COLUMN - Melton & District Money Advice Centre with Amanda Heath
What a beautiful time of year to see your garden growing.
But what if you don’t have any, or much, money to spend to get the garden you desire and could only dream off?
We recently did a podcast on this very subject - search for ‘Gardening for free? • MADMAC Money Talks’ on Spotify to listen to it.
There’s lots of ways, and tips you can use, to get that garden on a budget. It might just take a bit more planning!
Planning is the first thing I would do.
What type of flowers do you like? What do you want in your garden? Where does the sun come up? Where could you sit and enjoy your hard work?
Use your friends, family or neighbours and their expertise – people love to share their opinions in our experience.
You can also learn so much from following garden fanatics on Instagram or YouTube.
Knowledge is power, especially in gardening. It will save you energy, time and pennies by not making mistakes, such as planting in the wrong type of soil or weather conditions.
Free seeds from our local Melton Mowbray library is such a resource. Do check them out.
We all want to recycle and you can get great things for free on Facebook and its ‘Marketplace’, such as slabs, benches or bricks.
Anything you want to eat, someone else does as well, so make sure you use the right protection when growing vegetables.
Perennials that come back every year can often be split to make into two plants.
Often some plants are spreaders and be sure to beware of predators such as slugs or pigeons!
Your garden needs seasonal interest, something that shines each cycle of the seasons.
I’ve got some great shrubs that only cost me £2.99 that are now very large. It just means it will take longer to grow.
Enjoy the challenge and the process of making a garden with not much money.
Maybe you can start a gardening club on your street and share the workload, ideas and benefits.
Go online at www.madmacmoney.co.uk to get free advice on budgeting and find out more about the service.