Easy composting even in the winter

If you garden at all, never throw out water in which you've cooked vegetables, potatoes or pasta. It contains valuable nutrients, so pour it on your garden, even in the winter. Don't put salt in it, though.

Containers for your garden

Need containers to plant things in? Unless you want them all to match (and maybe even then!) you might already have containers. Got a coffee can or two? Take off the label and there you go. Or how about an old wheelbarrow? Or a big vase? Or a child's sandbox bucket? Anything that can contain something is fair game. Look around the house and see what you can find before buying pots and containers.

Gifts for the gardener

Got a gardener on your list? How about a stash of seeds? Maybe you have some saved from your own garden, or can get some from friends or family. Be sure to label them well.

Grow your own salad

You can grow fresh radishes and lettuce, etc, inside during these cold winter months and save on salad, if nothing else. Make sure you have good dirt, deep pots and enough light. On warm sunny days, set the pots out doors in the sun. (Don't forget to bring them in if your nights are freezing temperatures!)

Newspaper pots

If you're gardening this year, you might want to start some plants inside. Instead of buying containers of any kind or using plastic which you will have to remove the seedling from, make newspaper pots. You don't need the special tool to do it. Use two containers, one of which will fit into the other. Put the newspaper in the larger container and crunch it in with the smaller one. Tie cotton string around the pot when it's finished to keep it from coming apart when it gets wet. When it's time to plant the seedling, dig a hole and put the pot and all into the ground. It will degrade in time for the plants roots to grow.

Gardening supplies

Before you go to the store for spring gardening supplies, check out your kitchen. Old spoons, spatulas and more can be used to dig, smooth and weed plants in pots or small areas. Wax paper, foil or plastic wrap tubes, cut in pieces, make seed starting pots. Empty coffee cans make containers for bigger plants. Use your imagination.

Grow your own bird seed

With spring in the wings, it's time to think of growing things! If you like to feed birds year 'round, you can grow your own birdseed. Just how much of a dent you can make in the birdseed budget depends on how much room you devote to it, but even a couple of square feet will yield a worthwhile crop. Plant whatever seeds you feed the birds and you'll have the right ones. Whether it's millet, safflower, sunflower or any of a dozen more types, you can grow it densely, seeding a small area generously. Keep birds away until they've germinated by covering with screen, or start them indoors in clumps.

You can harvest the seeds when they're ripe and store them for winter days, or leave them on the plant and the birds will find them.

Coffee grounds

Ok, so who wants a bucket of used coffee grounds? Well, you might if you garden, because coffee grounds make excellent compost, especially if your ground is mildly (or atrociously) alkaline. Coffee grounds are good for worm beds, too. It stands to reason that the worms in your garden will like them just as much as the worms in a controlled worm bed. They'll put them to good use, making good dirt for your garden.