From July onwards, do this...

Save lots of money by collecting your own seeds this summer.

Collecting seeds is so satisfying. I love to just grab myself a coffee and sit down in the garden with all my kit ready, then take a trug and some snips and go and find myself some seed heads to harvest.

You can usually start collecting seeds from the end of June onwards. Early flowering plants such as acquilegia (columbine) and forget me nots, should have dried seed heads you can harvest seeds from as early as June. Then you just need to watch out for other seeds pods ripening and drying throughout the rest of the season, right through to late autum.

(see below for things you will need)

You will need:

1/ some garden snips

2/ some paper bags or envelops

(glass jars are also ok)

3/ A trug or something to snip your seed

heads into

4/ Coffee (optional)

To collect seeds:

Look our for a few "signs" your seeds

are ready. Not all pods will have all of these

characteristics but all will have at least one or more of the following signs.

1/ Seeds pods need to be dry (look dead)

2/ Seeds pods are slightly open so you can

see the seeds inside

3/ Seeds rattle when shaken

4/ Seeds are NOT green, sticky or wet.

5/ Seeds easily pour from the pod

6/ Seeds separate easily from each other

(ie they are dry not clumping)

7/ Fruit & rose seeds will require the fruit /

hip, to be ripened to a rich colour.