Gardening is not necessarily the cheapest hobby. For real bargain hunters, we have 10 tips for inexpensive gardening ready.
Even if it doesn't look like it at first glance, you can actually spend a lot of money on your own hobby garden. New plants in particular, but also fertilizer, tools or even the water for watering the lawn can put a lot of strain on the wallet and therefore deter many gardening beginners. But there is another way: With a few simple tricks, even bargain hunters can create a spectacular garden and create a true feel-good paradise with little money.
Gardening does not always have to be expensive - here you can find out which tricks you can use to really save money.
1. New plants at a low price
Especially when you create a new garden, it can quickly become expensive. Especially new plants and flowers put a strain on the purse and almost break the budget. However, you can save a lot of money with simple tricks - seeds or flower bulbs often cost significantly less than fully grown plants. You can make a real bargain here, especially when it comes to lawns, because grass seeds are not only cheaper than turf, they can also be mixed wonderfully with wildflower seeds. This not only creates a paradise for insects in a very short time, but also a real feast for the eyes. If you don't feel like waiting for small seeds to bloom into magnificent plants, you can find bargains at plant swap markets. Many churches offer these meetings mostly in the spring and fall. Here you can find young plants and offshoots, some of them rare or old varieties, which hobby gardeners give away in exchange or for little money.
When you decide to buy new plants, you should not only pay attention to the price, but also to the choice of the right plant varieties. Annual summer flowers are not a good plant - although the colorful plants do not cost much, they have to be bought and sown anew every year. On the other hand, you are better off with perennial, hardy plantsperennials. With good care, these will sprout anew every year and are not only easy on the wallet, but also save working time. Onion flowers also offer a great alternative, because they tend to go wild and form a beautiful carpet of flowers within a few years, which will give you pleasure for a long time. If you want to buy cheap flower bulbs, you should stop by the garden center from November: Because the bulbs have a limited shelf life, they are often sold at bargain prices at this time.
3. Multiply plants yourself
If you regularly buy new plants to expand your garden, you have to spend a lot of money. On the other hand, it is cheaper to propagate your own plants yourself. This is particularly easy with perennials and grasses: By dividing - depending on the size either with your hands or with a spade - you simply get offshoots of the plant. In addition, the division is a real fountain of youth for perennials that have become lazy. In the case of annual summer flowers, the mature seeds can be collected in late summer. Stored dark, dry and airy - for example in sandwich bags - you can keep the seeds over the winter and sow them again in spring. But also vegetables such as cucumbers (Cucumis sativus), green beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) or tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum). ) can be drawn by collecting the seeds hidden inside.
4. RegrowingGrow plants from leftover vegetables? Yes, that's possible - "Regrowing" is the name of the new trend that not only avoids waste, but also saves a lot of money. But anyone who thinks that this is a complicated matter is wrong - in fact, the implementation of this concept is child's play: simply place the stalk, which you would otherwise throw away, in a glass of water and change the water regularly. As soon as the germ begins to sprout, you can place the small plant in the bed intended for it. Especially leeks (Allium ampeloprasum subsp. ampeloprasum), celery (Apium graveolens var. dulce) and romaine lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. longif.webpolia) are suitable for regrowing. But you can also grow new plants from fruit stones - planting the exotic mango, for example, is very easy.
For step-by-step instructions on regrowing over 20 types of fruit and veg, see the book Regrow your Veggies by Plantura co-founders Melissa Raupach and Felix Lill. The lovingly designed paperback also contains helpful tips for caring for theregrowing plants and practical recipe tips.
5. Rain barrel instead of tap water
Especially in hot summers, gardeners increasingly reach for the watering can or turn on the lawn sprinkler. Unfortunately, this is also reflected in the water bill, because people often underestimate how much water a green garden needs. Fortunately, nature provides us with water for free in the form of rain - we just have to catch it. Rain barrels and barrels are a great way to collect water during the rainy season so that you can use the collected water for watering when it is dry. However, when buying such a rain barrel, you should make sure that it has a stable cover and that the water surface is not freely accessible. This not only ensures that the barrel does not become a breeding ground for annoying mosquitoes, but can also save the lives of small children, who are known to love to play and climb in the garden.
6. Use kitchen wasteBanana peels, coffee grounds and egg shells go into the organic waste bin for many people. But that doesn't have to be the case, because kitchen waste is actually an excellent substitute for fertilizer. Banana peels, for example, contain a lot of phosphate compounds and potassium, which is why they are a real insider tip when fertilizing roses (Rosa). Fertilizing with dried coffee grounds, on the other hand, is popular for orchids and also repels slugs and ants, while eggshell fertilizers are a great source of calcium. But the remaining organic waste should not end up in the bin either: together with garden waste, compost can be made from it, which also makes a great fertilizer.
7. Make earth yourself
To ensure that their plants are optimally cared for, many gardeners use pre-packaged potting soil in plastic bags. Unfortunately, this is not only expensive, but also not particularly climate-friendly due to its packaging and composition. On the other hand, it is cheaper and more ecological to mix your own compost. With just a few materials and minimal effort, you can create a great basis for your plants, which you can also customize to the needs of the individual varieties.
8. Repel pests naturally
Pesticides are frowned upon by many gardeners, after all they are not only expensive but also harmful to the environment. Nevertheless, many people use chemicals when aphids and the like make the garden unsafe. who not only save money,but also want to protect the environment, but can also fall back on natural means: Beneficial insects such as the ladybug or the lacewing declare war on the little pests without any payment if you manage to lure them into the garden. Beneficial insects feel particularly comfortable if you offer them sufficient opportunities to retreat in the form of wild corners or insect hotels. If you don't want to rely on the power of beneficial insects, you can also use old household remedies: nettle broth or an infusion of wormwood leaves can sometimes work wonders.
9. Own vegetables
You can save money not only in the gardening itself - real bargain hunters also save money in everyday life thanks to their garden. Fruit and vegetables do not have to be bought expensively, but can also be grown in your own garden. And you don't even need a lot of space for that: tomatoes, strawberries (Fragaria) or lettuce (Lactuca sativa) can be easily grown even on a balcony. If you don't want to create a separate vegetable bed, you can also plant your vegetables between the plants in the flower bed: chard (Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris) or ornamental cabbage ( Brassica oleracea var. acephalad) not only provide a decorative eye-catcher, the flowers even have a positive effect as plant partners. So that you can still have some of your harvest after the summer, it's worth making provisions: Potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) and apples (Malus) can do really well keep for several months if stored, vegetables can be preserved wonderfully by preserving them and fruit can survive the winter canned or made into jam.
10. Old becomes new
Recycling has been a trend in the home for a long time - it's about time it arrived in the garden too. In fact, all kinds of things that seem superfluous can be reused in the garden. Newspaper or toilet rolls can be used as seed containers, for example. With a bit of skill, old pots or teapots can become effective eye-catchers in the garden as flower pots, and glass bottles make wonderful decorations. Even an old pair of jeans can still attract admiring glances: Simply tie the knot at the bottom, fill it with soil and pose it and put a plant on top - a creative eye-catcher is done at a bargain price.
Grow new plants from kitchen waste? Find out how regrowing works here.