Save Money

Whoever said  “dirt cheap” never went to Home Depot or Lowes  for garden supplies.  A coworker was talking not too long ago how he spent $700  on dirt for his vegetable garden!

Here are some tips to making the most out of your gardening dollar.

1. Buy plants in small quantities. You don’t need to plant the Amazon rain forest do you? Buy only what you can plant right away, don’t go over board especially when shopping for plants online even though they are cheap!

2. Settle on a few good internet order sources. The variety offered by mail-order catalogs is inspiring, but don’t overpay on shipping because you order from six companies every spring. Try Direct Gardening and Blooming Bulb just to name a few. These have never failed me, are incredibly cheap and have a huge varieties.

3. Use local sources for heavy items. The cost of shipping heavy items can usually be greater than the item itself. Organic fertilizer additives , like bone meal, green sand and composted animal manure, are cheap but can cost a ton to  ship.  Check out local sources before purchasing this stuff online.

4. Search out other retail outlets. Though it may seem like it, Lowes and Home Depot are not the only games in town. A bale of straw at a nursery is sold as mulch and priced like mulch, while a bale of straw at a farm store is priced as livestock bedding. Ill go with the livestock bedding!

5. Keep an Eye Out for  free garden materials. Tree Limbs cleared from power lines are typically shredded. You can often get the mulch free from the utility company. Many community sanitation departments also give away compost made from leaves and organic waste.

6. Make friends with Pickup Truck owners. Delivery charges can really add up. Offer to fill up the tank, it will be cheaper!

7. Buy certain items in large quantities. You can buy large quantities of  compost from or mulch from landscaping centers a lot cheaper than by the bag at the home stores.  In fact, as much as 70% cheaper!  Bark chips and other mulch also come cheaper when bought in bulk.

8. Go for the small plants. Opt for small online plants instead of expensive gallon containers at your local stores. Perennials don’t usually take off the first season you plant them. They need some time to settle in.  The following spring, after a winters rest, perennials start to thrive and, typically  both big and little plants alike will reach mature heights at the same time.

9. Purchase late in the season or after the spring rush. You can save over 50% buying stuff at the end of the season vs the beginning.  Discounts on plants are common during fall sales. Plus, fall is one of the best time to plant.

10. Make your own gardening potions. A mixture of 1/3 ammonia and 2/3 water is deadly to slugs. See my aphid control article for, guess what, aphid control.  Do research on other diy control methods.

11. Mulch your plants. If you live in a hot and  dry climate, a thick layer of mulch will dramatically cut your watering bill. Regardless of location, mulch is one of your best allies against annoying and nasty weeds.

12. Make your own plants. Many perennials, like as sedums and many grasses, can be divided. Each will root. Don’t be afraid to divide the mature perennials already in your garden.  Not only will it give you more plants, you will also be helping the existing ones out.

13. Save on garden gear. An over priced piece of gardening equipment does not usually make you  a better gardener.  The  best tools are usually available for less than $10 at your local hardware store.

Copper King Hibiscus

I have received a lot of emails asking about the Copper King and related pests/diseases. While I have personally never had any issues with any sort of pest harming my Copper King or related Rose of Sharon, I decided to do a bit of research on the matter.

After visiting a local nursery that grows a lot of these,  I learned that these hybrids do not suffer from many pests or diseases.  In fact, they told me that they are quite disease pest and disease resistant. They said that in the few years they have been growing them, they have never experienced any issues. This has also been my experience with the few that I own.  About the only exception has been some stray Japanese Beetles that wonder over to them after I have sprayed their favorites.  Even then they don’t seem to find the Copper King quite as satisfying because they only seem to munch a leaf or two.

In conclusion, the Copper King Hibiscus is a very pest and disease resistant plant.  In my research, I have not found any information saying otherwise. If your experiences have been different, I would love to hear the types of issues you have had in terms of pests and diseases.

Viola Etain

One of the biggest challenges for me in gardening is figuring out what to put in the front row or at least finding something that’s short enough that it wont take away from the plants behind it. Sure, there are plenty of low growing plants, but the problem is that they just don’t pop.  Well, at least not until I found the Viola Etain.

