What are your frugal and sustainable tips and tricks?

[gtaus]

I saw this cool idea for garden plant markers, use the slats of broken blinds, cut into long enough strips and write the plant name.

Yes, that is a great idea. I have been using the slats from a broken blind for a few years now. I can tell you that a normal Sharpie marker will fade and/or wash away outside in the weather before the summer is over. At least, mine did.

This year I bought some Sharpie Oil-Based Paint Markers which are supposed to be sun and water resistant. They have good reviews for use on plant markers. I have been marking all my plant blind slats this year with the Sharpie Oil Marker. I don't know yet how well they will hold up outside over the summer, but they are certainly much darker and look more permanent on the plastic blind slat plant tags than the normal Sharpie markers.

They are obviously a lot more expensive than the normal Sharpie markers, but if the markings on the plant tags don't fade away over the summer, it will be worth it to me.

Photo of my blind slats plant tags with the Sharpie Oil-Based Markers on some of my starts for this year...

 

[Sally PB]

I was surprised at HOW QUICKLY my Sharpie markings on my pots in the green house faded. I'll have to look for the oil based ones at the store. I hate ordering stuff, as the delivery drivers can't find my house. Unless these would come USPS, which would make sense, since they're small and light.

 

[gtaus]

I was surprised at HOW QUICKLY my Sharpie markings on my pots in the green house faded.

Me too. That's why I mentioned the oil-based markers. This is my first year using the oil-based markers, but I am hopeful they will be better for marking plant tags based on the recommendations of others. In any case, the regular Sharpie markers fade too fast and I was not going to use them again.

I'll have to look for the oil based ones at the store. I hate ordering stuff, as the delivery drivers can't find my house. Unless these would come USPS, which would make sense, since they're small and light.

Lots of small stuff from Amazon gets delivered via USPS. I cannot remember how my markers were shipped. I had no idea where to buy these oil-based markers locally, but maybe an Arts & Crafts store? Or now that you have an idea of what you are looking for, maybe call up the local stores and see if they carry the item. Calling, for me, is still cheaper than driving all around town.

 

[Sally PB]

Calling, for me, is still cheaper than driving all around town.

With "town" being 12 (small) or 45 (large) miles away, you bet calling is cheaper! Gas was $3.79 last I looked.

 

[Smokerbill]

I crafted a banana box cold frame today for my collard green starts. It'll get rained on, but the cardboard those boxes are made of is pretty sturdy so I think it'll hold up for the next few weeks.

Lower box was cut down to 6 inches tall, and a 6 inch strip cut from the upper. Holes were taped for pest control, and a section of floating row cover finished it off. Pics tell the story...

 

[gtaus]

I crafted a banana box cold frame today for my collard green starts.

That's a great idea.

It'll get rained on, but the cardboard those boxes are made of is pretty sturdy so I think it'll hold up for the next few weeks.

If the cardboard does not hold as long as you need it, maybe next time you could slap some pallet wood slats together with brad nails or staples for the bin and frame.

 

[Smokerbill]

That's a great idea.



If the cardboard does not hold as long as you need it, maybe next time you could slap some pallet wood slats together with brad nails or staples for the bin and frame.

That's a good idea. I plant to use bottomless banana boxes as temporary shelters for my tomato plants when I set them out in the garden too.

With my tomatoes planted 1 foot apart I can get two inside each box. Covering them up in the evening should help the tomato plants stay warmer overnight which should help them kick into gear and grow faster.

When the nights warm up more and the boxes aren't needed anymore I'll probably cut the boxes up and use them to mulch around the tomato plants. Or they might go into the compost pile.

Another option, I could just place the boxes over the plants in the evening to keep the night chill off of them, and remove the boxes in the morning.

 

[gtaus]

Buy a Quality Potting Mix and/or Seed Starting Mix

This is a short mea culpa on my attempt to be "frugal" and buying less expensive potting soil this year for starting plants. In order to save a few bucks, I bought the "house brand" potting mix at Menards which was on sale at the time. I almost instantly regretted it...

If you have established plants, then this potting mix might work out great for you. But I was using it to start seeds and grow the plants for about 8 weeks before transplanting. The problem I have with this mix is that there is a lot of bigger woody chucks of stuff in the mix. That's not so great for seed starting.

Last year I bought something like Miracle-Gro mix and it was much finer and worked better. I should have spent a few more bucks and got the same stuff this year. Unfortunately, I never wrote down what I bought and used last year so this year it was like staring all over again.

To be fair to the Master Gardener potting mix I purchased from Menards, my seeds are germinating and starting to grow. They just don't seem to be doing as well as my starts last year. The most unfortunate thing about gardening is that you can't buy back lost time!

Lesson (re)learned is that often times it pays to purchase a higher quality product up front to save costs of lost time and effort on an inferior product for your job.

 

[NanaK]

Buy a Quality Potting Mix and/or Seed Starting Mix

This is a short mea culpa on my attempt to be "frugal" and buying less expensive potting soil this year for starting plants. In order to save a few bucks, I bought the "house brand" potting mix at Menards which was on sale at the time. I almost instantly regretted it...

View attachment 3825559

If you have established plants, then this potting mix might work out great for you. But I was using it to start seeds and grow the plants for about 8 weeks before transplanting. The problem I have with this mix is that there is a lot of bigger woody chucks of stuff in the mix. That's not so great for seed starting.

Last year I bought something like Miracle-Gro mix and it was much finer and worked better. I should have spent a few more bucks and got the same stuff this year. Unfortunately, I never wrote down what I bought and used last year so this year it was like staring all over again.

To be fair to the Master Gardener potting mix I purchased from Menards, my seeds are germinating and starting to grow. They just don't seem to be doing as well as my starts last year. The most unfortunate thing about gardening is that you can't buy back lost time!

Lesson (re)learned is that often times it pays to purchase a higher quality product up front to save costs of lost time and effort on an inferior product for your job.

I made this mistake in the past when the store was out of the mix I usually buy. I won't do that again.

If you still have any of this mix left and want to use it up for seed starting I would sift it. If you add in some perlite it will help lighten the mix further.

If I were going to use it in a large planter I would not sift it but still add in some perlite.

Hope this helps.

 

[fuzzi]

That's a great idea.



If the cardboard does not hold as long as you need it, maybe next time you could slap some pallet wood slats together with brad nails or staples for the bin and frame.

When I planted melons in produce boxes I wrapped the sides with plastic trash bags. They lasted the season.

From 2022

I used cattle panel trellis last year, did well.