[hamstergbert]

Most of the tightwad tricks we always used are already listed above, but one that isn't is that we encouraged family members who are flush enough to buy coffee in Costa or the other chains to snag a bunch of wooden stirrer sticks each time (naughty).  Great plant labels with pencil details and long enough to avoid the water soaking upwards and obliterating the writing.   Also keep fleece raised nice and high when covering early sowings in the greenhouse during cold snaps.  They are also useful to control the slide of medium and larger seeds off the paper vee onto the compost when accurate sowing.

You can also sharpen one end of them and use them to destroy very small vampires.

[Headgardener22]

A different way is to buy in bulk. Plant labels are £10.00 for 1000 from LBS warehouse and the writing can be scraped off with a knife. I bought a load about five years ago and their still going strong.

Similarly I bought a load of plant pots from Dejex (£80 for 4000 7cm pots) I've not got near the bottom of the box yet but it means that all my pots are the same rather than having a random mix.

[Trillium]

Possibly the wrong place to ask, but is newspaper printers ink now bio-degradable? 

Yes, it's fine 

Ooh, does that mean that I can compost Mum and Dad's old newspapers?   

Yes. Inks now are made from a soya base rather than the old chemicals.

[Auntiemogs]

Brilliant!  Thanks Trillium. 

[cadalot]

Small and medium pop bottles then using a mapping pin hole the cap (I found the best is 8 around the outside at 90 and 45 degrees and one in the middle - ideal for watering seedlings and young plants

[angelavdavis]

Some nice ideas here.

I re-use
- bubble wrap to cover seed trays in a heated propagator to hold in the warmth (remove as soon as seedlings appear)
- toilet rolls for potting (I put them in the plastic takeaway trays to hold them together),
- newspapers for mulch,
- cardboard for mulch,
- 2L soft drinks bottles cut down as mini cloches,
- bought compost bags for collecting manure,
- old drainpipe fitted on the side of the shed to hold 3 in pots (drill holes into it to drain the water away),
- old downpipe fitted to the side of the shed to store canes
- an old gazebo frame, covered in bird netting, as a fruit frame
- pallets fashioned into a picket fence.
- buckets with lids (inc chicken pellet buckets) to brew compost tea
- collapsible wrought iron conservatory shelving reused as GH staging
- old paving reused in GH
- large 25L water bottles (non recyclables from water machines) with the bottom cut off for bell cloches and cut down the centre for small mini cloches for seedlings.
- drowned weeds as compost tea (as well as nettle and comfrey)
- old holey child wellies for hanging strawberry planters
- milk bottles fashioned into strawberry planters (see aelf's post on here)
- wood ash from home fires for added potash on fruit
- water from fish tank changes to feed window boxes

I can't think of any more right now, but probably will later!

[Madame Cholet]

tonne builders bags as membrane for paths

[Growster...]

tonne builders bags as membrane for paths

That's an idea, Maam!

We had some sharp sand and some gravel delivered last week, and were wondering what to do with the bags!

I was thinking of just filling them with compost for a sort of raised bed!

[Madame Cholet]

tonne builders bags as membrane for paths

That's an idea, Maam!

We had some sharp sand and some gravel delivered last week, and were wondering what to do with the bags!

I was thinking of just filling them with compost for a sort of raised bed!

just got 6 out of the skip at the builders merchants

[cadalot]

Plastic Bottle Caps and a tube of external quality Hard and Nails from the 99p shop

[Growster...]

We can get about 40 plastic plant labels by cutting down a 4 pt milk bottle into small slivers, and using an all-weather pen...

The best one ever, is to use small pieces of green debris netting, cut them into circles about 1' 6" diameter and add a big rubber band round the edge, kept in place with a few staples.

It makes the perfect hairnet...;0)

[Beetroot queen]

Buy seeds online, they work out much cheaper and you can get a far wider range.

I won't be using the garden centre again. If the packs are too big share with a fellow plotter

[plum crumble]

The best one ever, is to use small pieces of green debris netting, cut them into circles about 1' 6" diameter and add a big rubber band round the edge, kept in place with a few staples.

It makes the perfect hairnet...;0)

we need piccies as evidence of this one! 

[barley]

if you want more robust flower pots , tin cans with holes punched in bottom with a screwdriver

mole hill soil mixed with home made compost is as good as any bagged product

old carpet cut into strips makes a marverlous muddy free path on the plot

[Growster...]

The best one ever, is to use small pieces of green debris netting, cut them into circles about 1' 6" diameter and add a big rubber band round the edge, kept in place with a few staples.

It makes the perfect hairnet...;0)

we need piccies as evidence of this one! 

They're only worn at night, Plum, and the flash on the camera has busted - sorry..;0)