Friday 8 March 2013

The Frugal Flower Garden and other stuff

What's been going on in the Rosebank Garden this week

The crocus began to open - it seems we all  like a little sun to cheer us up.


Over on my other blog A Woman of the Soil I have been talking about being frugal in the veg garden and have received many comments and tips on how other people save money  when growing veg.  I also practice what I preach in the Rosebank flower garden too.

A great way of filling the borders with plants without spending any money is to split the existing plants.




I know you are meant to wait till the plants have finished flowering but I wanted to take advantage of the fine weather at the beginning of the week to split the primulas that had become congested, and from just one clump I split it into four, each having a good root system and transplanted them elsewhere in the garden.  I did this with several plants that needed thinning out, added some bonemeal to the planting hole and watered them in well.

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This year I won't be buying any more perennial plants - even though I seem to have lost several over the winter.  Instead I will be filling out the borders growing anything I need from seed - mainly wildflowers and annuals that attract bees and butterflies.

It's a lot more work than just going in to the garden centre armed with a wad of cash and coming out with very little, but hopefully the results will be worth it.

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Other stuff


My husband's motto is "If it doesn't move - creosote it".  He told me he was going to creosote the wood on the outside of my raised beds before I planted them up.  Fine I said.  What he didn't tell me that whilst he was at the top of the garden he thought he would creosote the compost bins as well.  Later on I decided to start emptying them and was leaning against the wood whilst digging my spade in.  When I got indoors I thought the smell of the creosote was still very strong and couldn't understand it.  It was only later when I was getting changed that I discovered the smell was coming from my jeans - they are ruined, I washed them straight away but creosote is waterproof and they still had the stain - laugh, I could cry - they are my most comfortable jeans.  Grrr!


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I have been busy being frugal in other areas too.  Below is a cushion recycled from an old shirt of my husbands - cutting off the collar and sleeves, using the front of the shirt for the cushion opening and the back with a little added decoration as the front of the cushion is a good way to make use of an unwanted shirt.

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It was so nice to be able to get out in the garden after so many weeks of bad weather that just seeing a line of washing drying in the sunshine gave me pleasure.


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One of my birthday gifts was a basket of hyacinths which are a beautiful blue, it has taken a week but they have finally flowered.


A couple of weeks ago I opened an account with Amazon so that I could sell a lot of books that I no longer needed.  The enterprise has been quite successful so far.  I have sold 15 books and made an average profit on them at £5 per book.  Not a huge amount, but it has helped boost the bank balance a little.
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This week I have been reading


--oo0oo--
From the sound of the weather forecast for the coming week things are going to get a bit nasty again so I am happy that I was able to get on with a few jobs outside that desperately needed doing - now waiting for the opportunity to get on with some seed sowing.

Happy gardening!
ladybird - basking in the sunshine

32 comments:

  1. Well, I'm always penny-saving, so I was very interested to read about your ideas. I'll also be relying on seeds this year. And I'm sorry about your jeans; if it's going to happen, it will happen to the favourite pair! And I imagine those hyacinths smell wonderful.

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    1. The fragrance of the hyacinths certainly increases once the room warms up - I shall be planting them outside once they have finished flowering.

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  2. What a lovely post. I love your crocus, it's funny how they only open in the sunshine. You've reminded me about the benefit of plant splitting, I've put it on my to do list.
    I'm glad you finally got a few warm rays....how annoying about your jeans!!! I have a favourite pair and would hate to lose them...maybe cut them down for summer shorts?
    What a brilliant idea to make cushions from an unwanted shirt, they look gorgeous!!!xxxxx

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    1. If I cut the jeans down into shorts they would be practically invisible as the stain is at the top of the thigh - I could spit.

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  3. The book sale is a good idea but the trouble is that I have trouble parting with books!

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    1. I didn't think I could do it either but they are big books not paperbacks and I need to make room - books just seem to keep multiplying in our house.

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  4. It really does feel good to be out in the garden again doesn't it? The muscles are feeling the strain though, so early in the season!

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    1. I felt really tired after just doing a couple of hours work - I get really out of condition over winter that's what you get for being a couch-potato for so many weeks.

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  5. Oh no, your poor jeans! I nearly wrecked mine the other night carrying the newly painted raised beds for the greenhouse in to said greenhouse because rain was forecast. Stupid thing to do, but the jeans survived. I am trying to grow a lot of the plants for my new garden from seed, but I have succumbed to spending some money I was given on some favourites that can't be grown that way and on some shrubs for structure. One of the great things about growing plants for the garden yourself is that if you decide you don't like them after all you don't have to feel nearly as guilty as if you had spent £7 at the garden centre.

