This week my front and back yards were covered in snow white flowers and tulip leaves were sticking out of the ground. These are sure signs that planting time will soon come. Now is the time to think about seeds and plants, tools and tasks that need to be done immediately. And with inflation on the rise this year, planning ahead and implementing some cost-cutting ideas will be more important than ever.
As much as I love my flowers, now may be the time to spend more time and energy growing edibles. You may have had success with tomatoes, beans, radishes, potatoes or lettuce. If so, consider devoting more space and energy to cultivating what you have accomplished in the past. Don't forget the herbs. But that can add up when you have to pick up $2.99 jars of parsley, basil and oregano at the grocery store week after week. A good herb section will not only save you money during the growing season, but in September you can pluck the last few leaves, dry them in the oven and save them for winter use.
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Let's look at some ideas to save real money. There are many out there. I like to start right away by buying a tray or two of seed starter, which can be purchased at home improvement stores, Walmart, and other places. They are equipped with 48 or 72 pots with compacted earth. Simply moisten the squares as much as you need at the time and plant a few seeds in each plant. Repeat this process every two weeks for continuous harvesting. As the plant grows, it will become clear to you that it is time to move it to a larger pot or tray with soil where it will have room to grow.
Of course, you won't have to worry about seed costs next spring if you take the time this summer to read how to save seeds in a magazine or Old Farmer's Almanac. It's easy, and if you're very successful, you may have enough seed to help gardeners in your area.
I might even write a how-to column next August to help you out. Some of the simplest and most useful are tomatoes, peppers, beans and peas. Cucumbers, melons, watermelons and zucchini are also easy to grow and produce large amounts of seeds.
Indeed, I find it very useful to propagate my plants by cuttings. Start early, buy plants like marigolds, petunias, impatiens, geraniums and zinnias and take cuttings along the way. These cuttings will eventually produce real plants, but of course extend the season for free. I find it difficult, but in the early spring, by taking cuttings of forsythia, barberry, or viburnum, very fine specimen plants can be obtained for half a dozen years. Why are we so impatient?
Sometimes when we shop at the garden center, we may need two or three perennials or shrubs. Expensive, right? Be frugal; look through the entire selection and choose a plant or two that can be easily divided. They will have many stems sticking up above the ground. Be patient and remember that if they suffer from smaller plants the first year, they will look fuller and healthier the second year.
In my mind, The Old Farmer's Almanac is reminiscent of Ben Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac. I remember a couple of quotes: "Neither a borrower nor a lender" and "a penny saved is a dollar earned". Take care of your garden equipment; replacement seems to cost more every time you look at it. If you borrow it, lend it to a gardener who will return it to you in a day or two clean and undamaged. If not, they go on a "do not borrow" list that I maintain. Once you make this list, you're on it forever!
These are just a few of my money saving gardening tips. I will try to add more suggestions in the coming weeks.
Carmen Cosentino runs Cosentino Florist in Auburn with her daughter, Jessica. He was elected to the National Florist Hall of Fame in 1998 and received the Tommy Bright Lifetime Achievement Award in Flower Education in 2008. In 2016, Carmen and Jessica received Teleflora's Tom Butler Award, naming Cosentino Florist of the Year at the company's annual meeting in Hawaii. Carmen can be reached at cosenti@aol.com or (315) 253-5316.
