CearaQC
June 4th, 2009, 12:57 AM
Just wanted to throw this out there for those that are interested. Many people think we've spent a fortune on our flowers, but really all we've spent is about $200 from 2004-2008, which isn't much considering soil amendments as part of that cost. Our soil is probably 80% sand so it constantly needs organic matter added to it. But I've cut that cost out for the most part now by doing my own compost heaps.
How did I do it so cheap? Trading mostly and of course seeds, division, and other propagation methods. Some flowers were being thrown into the garbage and I just happened to be at the right place/right time to "rescue" the plants. Some were gifts, even if not in the best condition, like the time I received a plastic grocery store bag half full of half rotted iris rhizomes which I brought back to life but they took two summers of no flowers before they put on a nice show.
In my opinion, skip the annual bedding plants unless you save seed and start several flats of seed every spring and raise them yourself. It's just too expensive to buy flats of seedlings from the plant nursery every year. Next lowest cost is to purchase annual seeds. Our local dollar store sells 3 packs of seeds for $1 every year. Nothing exotic, but good performers like the wildflower packs.
Annuals that self seed like Poppies and Calendula are always ideal. Easy seed starters are Cosmos and Bachelor's Buttons.
My next personal favorites are hardy and herbaceous (die back in winter) perennials. Stuff like Echinacea, wild Daisies, Monarda (Bee Balm), etc.
After that I prefer Lilies and Daylilies and other bulbs. Daylilies are not true lilies. Daylily is classified as Hemerocalis and the bulb lily is Lilium. The Daylily can just be cut into smaller chunks with a spade or fork when it gets too large and starts dying off in the center. Same with Siberian Iris.
True lilies can be propagated via it's natural cloning ability through the bulb scales. You can snatch a few scales off each bulb without harming it, or if you're like me and don't watch what you're doing while digging and end up slicing a bulb in half, you can separate the scales and toss them into a plastic bag with barely damp peat moss or soil-less potting mix and within a couple of weeks each scale will have produce several baby bulbs which that be potted on and will bloom in 3 years approximately.
Other plants will root from basal cuttings quite easily, like Lupins and Delphiniums.
You can also quadruple quantity of plants depending on what you buy if it comes in a decent sized pot and the plant is good for stem cuttings like Penstemon or Salvia. Buy one plant, and get a dozen, after cuttings.
A lot of people say they don't have a green thumb. Well that's easily remedied by studying plants and what they like, and understanding your soil, water needs and light availability. Gardening is a skill just like any other skill and there's no magic involved. Just lots of work but the work is well rewarded when you see the fruits of your labor. Just start off with easy, low-care plants so you won't be disappointed. And don't spray a ton of chemicals for they aren't necessary and can potentially harm our furry friends. I firmly believe in balance in nature. There are always good bugs to help with the pests, so encourage healthy habitat for the good bugs. Either build a "bug hotel" or leave old logs laying around, and the odd broken upside down clay pot.
"No room" for gardening you say? Well they try out the new vertical wall planters, or make your own. They are doing vertical plantings on a mass scale in places like Paris, France. By massive I mean the whole sides of skyscrapers. :eek:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63D2UkkTtBQ
http://www.katyelliott.com/blog/2009/02/hanging-vertical-garden-planters.html
Build these by making homemade bookshelves, then adding extra pieces of wood to make little compartments but leave room towards the back of the panel to leave room for water to trickle down through. Then fill with compost, cover with anti-weed mat, cut a X in the mat and plant whatever. Make sure to build a water reservoir in the top for watering or to install a drip system. Let the shelf lay flat for a couple of weeks to let the plants root well then stand it up and secure against a wall. You can make a salad wall, a flower wall or herb wall just outside your kitchen door. :D
Visit garage sales or even local church fundraisers. I found some really great houseplants for 50 cents that way. And if your skill at plant propagation takes off, then you can make extra money at your next garage/yard sale.
Here's some links to videos. The guy in the video is Alan Titsmarsch from the UK. He's pretty cheeky but the videos are informative.
