This year for the first time I've been selling flower plants at the car boot sales we've had a stall at, as well as the vegetable plants that I've been selling for a few years, and they've been really popular. It's been a good way to use up some of the seeds that I've gotten free on magazines and from my seed stash. This Saturdays big sellers were these Cosmos plants, (the photo was taken over a week ago ... they were much bigger and chunkier by Saturday) ...
... and the French Marigolds that I picked up from Tesco for 20p.
I only made £14 selling them at 50p each, but it was money we wouldn't have otherwise had and it all helps the food and plants fund. I also sold the last cucumber plant for a pound, they have sold really well this year. I'm keeping records of what I sell and when I sell them so I can hopefully do the same or even better next year.
Over in the polytunnel the spinach plants from last year have irrevocably gone to seed, so the lucky chickens have been getting one plant each day to have a good peck at. I hang it on the big hook on the henhouse and they gather round to attack the leaves, they love it. Luckily this years spinach crop is already big and in daily use, so there's been no gap in spinach availability for us.
They also got this wonderful specimen to eat last week ...I'm good to those chickens :-)
It's a Kale plant from two years ago, the flowers had been attracting bees and pollinating insects into the tunnel for a couple of weeks, and it's cheerful yellow flowers made me smile every time I stepped in. It was finally a sight for sore eyes, with all the flowers dropping off and the leaves lacy and browning ... and as I needed the space it was in for more salad crops the chickens were welcome to have a final peck at what was left before it went to the great compost heap in the sky.
The car boot sale on Saturday was a real success, this time we had lots of books and bitty bits which I thought would limit the money we could take so I was amazed when I counted the takings when we got home ... doubly amazed that when added up the takings on 'housey' stuff was exactly £100 ... we couldn't do that again if we tried! With £14 on plant sales and another £4 on eggs (we only took four boxes), it made a grand total of £118, not a bad mornings work.
Now it's time to carry on sorting through the house ready for the July sales, and I've already potted on the Ox Eye Daisies that I hope to take with us next time.
Sue xx
If you want to sell anything at the flower show you are very welcome! You may well make a killing!
ReplyDeleteWell done at the carboot, we did one as well on Saturday and got £140, so well pleased, time for another sort out I think.
ReplyDeleteWhen times were hard here when my children were small, I literally paid for the food on the table with what I sold at car boot sales at the weekend. I grew lots of plants to sell on and potted up divided garden "thugs" to sell too. One of the best sellers were my herbs, as I grew more unusual ones, and the various Basils too were in great demand. All the potting on was time consuming, and I had mountains of pots here and always on the look out for more, but at the time, it kept the wolf from the door.
ReplyDeleteI did something very similar way back in the day.
DeleteIt's needs must isn't it? My husband was too ill to work at that point in time.
DeleteI would love to do more propagating to sell on. I think I will be splitting my calla lillies in autumn to sell they have grown huge great idea to split the thugs in the garden.
ReplyDeleteI would have loved to have bought some of your plants, especially the vegetable plants. This year (don't really know why) I didn't sow any tomatoes and I really miss them in my greenhouse. Last week when I did my shopping at Morrisons there were tomato plants for sale that I just spied on my way out. I didn't have time to go back and get them so I thought I would buy some this week. There were 2 left this week!! They didn't look very healthy but they are now thriving in my greenhouse. I have 2 plants, but, I suppose, better than none.
ReplyDeleteOooo as soon as I've got my garden ready I'll have to take a road trip to come and purchase some of your fab plants, hopefully some of your green fingered expertise will rub off on them for me!
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