good discount, but she may be switching to a full time job elsewhere soon. Although my shopping budget could increase, as she'll be paying more board lol.

There is a homebase quite near to me, also a b&q superstore. Would now be the right time of year for this? As I say, I'm a complete beginner. If I'm anything the same as I am with flowers, I'll forget to water them and everything will die. Not very OS then.

Tashja

We have the tiniest back yard and a very small patch of land just outside the yard and we are doing Radishes, Sppinich Beet, Spring Onions, Tomatos and Cucumbers in the 4-shelve greenhouse we bought and also this is where the seedlings go. In the small patch of land we have herbs, Brussel Sprouts, 1x black current bush, 1x white current bush and 1x red current bush and 3 Broccolli plants.

Going to have a look in to some more pots in the yard for carrots, lettuice and possibly something else. Really hoping it will help ease some of the pressre of the food increases.

T xx

PasturesNew

aimme13 wrote: »

AH!! this explains why the cake I made just seems a bit weird, have always just bought the value stuff but just checked and the tescos value spread does have in very small writing 'not suitable for home baking' oh well my son just had a slice and liked it:D

Trifle
Break it up into a bowl, splash some cooking sherry onto it. Tip a tin of fruit over that. Mix up a jelly and chuck it on. Shove in the fridge to set. Whip up a custard and some whipped cream topping. Top the set jelly with the custard and whipped topping. Sprinkle whatever you've got on the top.

Posh Sunday Tea Dessert from the jaws of disaster.

PasturesNew

I got into the habit of buying Tesco Cheap Crumpets. Pack of 8 for 40p. They were always 40p. Then last week 50p (stopped buying them). Yesterday I noticed they were 52p.

I'll give them up now. It seems to me a great way to cut back on unnecessary "treats" that only end up round the waistline anyway.

MRSMCAWBER

JailhouseBabe

When i was chatting to my mum last week she mentioned the veggie plants in B & Q so now is the perfect time to be looking....
Depending where you are it may be a little cold to be putting things straight out side.... but if you have a spare window bottom most things there will sit happily for a few more weeks...

Im growing everything in tubs.... and im trying lots more varieties this time (have 86 packs of seed now )..so only time will tell what happens .... but even if you only have room for a few pots -you can still save yourself quite a bit. Salad leaves alone save us a fortune especially if you grow the fancier ones..and hubby can quite happily demolish a full bunch of spring onions on a salad (if i don't hide them )... so i plant loads and he can eat them until he is sick if he wants

Have you tried tipping the seeds from peppers/tomatoes in your fridge into a bit of compost?
I did this the other day.... and by some miracle 9 pepper seeds were set and all 9 came through .... its worth a try as its not going to cost anything but a bit of compost... i started them off in a cottage cheese pot -then you can use the clear lid and you have a mini greenhouse for them ..
tomatoes did the sam ... i stuck 8 plum tomato seeds in and all made it through .. and im just about to do the same with another type of tomato in my fridge

If you are bothered about forgeting to water things -try and stick the pots in a saucer and just keep that full, or cut the bottom off a pop bottle and shove it into the pot like a giant funnel, and then i just pour water into there... great for things like tomatoes/cucumbers and beans...
A lot of the plants are quite resillient...and after a good soaking they can go from looking nearly dead to just fine in minutes

sammy_kaye18

Well I had a productive day yesterday of fidgetting and faffing about cleaning.

Ive managed to fight back the mould in one cupboard between the washign machine and cooker - *various image of me armed with chair and whip 'Back! back i say!*:p and have managed to return victorious one cupboard with two shelves in to turn into my new mini back up stock cupboard - its empty at the minute so will have a venture to mr T tomorrow maybe to stock up on a few bits.

Have also managed to coerse (yeah right) my mother in law into a trip to Focus some time this week - she hates goign as she always spends a fortune but its two bus trips away form me and i need some compost and pots and she has a mondeo so there is plenty of space there for us to fit everything i need in and i dare say she'll come home with a few bits too. Hoping i can get them done soon and then i can look at planting the onions, broccoli, swedes and carrots that i have.

Question i know im a bit late but do you think i could plant these now - i have some glass jars and cling film i could use to start them off in - and a sort of sunny windowsill i could use to start or am i best just planting out? I am keeping these glass jars for my jam making ventures when the brambles come in - i found an unpicked patch last year that i have only ever seen one old man picking so i figure whilst my little boy is in school - this year i will be raiding it and making jam like theres no tomorrow - got my mother in law, sister and mum keeping jars for me too!

Am also looking to get lining for my hanging basket - we dont tend to use alot of tomatoes but figure they will come in handy and can be hidden in things - plus i can give them to mother in law in return for - i dont know but im sure ill think of something. Was looking at getting a tumbling tom tomato plant to start it off with as they can be done in a hanging basket - has anyone successfully grown other types in these though? just wondering if i could plant any tomato in them and have it grow well.



problem is my garden gets sun in the morning then is mostly shaded in the evening but still gts enough light at the end of it that if i put pots here they should get enough.

THIRZAH

Stockport Woolworths had loads of soft fruit bushes for half price on Friday-I think I got the last gooseberry but they had cranberry, blueberry, kiwi and loganberry left-also some asparagus crowns so it would be worth checking out your local branch.