Product Description

Let gardener, author and lecturer Catriona Tudor Erler show you how to get your best garden ever-without spending a fortune! Catriona shares her tops for paring down expenses and shaving costs on just about anything you need to garden-from necessities like soil amendments and quality tools to prized perennials and beautiful garden structures that will make you the envy of your neighborhood. Armed with the advice of this expert bargain hunter, you'll learn how.

* Save money on plants by knowing how to save your own seed, propagate new plants from cuttings, spot nurseries' "hidden treasures," organize plant swaps with neighbors and gardening friends, and more.
* Make your plant selections pay off by choosing the best plants for your garden site.
* Add all the right amendments to turn ordinary soil into great garden soil that produces healthy, thriving plants-for free (or almost free).
* Add fences, benches, arbors, trellises, and other garden structures for half the price of retail, with a little ingenuity and elbow grease. "Frugal Gardener Workshop" boxes give complete step-by-step directions for making attractive and functional garden features.
* Control garden pests and diseases safely and effectively so you don't have to waste money throwing away damaged plants.
* Get the most for your money when it comes to tools-buy only what you need, know where to find the best bargains, and spot top-quality tools.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #818255 in Books
• Published on: 2001-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 280 pages

Amazon.com Review
The Frugal Gardener should have a place on every serious gardener's shelf, no matter what his or her budget. Catriona Tudor Erler has assembled a fantastic collection of suggestions for economical gardening strategies, covering everything from pruning-shear purchases to making the most of your plants. In this case, "economical" also translates to "environmentally sound," as Erler's recipes for do-it-yourself pest control rely on items like dish soap, garlic, and hot peppers.

Separate chapters cover topics like cost-conscious plant choices and growing techniques, tool care, and inexpensive garden design. You won't find wasted words in this book--every page is absolutely covered with quick suggestions, recipes, and planting charts. Some of her advice is deeply practical, such as 15 places to find free manure for mulching, but inexpensive doesn't have to mean plain. Her suggestion for a topiary friend in a child's play area is utterly adorable, and couldn't be simpler: "use hedge shears to slice off anything that doesn't look like a bunny, then keep the lines of the creation clear with an occasional haircut." The illustration of a romantic patio provides real inspiration--just spread gravel along a path to an area under shady tree and add furniture and torch lights! But don't think that saving money is always Erler's main focus; she's sure to point out that low-cost items may not be the best deal over the long haul and that sometimes it pays to invest in a pricier item. Buy this book as early in your gardening career as you can: it will easily pay for itself in your first season. --Jill Lightner

From Publishers Weekly
With the healthy skepticism of a practiced penny pincher, Erler (The Garden Problem Solver) examines just about every conceivable aspect of gardening and shows readers how to achieve beautiful, bountiful results on a budget. Erler offers a host of suggestions and technique, from finding top-quality tools at bargain-basement prices (garage sales are a good source) to using found objects for garden art (try driftwood as sculpture), propagating plants from cuttings, creating a water-wise landscape and making homemade pesticides. The Virginia gardener's emphasis is on creativity and practicality, but Erler's down-to-earth ideas don't sacrifice styleAin fact, she makes such a persuasive case for using "your ingenuity instead of your wallet" that even green thumbs with deep pockets may adopt her methods. Packaged in a reader-friendly format, the information is grouped logically, with separate chapters on such topics as tools, plants, soil amendment and design. The pages are peppered with recurring sidebars: "The Frugal Gardener's Workshop," for example, offers how-to instructions for creating a Victorian gazing globe from an inverted fishbowl and a can of metallic spray paint. (Sept.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Gardening can be an addictive, expensive hobby, so a book like this one is always welcome. It will be appreciated by those gardening on a budget as well as those who simply enjoy the thrill of bargain hunting or the challenge of creative recycling. Erler, a gardening columnist and author of The Garden Problem Solver, organizes her ideas in logical sections on plants, tools, maintenance, and design, making it easy to browse for inspiration. The tips are a blend of quick fixes offering instant gratification and longer projects to plan and dream about during the winter (including a clever homemade pergola made of painted PVC pipe). For beginners, basics on wise tool and plant selection are useful. Erler includes more illustrations than Maureen Gilmer does in The Budget Gardener: Twice the Garden for Half the Price (LJ 2/1/96), making this a good purchase for all public libraries.ABonnie Poquette, Shorewood P.L., WI
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

How to spend less and reap the rewards
The Frugal Gardener is a great book of gardening strategy for those of us who want to (or have to) stay within a small budget. As it turns out, the frugal way is also the organic way, generally.

TFG is organized to guide you through long-range strategies that will save you money in both short-term and long-term investments. An early chapter deals with the bare bones tools that you will need to start with; how to spot quality that will last, how to maintain them, and different uses for each. Next we learn how to plan a garden based on regional climates, making heavy use of naturalizing perennials and native plants that need less maintenance, watering and/or care (and so fewer products to buy). If you like the quick gratification of annuals, there are quite a few tips here that will help you maximize their impact in your garden. A great emphasis is placed on soil health, how to get it and how to increase it, thus saving more money that would have had to be wasted on expensive fertilizers and replacement plants. Then there are the recipes for homemade bug sprays and remedies that can be concocted from common household items.

TFG explained gardening organically in a way that made it easy and sensible even for me when I was first trying to make compost and wean away from chemical sprays. There is a lot that can be done to fortify and protect your plants and trees that will benefit them and the environment, and surprise! It's cheaper than chemical solutions. My garden has been thriving ever since.

Frugal gardeners, don't be afraid to spend the money on this book! Even if you only use a few of the many tips packed within this book, you will more than make up the cost of buying it in the long run.
-Andrea, aka Merribelle

The Real Dirt!
I checked this book out from the library and decided I needed to buy a copy as a reference guide for the greatest gardening ideas I've seen. This book is loaded with practical advice that is easy to follow. It takes the perfectionist out of gardening and gives you the real dirt! Many money saving ideas are contained such as easy propogation and newspaper mulching, to name just two. I highly recommend this book!

Even For Frugal People, This Book's Worth the Money
I'm another purchaser who first tried this book from the library and then knew in days that I needed my own copy. It offers many tips I was familiar with after years of gardening, yet hundreds I'd never heard of. Even if you are not simply looking for ways to garden on a budget, it offers many great gardening tips. Period.

There are plenty of good illustrations and the layout is appealing to the eye. It is well organized and enjoyable to read, not just to use as a resource. This book is money well spent toward your garden.