Keep The Credit Crunch Outside The Garden Gate.
3 Novemberr 2008 With less money available there is bound to be a shortfall in the gardening budget. The good news is that there are ways of saving money both short and longer term.
 This is the ideal time to take hardwood cuttings that will provide large well rooted plants within twelve months. Escallonia, buddleja, forsythia, flowering currant, willow and bush fruit such as gooseberries, black, red and white currants are just a few of the plants that root from cuttings taken now.
 Simply cut sections of firm wood produced this year. Cut immediately below a bud or pair of buds and do the same 20-25 cm up the stem. Insert them vertically in a 15 cm deep trench lined with coarse sand in a sheltered part of the garden where they won’t be disturbed. Firm the soil leaving 10-15 cm of the top of the cutting above ground. This time next year dig up the plants ready for planting out and flowering or fruiting the next spring or summer.
There is still time to pick and dry seeds of agapanthus, primulas and other perennials.
Sow the seed in pots of seed compost and overwinter in a cold frame or an unheated glasshouse. Cut down the heating bill for the greenhouse by lining the inside with clear polythene sheeting. Leave the vents uncovered but carry the sheeting straight across at the eves thus eliminating the need to heat a lot of unwanted space.  When buying seeds try to share packets with friends or neighbours. Do you really want 300 lettuce seeds?
Ordering plug plants is a nightmare. Buy 50 and get another 20 free is very tempting but did you want as many as 50 in the first place? Again share with another gardener and you will both get the benefit and still have 35 each- just about the right number! Bark mulch rots down quickly through the action of nitrogen bacteria. Lay landscape fabric below the bark and it will last much longer especially if, in spring, you only apply a general purpose fertilizer around the plants rather than scattering it all over the bed. Related Links
Seed gathering
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