Kitchen Garden Magazine

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Garden on a budget

The budget gardener needs to think ahead in order to save cash. Now is the time to start making some preparations for next year in order to save on seeds, manure, and even a pergola, as Andy Hamilton explains

Over the past couple of years, I have noticed that seed companies seem to have drastically reduced the number of seeds in each pack. The air turned blue when I recently opened a packet to find just four seeds in it!

Luckily, Mother Nature is not as tight as seed companies can be – plants can be very generous with the numbers of seeds produced and also offer their seeds for free. The other bonus of collecting seeds is that the plants will adapt to your climate and if collecting heirloom varieties then you can ensure you are passing on a garden legacy to the next generation. I have discovered one little gem of a seed company that is bucking the trend for tiny amounts of seed while also encouraging seed saving to help restore some forgotten favourites from yesteryear. They are the Real Seed Company – www.realseeds.co.uk – is well worth a look.

There are of course some basics rules about seed saving:
1. Don’t collect F1 high breeds as these won’t grow true and can be infertile or carry rogue characteristics that the gardener won’t appreciate.

2. Always store seed in airtight containers and a cool place.

3. Label all the seed you collect.

4. Only save seeds from the healthiest of plants.

Easy seed saving

SUNFLOWERS

I usually just leave sunflowers standing with their seedheads intact to help feed small birds over winter. You still get sunflowers next year as in their haste to get a feed the small birds tend to dislodge and scatter many seeds. You then have to watch the ground next year where the sunflower was standing to find many seedlings starting to grow.
These can be transplanted into more appropriate places because as sod's law dictates, they will only start growing exactly where you don’t want them – for me my asparagus bed!

LETTUCE

The first time I left a lettuce to bolt was just out of fascination. They are remarkable when they start to grow and start to look a little more like their wild relative reaching a few feet in height. The lettuce will set seed pretty readily and over the last three years on our plot we have simply let the last plants of the year bolt in order to have self-sown lettuces everywhere.

The neater gardener might want to harvest the seeds to sow into rows, in which case they should cut the plant after flowering and hang it upside down into a bucket, rubbing the seed pods as they ripen. Then shake gently in a sieve to separate the chaff and store the seeds in an airtight container.

RUNNER BEANS

It is difficult to grow runner beans that don’t cross-pollinate with others within a half-mile radius. On our allotment site, one plotholder called Brian supplies everyone with seeds, so there is less chance of this problem.
If you have enough seed and a stonking variety, you could try the same. Leave one plant just for seed collecting and then just leave the pods to mature on the plant. Once dry, pick and store.

For more see this month's issue, available to buy online!

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