Dream Garden of the Week

Leonardslee Garden is located in Horsham, West Sussex, England.  The pinks, reds and purples in this week’s dream garden make it my perfect haven away from the busy digital world!

If you ever read the book The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews Edwards, you’ll know what I see in this garden…  even the cover of the book looks similar.  The book is a young adult adventure book which I first read in 5th grade.  I’ll be passing it down to my daughter in a few years. 

Filled with imagination and fantasy, The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles makes me feel just as much like a character in a story as this week’s dream garden.

This beautiful photo of the Rock Garden at Leonardslee was taken by Margaret Anne Clarke.

We hope you’ll join us next week for the Dream Garden of the Week!  If you have a dream garden you’d like to nominate, please email us (with photos) at tips(at)homemakerbarbi.com.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom.

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The lush waterside garden featured this week is in Kensington Garden at Kensington Palace in England. 

The water fountain in the middle is such a nice touch, and one would hope for a breeze to come up and share some of the fountain’s spray to cool us off!  This beautiful photo was taken by gailf548.

Dream Garden of the Week

We hope you’ll join us next week for the Dream Garden of the Week!  If you have a dream garden you’d like to nominate, please email us (with photos) at tips(at)homemakerbarbi.com.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom.

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Dream Garden of the Week

This amazing photo of purple hydrangeas is a stunning collection of colors mixed in with the lush greenery.  The photo was taken by IrishFireside at the Knockpatrick Gardens in Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland. 

Isn’t it amazing how vibrant the colors are in these flowers?

We hope you’ll join us next week for the Dream Garden of the Week!  If you have a dream garden you’d like to nominate, please email us (with photos) at tips(at)homemakerbarbi.com.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom.

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Dream Garden of the Week

This week’s dream garden is tall enough to have a garden party inside!  Thanks for the dream garden photo, taken by hortulus_aptus.  Aren’t those pinks the most perfect shade?

We hope you’ll join us next week for the Dream Garden of the Week!  If you have a dream garden you’d like to nominate, please email us (with photos) at tips(at)homemakerbarbi.com.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom.

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Dream Garden of the Week

This beautiful photo of an inviting country cottage in Strasburg, France was taken by Francisco Antunes.  If I lived there, I would never want to leave home!  Can’t you imagine sitting out in the garden, or entertaining guests with that home as a backdrop?

We hope you’ll join us next week for the Dream Garden of the Week!  If you have a dream garden you’d like to nominate, please email us (with photos) at tips(at)homemakerbarbi.com.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom.

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Dream Garden of the Week

This week’s dream garden is at the Mill Rose Inn in Half Moon Bay, California.  Thanks to Wonderlane for the dream garden photos.

We hope you’ll join us next week for the Dream Garden of the Week!  If you have a dream garden you’d like to nominate, please email us (with photos) at tips(at)homemakerbarbi.com.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom.

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Welcome to Homemaker Barbi’s Gardening Guide.  Be sure to check our our gardening tips for beginners and guide to compost for beginners also.  Today we’re talking about the frugal way to grow your own food – container gardening on a budget.

For those who would like to plant a garden but are inexperienced or have limited space, a container garden on a budget may be the perfect alternative. Container gardening is easy and inexpensive, and can be started even when on a tight budget.

Before you begin, decide which plants you would like to grow. Stick with fruits or vegetables that you will consume to avoid waste and keep costs down. Make sure your choice will work in your climate and research to make sure it will successfully grow in your area.

Editor’s Note:  Instead of spending a lot of money to buy plants which have already been started from a nursery, go the frugal route.  Start a little earlier in the season and start your own plants from seeds.  If growing organic fruits, vegetables and herbs is important to you, make sure you buy organic seeds to use in your container garden.  Seeds are a very cheap way to grow your own organic produce. Barbi

Save Money on Pots and Containers

You can further decrease costs for your container garden on a budget by refraining from purchasing expensive or all matching containers. Get creative and use items you already have instead to plant in. In addition to typical flower pots, you can use items made from wood, metal, plastic, clay or even paper pulp. Old children’s toys such as metal or plastic trucks and toy bins work well, as do household bowls and small trash cans.

Be mindful of the soil depth you will need for the particular plant you will be growing. You will need to use items as planters that will allow drilling in the bottom to create holes for drainage. Be sure to clean and rinse containers before using them.

Tools for Container Gardening

Unlike traditional gardening, container gardening does not require you to purchase expensive gardening tools. Chances are you have many items in your home that you can use.

• Chopsticks make excellent plant stakes and can be used for seeding.
• Plastic milk jugs or juice jugs can be cut and used as a scooper for soil. They also double as great protective coverings for plants in colder weather.
• Old stockings can be used as stake ties.

Don’t Scrimp on the Important Things

The most expensive aspect of container gardening is the soil itself. Although it may be tempting to use basic dirt from the yard, it will not produce quality results and is not recommended. Keep in mind that because container gardening requires good planting soil, you will not need to spend additional money on treatments for poor soil problems as you would if you were growing a traditional ground garden.

Once you purchase the potting soil, you can add the seeds to the soil in the container. Follow planting instructions on seed packets and tend to plants just as you would if growing in a traditional ground garden. 

Are you enjoying our garden guides?  If so, please bookmark this on Delicious, Digg or StumbleUpon.  Thank you for supporting our site and keeping the information free!

Check out Thrifty Thursdays at Amanda’s Cookin’ and Frugal Friday at Life as Mom for more great frugal tips. Top container garden photo by thomas pix.  Bottom container garden photo by by LollyKnit.

