Life on earth is a series of cycles; the water cycle, the carbon cycle and the cycle of birth, life and death.
Thinking about how we live our lives as part of a cycle – in particular the products and processes we use everyday – is a really helpful way of making sure we’re not causing unnecessary harm to our planet.
This cycle is often referred to as ‘the circular economy’.
There are four main principles in the circular economy: these are called ‘the four Rs’. You can use them to make positive changes in the way you garden. A big added benefit of gardening this way is the money you'll save, it's cheaper and more environmentally friendly, so a winner all round.
Ask yourself if you really need to do that activity or buy that product. For example, do you really need to buy lots of bags of Can refer to either home-made garden compost or seed/potting compost: • Garden compost is a soil improver made from decomposed plant waste, usually in a compost bin or heap. It is added to soil to improve its fertility, structure and water-holding capacity. Seed or potting composts are used for growing seedlings or plants in containers - a wide range of commercially produced peat-free composts are available, made from a mix of various ingredients, such as loam, composted bark, coir and sand, although you can mix your own.
Reuse what’s there in your garden. This could be existing plants that can be rejuvenated rather than replaced or reusing existing features and materials. Divide mature plants to bulk up your stocks, and save seeds from your flowers. Old paving can be re-used as hardcore for building projects and large branches can be cut into pieces to make log piles and other wildlife shelters. Shred woody prunings to make Mulch is a layer of material, at least 5cm (2in) thick, applied to the soil surface in late autumn to late winter (Nov-Feb). It is used to provide frost protection, improve plant growth by adding nutrients or increasing organic matter content, reducing water loss from the soil, for decorative purposes and suppressing weeds. Examples include well-rotted garden compost and manure, chipped bark, gravel, grit and slate chippings.
Recycle materials and products as much as possible. Second-hand tools and materials often give you fantastic value for money and always offer great eco-credentials. Salvage yards, eBay, Facebook Marketplace and Freecycle are just some of the places you can buy and sell second-hand. Black plastic pots are a problem for recycling; reuse them as much as possible and ask your garden centre to supply plants in taupe pots, as these can be recycled.
