Rekindled

2009 has been a mixed bag for me in terms of gardening, but I think I have made a lot of progress. There have been several failures and one or two disasters, but lots of lessons learned, and handful of big successes.  To be honest I have enjoyed myself either way.  There is something about being out in the sunshine with your hands in the soil that you just can’t beat!

For me, the biggest success is that my garden looks much tidier and is much easier to work with than it was at the beginning of the year. I drafted in my husband to help and together we cleared all the existing beds and dug up a new one.  I am finally free from planting in pots!  I also pulled up some of the patio so now we even more space for growing vegetables. My first batch of homemade compost was ready and I have been spreading it over the beds (I am letting the weather and the worms do the hard work!) so hopefully the soil is gradually improving. I also installed a waterbutt and a second compost bin.

There were a few other highlights worth mentioning. The most surprising (I jumped out of my skin!) was finding a toad hiding in my potato planters!  We have no idea where he came from, but he hung around for a couple of days and then disappeared again.  In August, I was given an apple tree for my birthday, complete with 2 apples growing on it, which has now been planted in its new home. I also had fantastic crops of tomatoes, garlic and potatoes. I had grown tomatoes and potatoes last year, but it was my first time growing garlic this year and I was surprised how easy it was.

I have been busy experimenting as well. I got a mini-growhouse so I could start sowing seeds earlier in the year, which was fantastic. What was not so fantastic was when it blew over on a windy day and all the seedlings were scattered across the garden, so now I have a large bucket of stones on the bottom shelf acting as an anchor. Also after about mid-May it started to get too hot, and many seedlings just shrivelled up and died, so next year I will remember to take the cover off once the weather gets warmer. I also tried using lemonade bottles (with the bottoms cut off) as mini-cloches for seedlings that I had planted out. This helped to protect them from the weather as well as my cats and the army of slugs that live in my garden, and worked really well. I also found that loo rolls, cut in half across the middle, make great seedling pots.

There were also quite a lot of plants that completely failed. I won’t list them all (it’s a looong list!) but the main reasons were: being blown over in the mini-growhouse; being eaten by slugs; being dug up by my cats; and getting too hot in the mini-growhouse. I have dealt with 1 and 4 from the list now, and for number 2 I have found Slug Stop (white, non-toxic granules) works really well. Apart from the lemonade bottle cloches, I haven’t yet come up with a plan to protect plants from the cats, so this will be an aim for next year.

And finally, as I try and decide what seeds to order for this season, this is what I am planning/looking forward to (among other things) in 2010:

• My first rhubarb harvest – planted this year, so a long wait!
• Trying different varieties of tomatoes, especially plum and cherry varieties.
• Apples from my apple tree.
• Working out how to stop my cats digging everything up!
• Being self-sufficient in garlic, having planted some of the bulbs from this summer’s harvest.

Hope you all had a fantastic Christmas. I just thought I’d share with you all some of the fantastic ethical sales that are going on at the moment. Because ethical products can sometimes cost more than equivalent products on the high street, this is a great opportunity to save some money but support the causes you care about, whether it’s fairtrade, organic or recycled, or all three! Obviously I have written before about how the most important step in eco-friendly shopping is to buy less stuff in the first place, but if you are looking for some sales bargains, or you are just stocking up for the year ahead, then think about buying ethical products from sites like these:

Ascension, my favourite eco fashion site, have up to 50% off in their end of season sale for women, men and kids. Their clothes are not just ethical but really cool and stylish. They sell a mixture of own-brand and eco-designer clothes and accessories.

You can get 20% off at Terra Plana with code HOHOHO until 31st December. Terra Plana shoes are soooo gorgeous, I love browsing their website.

Gossypium have a fab range of organic cotton basics and casual clothes, including undies (why are organic cotton undies so hard to find?).


As you can see, People Tree have a 10% discount code APXM09 until 31st December. They have also got reductions on loads of items. All their products are Fair Trade, and many are organic.
Not really an ethical/fashion site but if you like to grow your own veggies like me, you may be planning next year’s plantings, in which case Thompson and Morgan have a free P&P offer with code AF91216 until midnight 28th December. They have a good range of organic seeds.

If I hear of any more good sales I will let you know.  The best way to find out about offers like these first is to follow me on twitter.

Growing your own veg is undoubtedly better, for you and the planet, than buying them from the supermarket.  However, the way you grow your vegetables also has its own effect on the environment.  The obvious issue is whether to use chemicals (including fertilizers, weedkillers and pesticides) or whether to go organic.  But beyond that, there are still ways you can reduce any negative impact from your vegetable plot.  These sustainable and thrifty tips will help you save money and reduce waste.

Plant Pots

We all know that we should try to avoid using plastic bags – but what about plastic pots?  Plastic plant pots are actually very difficult to recycle because of the variety of different types of plastic that they are made from, not to mention the number of different colours that are available.  This is where the three R’s come into play.  Firstly, instead of trying to recycle pots, simply reuse them, as many times as you can.  Plastic is quite tough and long-lasting, which is one of the reasons why it is such a problem when it ends up in landfill, but when it comes to reusing, this makes it ideal.

You can also reduce the number of plastic pots you use by buying biodegradable pots like these fibre pots, or even making your own.  For example, this year I am using loo roll tubes as seedling pots.  They are an ideal size, you can write what you have planted straight onto the pot (instead of using plastic labels) and you can just plant them straight into the ground, as the cardboard will rot away, which will minimise root disturbance for the plant.  Plus, you will already have a free supply of them, and if you need lots you can always ask your friends to save theirs for you.  It’s a win-win situation for you and your plants!  Just make sure you press the compost in well so that it doesn’t all fall out the bottom when you pick it up!  Alternatively, you can use a loo roll tube and some newspaper to make your own Newspaper Plant Pots, which do have a bottom.

In addition you can also reuse any type of tray packaging as seed trays.  In the picture shows I have used a tray from a ready meal and the lid from a punnet of fruit.

Composting

If you are growing anything in your garden, you will need compost at some point, either to fill containers and raised beds, or to use as a soil improver.  Making your own compost is a great way of turning your garden and food waste into a valuable resource.  It also requires minimal effort and it all happens a bit like magic!  I chuck all my fruit, veg and garden waste into my compost bin, along with crushed eggshells, teabags and a bit of shredded paper (take that identity thieves!).  I have a two bin system (pictured) which I have just set up.  I have one bin to fill up and one bin to use up.  Once the second bin is empty, I will empty the contents of the first bin into it, as a way of turning the compost.  The only downside is that it does take a long time to get anything useable, but if you can be patient it is well worth it.