BIGGER, BETTER AND IN THE BUDGET

here is so much in the garden that can be recycled and renewed, and costs no more than a little effort. Eating healthily doesn’t have to mean blowing the budget. Growing your own patch of vegetables saves money and is rewarding in every way.

Allowing your vegetables to go to seed for collection to plant again in season keeps the seed costs down. I buy mostly heirloom organic seeds which are not hermetically sealed and can be saved from season to season. The flowering vegetables attract lots of bees into the garden which is an added bonus. I buy my heirloom seeds from two sources — www.livingseeds.co.za and www.organicseeds.co.za.

Leaves make great mulch, protecting the soil from the elements, and when wellrotted can be dug back into the garden which puts valuable nutrients back into the soil. Grass cuttings can also be used to mulch around the vegetables, keeping moisture in and the roots cool. Doing simple things in the garden can make your money go further.

Container planting can be done in many things — if it can hold soil and has good drainage, it can be planted in. You don’t have to spend lots of money on fancy pots; I have rescued oil drums that were heading for the dump and planted potatoes in them, and I have a row of old wheelbarrows that rest happily at the garden’s edge, overflowing with herbs.

My compost heaps are constantly being fed with food waste from the deli and bokashi speeds it all up. Vegetable gardening can be so rewarding and relatively inexpensive. It just takes a little thought and planning. ...................................................... Alison’s on the Green, 33 Troupant Avenue, Magaliessig, Joburg, 011 467 0561, alisonsorganicdeli.com. E-mail queries to food@sundaytimes.co.za with ALISON as the subject.