[LifeStyle] The shoestring gardener: 10 ways to grow gorgeous plants – for little or no money

[BirSaNN]

 effort and some thoughtful recycling will go far. Here are our top tips for low-cost cultivation

Claire Ratinon
Claire Ratinon
Tue 25 Jul 2023 05.00 BST
241
Visit the average garden centre and you might assume it costs a lot of money to get into gardening, but that isn’t the case. No matter how many products and plants are on offer, or how relentlessly the Instagram ads insist, gardening is not shopping. My focus in the garden has always been the plants, not the paraphernalia.

Thankfully, the tide is turning towards low-intervention, nature-centric gardening, which works well for those who don’t have much to spend. You don’t need a traditional garden to start growing, either, as many indoor and outdoor spaces – balconies, porches, windowsills – can be used for pots, as long as the the plants catch the sun.

So, the mental and physical benefits of spending time in green spaces and tending to plants are not just for people with large gardens and plenty of disposable income. Here are some tips for making things happen for very little money.

Grow plants from seed
Packets of seeds lined up for browsing
Packets of seeds can be picked up cheaply at garden centres, from online retailers or at a seed swap event. Photograph: Francesca Moore/Alamy
Starting plants off from seeds, rather than buying them already grown, is one of the most cost-effective ways to fill your garden with life, so mastering how to raise young plants is well worth the time and effort. You can find packets of seeds of almost any plant at your local garden centre or at online seed suppliers, such as Real Seeds or Tamar Organics; most cost no more than a few pounds. Each packet contains hundreds of seeds that will be viable for a good number of years, so a modest initial outlay (including for seed compost, if you are sowing into pots or trays) goes a long way.

Additionally, learning how to harvest and save seeds from existing plants (start with straightforward options such as peas, nasturtiums and snapdragons) will keep your seed collection replenished for next to nothing. Every spring, seed swaps take place all over the UK; here, you can exchange your seeds for something new and benefit from the advice of other seed savers.

Make your own compost

link: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jul/25/the-shoestring-gardener-10-ways-to-grow-gorgeous-plants-for-little-or-no-money