This cool little plant has soft yellow flowers fringed in purple that will be the star of your front row early in the season as it grows only 6″-8″ tall.  The Viola Etain blooms profusely from spring to early summer, then sporadically for the rest of the season.  This plant is quite hardy, surviving in zones 5-8.  As an added bonus, it has a lovely fragrance that can be enjoyed while the plant is in bloom. As long as you have shade to partial shade spot, then you will be able to grow these lovely flowers. If you are in it’s northern range, then full sun will also be ok. Southern gardeners should be aware that these cannot take the full sun in the higher southern zones. So a cool shady spot is best. As with most plants, as long as you provide a rich well draining soil, the Viola Etain will bring you plenty of beautiful fragrant flowers for years to come.

If you are ready for some nice color and fragrance in your front row, then I highly suggest the Viola Etain. If you don’t know where to get it, I suggest you pick some up from DirectGardening.com. I know I already have my order in for some extras!

Plant Information

Hardiness Zones: 5-9
Sun exposure: Part Shade to Full Shade
Height: about 8″
Width: 6″-8″
Bloom time: Mid Spring Early Summer
Bloom Color: Pastel yellow with purple fringe
Watering: Average
Soil: Well draining
Availability: DirectGardening.com

EasyTool Personal Tiller

I have been wanting a tiller for a while now but I just can’t justify the cost for tilling my small beds. I am not a vegetable gardener so I really don’t need a heavy gas powered unit either. If this sounds like you, then here is a neat little tiller for you! The EasyTOOL Personal Tiller is a lightweight compact garden tiller that will fit and work in the smallest of beds. It has a tilling width of 6.5″ and weighs just 11 lbs. Another cool thing about it is that it is electric, so just plug it in and go. Enjoy all the benefits of a standard tiller without all the noise and hassles. Don’t be fooled by the electric motor because this little thing has the equivalent of a 1/3 hp motor so it has plenty of power for your small tilling spaces.

This great little tool is also wonderful for senior gardeners who still like to get out and enjoy doing some work around the yard but don’t want to mess with heavy, loud and difficult to start equipment. It’s also great if you have compact spaces, want to till quietly, need something lightweight and maneuverable, want a small tiller without spending a ton of money or simply want to be more environmentally conscious. This awesome little tiller is available GreenGardenTools.com at a very affordable price, so I highly suggest you check it out.

Edible Passion Fruit

Passion fruit will take 2-3 months to become ripe. Since the Passion Vine produces flowers/fruit all summer long starting in June/July, the early ones should be ready by late August, early September in Zone 7 (if grown in full sun). The easiest way to spot a ripe one is when they fall to the ground. Any fruit you find laying on the ground is sure to be ripe. Another way is too look for yellowing fruit still on the vine. If it feels soft and easily comes off the vine then its ready to eat. Firm fruit that does not come off the vine easily still has some ripening to do.

Once you have them off the vine, simply cut them in half with a knife. You will discover that the fruit is mostly hollow. You should also see small black seeds surrounded by light green almost white fleshy substance. The fleshy stuff is what you want to eat, sort of like a pomegranate but the seeds aren’t as densely packed in the fruit. There aren’t a whole lot of them in each fruit but you should be able to get a couple of mouthfuls. The seeds are not solid so they can be chewed easily, of course you can also swallow them or simply spit them out. For greater satisfaction, I recommend chilling the fruit for a bit before eating.

The taste can best be described as citrusy and custardy but it definitely has a very unique, delicious and distinct taste. There is one amazing thing about the fruit that many will not be aware of and that is that it tastes exactly like a tropical fruit called guanabana also known as soursop. I don’t know if the two are related but if you have eaten guanabana before, you will immediately recognize the passion fruit taste. The interesting thing about this is that guanabana only grows in true tropical climates and is grown from a tree unlike the passion fruit which grows in temperate regions (as well as tropical) and grows on a vine.

Just like with any fruit, there are several things you can do with Passion Fruit such as jams, juices, smoothies, etc. My favorite is to make Passion Fruit juice but you will need quite a few to do so. Another delicious thing to do is to add them into a smoothie mix for a hint of the tropics.

If you do not have passion fruit, then I highly recommend growing some because the flowers are quite beautiful and the fruit is delightful. You can read how to grow your very own here.