To start seedlings I save toilet paper tubes. I never put these in the recycling bin as I can use them to start my seedlings in and then plant directly into the ground where the cardboard will decompose without any harmful contaminants added to your soil. It's so much easier to plant the entire container than to gently transplant the seedlings and easier on the plant as well.
You could also use newsprint to make your own planters, just remember not to use any paper with colored print on it as those contain toxic dyes.
Another cheap and easy is to use egg shells. When composting, animal products are not supposed to be composted. Egg shells are an exception but I still don't add them to the compost. Here is a complete list of what you can compost and what nutrients they will add to your gardens.
Last night I crushed egg shells, I have friends and family save their eggshells which I crush into a fine powder with a mortar and pestle. I store these in clean empty containers from mason jars to oatmeal containers until spring. Once I have planted my seeds and seedlings I sprinkle the crushed egg shells over the top of the soil As they decompose they add calcium to the soil for your plants but they also have another purpose I learned accidentally.
Many of my neighbors were complaining about the slugs in their gardens. The slugs are every where here except my garden beds. I had no idea why until one neighbor was looking at my beds and asked me what the white powder was around the plants. When I told her it was crushed egg shells she laughed and said that was the reason I didn't have slugs. They find the shells, even finely ground, to be sharp and avoid those areas.
If you don't have a mortar and pestle, don't worry you can grind up your shells in a blender or food processor.
So start saving items now to have a healthy and productive garden.
Do you do anything special to have a productive garden?
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6 comments :
Lois - at our elevation we don't have slugs but I wonder if crushed egg shells will do the same thing and keep voles out of flower beds.
great tips! I'll be replanting my container garden in limited space when we get closer to Spring. Found you through the Monday Meet and Greet! :)
Pat, I don't know if it will help never had to deal with them myself. If you try it let me know how it works for you.
La Alicia, I'm glad you stopped by. Even a container garden can use some extra nutrients. If you have eggs give it a try in your planters. What do you grow?
Hi Lois! I love your tips. I save toilet paper rolls for planting and I rip up the ones that I don't need to use in planting tomatoes in containers. I basically layer soil in the pot, add a layer of ripped up toilet paper rolls, and continue layering to the top. The toilet paper rolls help keep the tomato seedlings warm and feed them as they grow. It works wonderfully and every year my tomatoes do wonderfully. For those of us who don't have eggs, can you recommend another way to add calcium to the soil? I know that one can buy products at the garden center but I'm not sure if they are Eco-friendly and vegan. Thanks for linking up at Meet & Greet!
Hello, Small Footprints. Thanks for stopping by. I am still working out the bugs on this site so bare with me. I've used toilet paper rolls to start plants but never thought about layering them with the soil for tomatoes. As for calcium, the best source is egg shells, which maybe you could have friends of family save for you? Other than that I would look to add green with high calcum content to my compost I will look into this and post what I find.
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