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Dream Garden of the Week

These beautiful dream garden photos are of the Japanese garden in San Marino, California, called Huntington Gardens.  Thanks so much to JR Robertson for the wonderful photos.

I’d love to look out my window and have this view:

Pink Cactus Flower:

Cactus Flowers:

What a scarecrow in this dream garden!

We hope you’ll join us next week for the Dream Garden of the Week!  If you have a dream garden you’d like to nominate, please email us (with photos) at tips(at)homemakerbarbi.com.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom. 

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With fertilizer being as expensive at it is, learning how to make and use your own compost is a big help on your gardening budget. In addition to saving money, you will be helping the environment and reducing waste.  Composting is a wonderful green solution for disposing of household waste and can be a natural bonus to your organic garden this year.

Set Up a Compost Bin

To begin, you will need a large compost bin or a designated area to make a compost heap. Composters and bins can be purchased at major gardening centers, online garden equipment manufacturers and even some local hardware stores. Basic models are relatively inexpensive. Though wooden bins are more aesthetically pleasing, plastic bins are less money and just as effective. An open compost pile will work fine, but you should invest in a cover during the cold winter months.

Alternately, you can utilize a wormerie, which uses worms to digest kitchen debris and produce compost as well as liquid plant food that is high in nutrients. To build your own composter, purchase some wood pallets and build a small enclosure. As long as you have the necessary tools, raw materials will run you around $20.

What Can You Put in Compost?

Most of your organic home and garden waste can be used for composting, although there are some things you definitely want to avoid.  If you are ever unsure if something should be composted, it is best to leave it out. 

Do put these items in compost:

• fruit 
• vegetable scraps
• coffee grounds
• egg shells
• tea bags
• hair
• leaves
• yard and lawn clippings 

Don’t put these items in compost:

• meat
• fish
• all dairy
• oils
• bones
• waste (human or animal)

Though shredded papers and cardboard are perfectly acceptable, avoid adding glossy magazines.

How to Keep Your Compost Organic

If your aim is to create organic compost for organic gardening, evaluate items closely before you add them to your compost pile.  Items such as fruits, vegetables, and egg shells are great for composting, but if they weren’t organic when you bought them, they’ll be passing on chemicals to your compost when they break down.  This is also true with mowed grass or leaves from plants that have been treated with chemicals or insecticides.  Remember: Organic + organic = organic.  Organic + non-organic = non-organic.

How Long Does Compost Take to Break Down?

The amount of time compost takes to develop generally depends on your composting needs. If you are looking to use compost as a fertilizer, you will need to tend to the heap and manage your compost. This will include adding greens and turning as necessary. Managed compost on average takes 3 months.

However, if your goal is simply to dispose of household waste in a green fashion, your heap can be left unattended to compost on its own. This method will generally produce compost in 6-9 months.

Compost for Beginners – Tips for Success

• Composters have the potential for giving off a strong odor, so you will want to set up your compost a good distance from your home. Remember, however, that you will need to make frequent trips to the compost pile with your kitchen scraps, so it should not be at the other end of the yard completely.
• You want worms and other natural composters to have ample access, so avoid placing the bin on top of concrete areas. Opt instead for level ground with adequate drainage.
• Because heat will help the composting process, try to situate your bin in an area that receives ample sunlight and is shielded from strong winds. If you live in hot, dry climates, shade may be a better option to prevent compost from drying out.
• Remember that shredding or cutting up ingredients will help them compost faster than larger items.

If you’re new to gardening, next you’ll want to read our Gardening Tips for Beginners.  Thanks to Works for Me Wednesday and Homemaker Mondays for linking up this article!

Top compost photo by solylunafamilia. Middle compost photo by Joi.

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Every homemaker should know how to grow a garden, in order to provide their family with fresh fruits and vegetables grown by your own hand (plus, it can really help cut down on the grocery budget).  With our gardening tips, you should be able to start a small garden this summer even if you’ve never grown a garden before.

Begin by locating the best place in your yard to plant a garden. Search for a location that is free of excess trees and shrubs, able to receive at least 6 hours of sunlight per day and sufficient water drainage.

Once you have decided on a good location, you will need to decide which plants you would like to grow in your garden. Make a simple list of some basic favorites. Remember to start small in the beginning, you can always add other plants once you gain experience. Begin with a small area, about 100 square feet of space.

The next step is to invest in all of the gardening tools that you will need before you begin. You can pick up all of the necessary tools at a local hardware store or the lawn and garden section of super centers like Walmart or Target.

Garden Tools You Will Need:

• rake
• shovel
• garden hoe
• fertilizer
• garden sprinkler or water hose
• gardening stakes

In addition, you will need the seeds or seedlings of what you will be growing. You can pick up seed packets at the grocery store or local farm stand, or you can even order seeds from catalogs or online distributors.

Begin by ensuring that the soil is damp, but not too wet.  Pick up a small handful of dirt and squeeze it in your hands. If it crumbles easily it is ready to go. Dirt that clumps together is too wet, while dirt that appears light and dusty is too dry. Once the soil is of the right consistency you can go ahead and begin preparing your planting bed. Work the soil about 6 inches down. You can use a rototiller or do it all by hand. Next, use a rake to evenly level the soil.

Follow the package instructions for planting seeds.  Once the seeds are planted, you will need to spend a lot of time tending to your garden. Weeds have to be pulled, plants need to be properly watered and checked for insects and diseases.

Gardening for beginners is fun and enjoyable and with some patience and hard work you will soon be enjoying the fruits of your labor.  Stay tuned next week for Compost for Beginners and Container Gardening on a Budget.  Subscribe now for free so you don’t miss any of our new Gardening How To series!

Garden photo by net_efekt.

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