Five Things for the Summer House to Save Money On 0 15

Mineral Fertilizers

Collecting organic waste for compost helps avoid most of the expenses on purchasing mineral fertilizers.

You just need to set up a place for forming the compost mass and add the necessary trace elements — molybdenum, boron, cobalt, and others. However, good compost can be obtained without adding trace elements if you have wood ash — it contains all these substances. Just add the ash to the compost mass, evenly sprinkling it over the surface.

This method of feeding plants is also convenient because it is less harmful to health. When working with mineral fertilizers, strict safety measures must be observed, but few gardeners wear special clothing or protective goggles. When applying compost, there is no need to strictly calculate the dosage — as a rule, the plant takes the necessary amount of nutrients, and the rest remains in the upper soil layer and is available for use when the vegetables or greens need nourishment again.

Seed Containers

Any packaging for semi-finished products or ready-made foods can be used as seedling containers. Trays from meat semi-finished products are optimal — they are sturdy, opaque, and their walls are quite high, about five centimeters. They hold a lot of soil, which dries out more slowly.

To sow seeds, drainage holes need to be made — with a heated drill of 6-8 millimeters in diameter, a file, or another tool. Holes are needed not only at the bottom but also at the junction with the side walls. There is no need to be afraid that the soil will spill out — the first watering will compact the soil, and it will not spill out.

Seedling Labels

There is no need to buy special labels or markers. They can easily be replaced with disposable plastic spoons.

Firstly, a large pack of spoons costs much less than a set of labels. Moreover, spoons are harder to lose in the soil during transplanting; they do not get buried completely. On the spoon, you need to write the variety name with a marker and stick it into the soil at the beginning of the row of seeds or seedlings of that variety. Such a label does not fade quickly, and the inscription lasts until the end of the season. In autumn, the inscription can be removed with a melamine sponge, and the spoon can be used again next year.

Seeds

Seed manufacturers strive to save money — their products are getting more expensive, and the dosages in packets are decreasing.

Moreover, the germination rate of seeds from your own garden is often much better than that of purchased ones. Collect seeds from those plants where it is possible. Over time, you will select the best varieties or hybrids and will get an excellent harvest.

Soil for Sowing Seeds

It is quite possible to do without purchasing special soil for sowing seeds.

It should be noted that such soil must be hygroscopic, loose, and moderately nutritious (not overloaded with fertilizers), as the small roots of young seedlings may not cope with a large volume of nutrients. You can make such soil yourself based on compost soil. Fence off a small area in your garden (for example, half a meter by half a meter) and pile in leaf litter, which makes the soil loose, and a bit of compost soil.

It is better to take care of this at the beginning of the gardening season so that all the organic matter has time to decompose over the summer and a couple of autumn months.

This mass needs to be watered regularly so that the decomposition process proceeds evenly. Before the frost, the resulting soil should be packaged into bags and stored until spring. For storing such soil, it is also convenient to use large plastic bottles with the tops cut off.