Archive for September, 2007

If you are a gardener or shopping for Christmas presents for a gardener, you probably like to keep a close eye on Black Friday sales. I get some amazing deals every year when I shop the Ace Hardware Black Friday sales. This year, I can plan ahead using the handy lists at black-friday.net. I already have been drooling over the deals at Ace and have a few things on my to buy list. Home Depot, Sears and Tractor Supply also are bound to have plenty of gardening deals.

A few great things about the lists of Black Friday bargains:
* You can shop online to take advantage of most of the deals. This means no standing in line for two hours, only to find that the thing you wanted is sold out. I do not have fond memories of shopping at a brick and mortar store for a weather gadget last year on the day after Thanksgiving!
* The site is really nicely organized and very easy to use, so you can find the best deals very easily with very little effort.
* If you are interested in finding out about more bargains, you can sign up for email alerts to find out about updates right away.

I’m tidying and weeding like crazy as I try to catch up on a whole summer of non-gardening. I’ve been working on a system and have gotten a rhythm going. I block out a six to eight foot section of the yard and sit on a mat in front of it. I have a weed bin, clippers, gloves, a small trowel, old film canisters, a wagon and a few small pots with me. I pull up all the weeds and toss them in the bin. Then, I clip back overgrown plants and toss the clippings in the bin, first shaking seeds into canisters and labeling them so I’m not confused about what is what when I sow them this winter or next spring. Then, I dig up any overcrowded plants or plants that grew in the wrong spot during the spring and summer and pot them up. I stick the pots in the wagon. Finally, I tote the weed bin over to the compost pile and empty it. If I’m having a good day, I do another section.

It is a bit slow, but the progress is steady and I don’t have to go back to dig up plants after I’m done weeding. When a section is done, it is done. Does anyone else have a fall cleaning routine they’d like to share?

Photo by Cris DeRaud

If you’re anything like me, the last few days of summer mean shopping for big bargains. You can find sales on everything from Wind Chimes to bird feeders. I love to stock up on things for next year, like new pots for the patio, bird houses to replace the ones from the previous nesting season that are looking shabby and rain gauges to check the rainfall under trees or in sheltered spots. These things are so much more expensive in the spring and overwinter very well in my garden shed.

Besides shopping for online bargains on gardening ornaments and supplies, you should also check your local nursery to see if there is a discount on plants. While you’re there, ask if there are any broken bags of mulch or soil left over. I’ve been able to buy entire pallets of broken mulch bags for a big discount and very little mulch was actually missing from the bags.

This post has been sponsored by Online Discount Mart .