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=6320912252148666793
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=2437285178897644131
Well I hope this gets some of you out there and gardening! It's not too late, you can still do a lot. Plant a window box with baby lettuce greens and "French Breakfast" radishes that mature in a month or even some herbs for the kitchen, like basil.
Enjoy!
How did I do it so cheap? Trading mostly and of course seeds, division, and other propagation methods. Some flowers were being thrown into the garbage and I just happened to be at the right place/right time to "rescue" the plants. Some were gifts, even if not in the best condition, like the time I received a plastic grocery store bag half full of half rotted iris rhizomes which I brought back to life but they took two summers of no flowers before they put on a nice show.
In my opinion, skip the annual bedding plants unless you save seed and start several flats of seed every spring and raise them yourself. It's just too expensive to buy flats of seedlings from the plant nursery every year. Next lowest cost is to purchase annual seeds. Our local dollar store sells 3 packs of seeds for $1 every year. Nothing exotic, but good performers like the wildflower packs.
Annuals that self seed like Poppies and Calendula are always ideal. Easy seed starters are Cosmos and Bachelor's Buttons.
My next personal favorites are hardy and herbaceous (die back in winter) perennials. Stuff like Echinacea, wild Daisies, Monarda (Bee Balm), etc.
After that I prefer Lilies and Daylilies and other bulbs. Daylilies are not true lilies. Daylily is classified as Hemerocalis and the bulb lily is Lilium. The Daylily can just be cut into smaller chunks with a spade or fork when it gets too large and starts dying off in the center. Same with Siberian Iris.
True lilies can be propagated via it's natural cloning ability through the bulb scales. You can snatch a few scales off each bulb without harming it, or if you're like me and don't watch what you're doing while digging and end up slicing a bulb in half, you can separate the scales and toss them into a plastic bag with barely damp peat moss or soil-less potting mix and within a couple of weeks each scale will have produce several baby bulbs which that be potted on and will bloom in 3 years approximately.
Other plants will root from basal cuttings quite easily, like Lupins and Delphiniums.
You can also quadruple quantity of plants depending on what you buy if it comes in a decent sized pot and the plant is good for stem cuttings like Penstemon or Salvia. Buy one plant, and get a dozen, after cuttings.
A lot of people say they don't have a green thumb. Well that's easily remedied by studying plants and what they like, and understanding your soil, water needs and light availability. Gardening is a skill just like any other skill and there's no magic involved. Just lots of work but the work is well rewarded when you see the fruits of your labor. Just start off with easy, low-care plants so you won't be disappointed. And don't spray a ton of chemicals for they aren't necessary and can potentially harm our furry friends. I firmly believe in balance in nature. There are always good bugs to help with the pests, so encourage healthy habitat for the good bugs. Either build a "bug hotel" or leave old logs laying around, and the odd broken upside down clay pot.
"No room" for gardening you say? Well they try out the new vertical wall planters, or make your own. They are doing vertical plantings on a mass scale in places like Paris, France. By massive I mean the whole sides of skyscrapers. :eek:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63D2UkkTtBQ
http://www.katyelliott.com/blog/2009/02/hanging-vertical-garden-planters.html
Build these by making homemade bookshelves, then adding extra pieces of wood to make little compartments but leave room towards the back of the panel to leave room for water to trickle down through. Then fill with compost, cover with anti-weed mat, cut a X in the mat and plant whatever. Make sure to build a water reservoir in the top for watering or to install a drip system. Let the shelf lay flat for a couple of weeks to let the plants root well then stand it up and secure against a wall. You can make a salad wall, a flower wall or herb wall just outside your kitchen door. :D
Visit garage sales or even local church fundraisers. I found some really great houseplants for 50 cents that way. And if your skill at plant propagation takes off, then you can make extra money at your next garage/yard sale.
Here's some links to videos. The guy in the video is Alan Titsmarsch from the UK. He's pretty cheeky but the videos are informative.
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=6320912252148666793
http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=2437285178897644131
Well I hope this gets some of you out there and gardening! It's not too late, you can still do a lot. Plant a window box with baby lettuce greens and "French Breakfast" radishes that mature in a month or even some herbs for the kitchen, like basil.
Enjoy!