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    1. I know it is impossible to get away with only growing plants from seed in your case Janet but my garden is more established and I only need fillers.

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  6. Some great tips Elaine. I do not think I will be buying any perennials this year either. I have so many now that need to just grow into their places in the beds. Then I can divide some also. Finally got some seeds winter sowed this week after procrastinating too long. LOL! Love your Hyacinths, just lovely. Have a great weekend.

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    1. There's still lots to do out there - just wish the weather would settle a bit. Have a good weekend yourself.

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  7. I still havent delved into primulas! Where do you put them for the rest of the year? How long do they bloom? Thanks.

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    1. They stay in the ground and bloom for a good few weeks

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  8. You could make a bag from the salvaged non-creosote bits of jeans, and use it to carry useful stuff while you're gardening - string, secateurs, seed packets, labels.

    Our garden has some lovely shrubs but the summer colour needs a boost so I'm also planning to grow lots of flowers from seed ... Ben from Higgledy Garden visited me just before he moved to Cornwall and he very generously gave me lots of packets of seeds! I couldn't resist buying more last week - all I now need to to is to dig a bigger flower bed!

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    1. Good idea Celia - may well do just that. How kind of Ben to give you all those seeds - you obviously have friends in the right places.

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  9. A lovely post Elaine, I could not help laughing when I read the creosote story. I have bad experience with creosote too. My husband creosoted the pergola in the past, in a hot summer all my roses were burnt.
    I do not buy perennials either, my garden is fully booked and on the scarce gaps I put annuals or bienniels grown from seed.

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    1. Oh dear shame about your roses - sometimes I don't think men shouldn't be let loose in the garden however helpful they try to be.

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  10. You've got lots to be looking forward to even if you won't be wearing your favourite jeans! Flighty xx

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    1. It's not that easy finding perfect jeans they will be sorely missed.

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  11. Love the new look of your blog. Have'nt been here for a while. Belated birthday wishes. Listening to the weather forecast this morning and they are giving very cold weather and possibly even snow this coming week.
    Bridget x

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    1. Hi Bridget - nice to hear from you again - thanks for the birthday wishes. We have snow here at the moment, albeit wet snow, so I don't think it will last.

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  12. My, you have been thinking carefully about your garden and all the ways you can make the most of what you have. So sorry about your jeans, though. Maybe you'll find as good a pair from your book fund!

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    1. They will definitely need replacing they still stink of creosote.

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    1. It seemed to be enjoying the sun - the first one I have seen this year.

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  14. I have been feeling a bit sorry for myself, because I have so little to spend this spring, but after reading your post I think I will adopt your positive outlook on being frugal. I have a cold frame this year and I think I will use it to try to get some seeds going. I love the shirt pillow! I hang laundry outside even in the cold because I like that fresh smell so much.
    I am really curious about Amazon and selling books. (I have so many books!!) How does it work? Do you have to pay to ship the books to buyers. I know from my book giveaways that shipping books is expensive. How do you manage to do it at a profit?

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  15. I typed out a comments, but I think it got lost. Hopefully you won't end up with two comments from me. I have been feeling a bit down knowing that I have so little to spend on plants this spring, but after reading your post, I think I will try to adopt a more positive outlook on being frugal. I have a cold frame now and I want to try to use it to get some seeds started. I love the shirt pillow. I hang laundry out even in the cold because I love the fresh smell so much.
    I am curious about selling books on Amazon. I know from the book giveaways that shipping books can be expensive. How do you manage to do it at a profit?

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    1. Hi Jennifer - regarding the bookselling - Amazon give you money towards the postage - they take commission of course but if you price the books right you can make a profit, sometimes it is only small but it is still a profit.The larger 'coffee table' books seem to sell well but you have to keep your prices competitive - it shows you what other people are selling the same book for.

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  16. You have been most busy. I like the frugality in the garden. Plants are so expensive. I like the idea of filling in with seeds or dividing current plants to fill in. Seems that we are all chompin' at the bit to get out in the garden. For it all to warm up so that we indulge our passion.

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  17. I tried selling books on Amazon but wasn't organised enough to post them as fast as one's meant to so I had to send them by expensive post . . so I was making a loss when I wasn't breaking even . . . and stopped!

    Washing on a line is one of the best sights there is.

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  18. Lovely post elaine! I love how you use the shirt of your husband to be a pillow cover. That's really a great idea. I have an old jeans and transform it into a bag. I think you will be happy to see it.

    parker patios

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