Photos by Mike Salsbury/ The Olympian
Carolyn Trefts stands next to a red flowering currant , one of the many native plants she has used to created a gardener's sanctuary at her home.

This flowering vine maple grows in Trefts' garden.

You don't need money to dig in

But what you do need to garden on the cheap is a plan -- and plenty of native plants

SARAH JACKSON, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published April 28

Gardeners aren't immune to compulsive shopping.

Placed in the same room with an army of annuals sporting bursts of purples, golds and velvety reds, any gardener could crumble.

Who can blame plant addicts, when the season of garden sales -- like today's Gift and Garden event in Lacey -- bring beautiful blooms, funky plant paraphernalia and promising flower starts?

However, if you're on a small gardening budget, you have limits.

Never fear.

Local garden gurus have a number of ideas to get you into gardening on the cheap.

Propagating plants, garden planning, plant exchanges and using native species can help just about any gardener cut costs.

Nurturing natives

Carolyn Trefts of Olympia swears by native plants.

Woody wonders such as snowberry and red-flowering currants have allowed her to get rid of 60 percent of her grass, meaning less watering and a gorgeous sanctuary of plants natural to South Sound.

"This is gardening on the cheap," Trefts said. "These are no maintenance."

Admiring a red-flowering currant bush in her front yard, Trefts points out that the shrub came from propagation.

"They are free to me," she said.

Trefts, whose yard contains a demonstration garden for Washington State University Cooperative Extension office's Native Plant Salvage Project, also is home to bitter cherry trees.

One sent out a root runner underground and in the past two years sprouted up three plants.

"There's going to be a thicket right here," she said. "So that's how we get plants."

While many of the original plants were salvaged through the program for which Trefts is a volunteer, many native plants are available at local nurseries.

Some of them, such as red-flowering currant, snowberry and serviceberry, can thrive in full sunlight or shade.

Native plants have grown well despite wildlife, insects, fungi, soil bacteria and diseases.

They're experienced South Sound residents and tend to be more resistant to drought and pests and require less water. Native plants won't take over an area to create a monoculture the way non-natives sometimes do.

And if you're ready for a commitment, the Native Plant Salvage Project offers a book -- "Grow Your Own Native Landscape" -- and other materials on how to salvage plants safely, legally and effectively from development sites.

Long-term planning

Erica Guttman with the Native Plant Salvage Project, however, reminds gardeners to take care when buying and propagating native plants.

"People can save money gardening by gardening in a more friendly way -- not wasting pesticides and water on plants that are not going to do well in our conditions."

To avoid wasting money, have a plan, Guttman said. Not knowing the long-term plan for your garden or landscape is like going to the grocery store and not knowing what's for dinner, she said.

"Make good choices. You want to go and to do some research," Guttman said, adding that the library's collection of garden books provides diverse and free information.

It's not the most instantly gratifying way to save, but Guttman encourages a more holistic approach to gardening cheaply, wisely.

Other ways to save money while improving your garden include:

-Getting free or low-cost information from the Master Gardener program, the Native Plant Salvage Project as well as the Environmental Health Division for Thurston County on native plants, water conservation and planning for South Sound gardens.

-Improving your soil with amendments or compost material can save headaches down the road and can make the plants you buy last longer.

-The Thurston Conservation District offers free soil testing with results in about two weeks.

-Use organic fertilizers. Jane Mountjoy-Venning with the Thurston County's Common Sense Gardening program says the formulas in organic mixes tend to be slow-releasing and less of it seeps away, which can happen quickly with some weed-and-seed mixtures.

Plant exchanges

Finally, never underestimate the value of other gardeners.

You might want to start a gardening group and throw an exchange or sharing party.

Barb Muse of Olympia said her gardening group, Gardeners at Heart, has one of many annual plant exchanges in South Sound.

The group started with about 12 people and now has about 50 members who keep in touch through e-mail and other projects.

"So many of the plants that I have in my garden were gifts," Muse said. "The idea of sharing is just really a big part of gardening."

It's a great way to get rid of your extras and swap for cool stuff.

"Instead of dumping them in the compost pile, you just share them," she said.

"It's such a good idea for gardening on the cheap."

Sarah Jackson writes for The Olympian and can be reached at 704-6871.

The Olympian Copyright 2001

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