RIGHT, how does your garden grow? Probably like a small jungle after the recent warm wet weather.. Time to get your wellies on and get out there.
Gardens used to be somewhere to grow onions and cabbages, potatoes and peas. Now they are more of an outdoor room, as Flanders and Swann once sang: "The garden's full of furniture and the house is full of plants".
Real gardeners, of course, will have potting sheds and garages full of shiny, well-maintained tools and flowerpots full of bits of string, seed packets and stubs of old pencils. Others will dream of Charlie Dimmock and Alan Titchmarsh, decking, gravel and barbecues.
But gardening is big business and can easily cost you a fortune. More and more stores are getting in on the act. Supermarkets tend to have a small selection, often very cheap, but for a very limited period until they move on to the next seasonal special - watch out for Hallowee'en stuff any day now. Many of the supermarkets carry a range of bedding plants but quality is, at best, variable.
B & Q and Focus, DIY stores are clearly the places to go if you're doing major building work in your garden, while the likes of Peter Barratt's and Strikes are still very much garden and plant based - right down to greetings cards, silk flowers and country-style gifts and goodies.
But this week we've ignored specialities and been trying to go gardening on the cheap. We've been round the national and regional chains of garden centres and DIY stores to find the cheapest basics. We weren't comparing quality but seeing how cheaply we could do things.
We weren't particularly looking for advice either, but as some stores went out of their way to offer help, we thought they were worth a mention.
Of course, if you are a keen gardener with a few acres, then quality is probably paramount and cheap is false economy. Some stores don't bother with economy ranges. But for those with a just a pocket handkerchief of a garden, top prices can seem excessive. Something cheap and cheerful can at least get you started without breaking the bank. Far better to save your cash and use it for a table and chairs and a glass of something to celebrate as you survey the result of all your hard work.
GARDEN FORK
* ASDA: £5.86
l Strikes: £6 (£11.99 but there is a buy one get one free offer on spades and forks)
l B&Q: £6.98
l Focus: £6.98
l Wilkinsons: £7.49
l Woolworth's: £7.99
l Peter Barratts: £11.99
l Homebase £17.99 (also in a set with spade and rake for £29.99)
EDGING KNIFE
l Asda: £3.97
l Peter Barratts £4.50 (Actually £9.99, but buy one get one free offer with rake or hoe)
l Strikes: £4.50 (same offer)
l B&Q £4.98
l Wilkinsons: £4.99
l Focus: £5.49
l Homebase: £12.59
EVERGREEN COMPLETE LAWN WITH SPREADERS
l B&Q: £6.58
l Peter Barratts: £8.49
DECORATIVE ARCH
l Wilkinsons: £6.99
l Homebase Value Basics £10.99
GARDEN HOSE 30m WITH FITTINGS
l Woolworths: £8.99
l Asda; £9.87
l Morrisons: £9.99
l B & Q: £12.98
l Homebase: £12.99
GROW BAGS
l Asda: 97p
l B&Q: £1.28
l Focus: £1.09
l Homebase: £1.29
l Strikes: £1.39
l Peter Barratt's: £1.79
WATERING CAN
l Asda; £1.83
l B&Q: £1.98
l Homebase: £2.99
l Strikes: £3 ( 2 for £5.99)
l Woolworths: £3.19
l Peter Barratt's: £3.99
FLYMO MICROLITE LAWNMOWERS
l Focus: £34.99
l Homebase: £34.99
l B&Q: £36.98
WHEELBARROW
l B&Q: £24.98
l Focus: £27.99
BEST SELECTION OF HEALTHY LOOKING PLANTS
B & Q, Peter Barratt's, Strikes
PLANTS MOST IN NEED OF WATERING
Focus
MOST OBVIOUSLY HELPFUL AND KNOWLEDGEABLE STAFF
B & Q, Peter Barratt's.
BEST SELECTION OF GIFTS AND GOODIES
Peter Barratt's, Strikes.
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