Help needed on what to grow!!

Hello, I am coming up to the end of my horticulture course which unfortunately feels like a massive waste of my time. I went on the course to learn about plants and growing but the course wasn't anything like I expected and all I have done is cut grass all year round.

The course has no guaranteed jobs afterwards as well so I was hoping that with some help I could set up my own business. I want to design good looking hanging baskets, with nice flowers in but don't know a lot about growing the plants and what looks good with what. I am willing to put the research in but would be very grateful for any pointers and tips you can give me.

Also the main reason of this email is because I want to offer set up small sized allotments in peoples gardens. (so i dig them in, prepare the soil and plant the plants, Then just leave the owner to it.) So I was wondering if you could give me any pointers into doing this.

Finally I want to combine both for those who do not have the space for an allotment, I want to offer something that not a lot of people seem to know about. Potted fruit and veg and also fruit and veg grown in hanging baskets, I know you can grow things like tomatoes and strawberry's in hanging baskets and lettuce in little window side pots but once again will be very grateful if you could give me info into what I can grow in them and sizes etc.

oh and if you know any places where I can pick up the items needed for any of these for cheap then this would help me a lot as i'm on a low paying apprenticeship so only have minimal funds to start up.

Sorry about the big email but Thank You for taking your time to read this and Thanks in advance for any info you can help me with.

Sincerely.
Chris.

 

Hi chris, I wish you all the luck in your venture. You will find it hard, especially if the weather is like last year.

So here are a few things to think about, things I have learnt or struggled with.

How are you going to advertise? If its through a weekly advert booklet be prepared to pay a hefty price. It costs £80 for a 60 x 60mm size here and often brings no work in.

Ideally you need a part time job to help setup and pay for advertising. You will need a variety of petrol machinery to clear the plots. Probably from my experience the garden you are working on will have little kit.

Ideally you will need heated propagation, an assortment of pots and a pollytunnel with staging.

I tried to introduce gardening last year to supplement my IT business and the wet weather put an end to that. I did however manage to grow many plants from seed with the help of the polytunnels. These plants were rhubarb and strawberries which I intend to sell both for fruit and as plants. It is however time consuming and you need plenty of space.

So to sum everything up you need time, patience, kit, space and some money.

Dont give up on your dream, aim for it but perhaps prepare by purchasing kit a little eack week. Maybe try getting a job in a garden centre, january is the time they start recruiting for spring help.

 

Hey guys thanks for the replies!

As for the advertising side of things their is a facebook group set up for my area were people buy/sell things all the time so was hoping that I would get some interest on their, Besides that I was lost so maybe a little advertisement in a weekly book is the way forward!

As for the tools what machinery would I need? I have already got most hand tools ordered from the spear & jackson website as me and a fellow apprentice was going to do standard garden maintenance, But I wanted to try something different.

What I wanted to do was take away the initial growing part (germination) and plant the strawberry's or what else I have grown when they are big enough to move. This way the people who buy them will have the enjoyment of looking after their hanging basket and growing the plants. However I don't really know when the plants can be moved, Can a move them when the shoots are just coming through or do they need to be a certain size?

And as for the mixing of the plants I will really need to research on different plant names,species etc. As my knowledge is minimal. :( My uncle has had an allotment for as long as I can remember so going to speak to him about it this weekend, Maybe like business partners.

I have never heard of 1m gardening before so will definitely have a look into that when I get the chance!

Thanks again for the help!
Chris.

 

Why not go above in header find the search and type in hanging baskets. You will see some of the most beautiful baskets done by G.C. members, there is usually a bit of info on how,when,what about them as well.

just tried it, go back to spring/summer dates

 

Hey Pam, Thanks for the tip didn't know I could do that!

 

Hey guys, advertised my idea on a local selling page around my area! getting a lot of positive feedback and even got offered a landscaping job!!! Unfortunately I cannot drive yet so he cannot take me on but very, very good news!

 

What do you mean by the liscence? as in a selling liscence?

 

No I assume she means driving, quite honestly you are not going anywhere (pun intended) until you get that sorted.

 

Welcome to GC chris!! We're do you live bud?

 

I would start your own allotment and practise all the skills you are going to need. There is no replacement for genuine experience and it will give you confidence. I would think most of the people on here got their knowledge through years of running their own garden and as the course has failed you that seems the best starting place.

Either that or go into partnership with an experienced allotment gardener who does have the necessary skills. It seems to me that if you are going to ask people to pay for your knowledge you have to raise your skill level very, very fast or they are just paying a high price for some labouring.

Ebay is the place I would start to buy kit - but do it immediately as the prices will rise sharply on garden tools come Spring.

 

Thanks for the welcome Dan, I'm from North England

I am wanting to go into business with my uncle who has had an allotment plot for as long as I can remember, This way he can train me up and help me a lot! I have also applied for a part time job that is local to me were they help disabled people to work by giving them the opportunity to grow plants, fruit & veg. In my eyes this is the perfect opportunity, To get a job that would go hand in hand with my business idea!

And Madahhlia, As for most of the tools I will already have BUT will prices for compost, hanging baskets, seeds etc. raise come summer?

Thank you for all the help guys! I really appreciate it

 

No, I think you will be paying a fixed price for all those things, but, as ever, it pays to shop around and buy in bulk where compost is concerned.
But good tools are likely to fetch much higher prices at auction in Spring/summer than they would at other times of year.