Gardening Charlie’s top 10 tips

Our green-thumbed guru Charlie Albone shares his thrifty backyard secrets

1 Start with a master plan

The beginnings of any garden – n no matter the size – are so importa important, and installing it in stages is a great way to spread the cost. Having a landscape plan to refer to will ensure you’re heading in the right direction with a cohesive, affordable garden.

2 MAKE YOUR OWN COMPOST

Compost is the best additive for healthy soil, , and plants grown in healthyhy soil always outperform their ir poor-soil counterparts. Making your own compostt makes your garden look more vibrant and helpss cut down on kitchen and garden waste, too.

3 Grow from seed

Growing new plants from s seed is about a tenth the cost of buying advanced ones, and the only difference is the time it takes to grow.

4 GROW YOUR OWN HERBS VEGETABLES

Growing your own herbs and vegies, especially from seed, is a fantastic way to save on household expenses, plus it’s good to be able to monitor exactly what you consume. It also gives you the opportunity to increase your intake of organic produce cheaply!

5 Maintain hard surfaces

Paving,Pa decking, feature walls andan pool surrounds are expensive to too replacereplac but last much longer if they’re cleanedc at least once every six months. TheT best product to use is highly dilutedluted chlorine.c Soak your garden beds beforefore anda after cleaning to further dilute thet chlorine and ensure it doesn’t damaged or kill your plants.

6 Mulch

Adding a layer of mulch to your garden to a thickness o of 50-75mm helps maintain soil moisture and gives beds a more finished and “designed” look. Plus, it costs a fractionon of the price of filling with extra plants.

7 Grow from cuttings

This is the cheapest way to expand your ga garden’s plant base – just remember to ask the p plant’s owner before helping yourself! Some of the easiest plants to propagate are rosemary, frangipanis and hydrangeas.

8 BUY PRELOVED FURNITURE

A lot of people sell their r used furniture online at bargain prices. A lick of paint or new cushions and d you could have that quirky garden piece you’ve always dreamed of.

9 MAKE YOUR OWN POTTING MIX

Use 50 per cent coir (coconut fibre), 25 per cent homemade compost and the rest made up of chicken manure, slow-release fertiliser and a wetting agent. It’s the best mix and cheap, too!

10 Buy small

If you’re p planning to ld landscape a large area, buy your plants young and watch them grow. They will actually settle in quicker and grow faster once they’re established than more mature – and more expensive – plants.