Five Gardening Tips to Save You Money

It’s easy to spend a fortune every year creating a beautiful yard. These five tips can help save you money in both this and future gardening seasons.

1. Use perennials in your flower beds rather than annuals. They grow each year so you don’t have to buy new ones every year. (though I still find myself shopping, cause I never seem to have enough but that’s just me) They are a little more expensive to start out with but they multiply so all you have to do is cut them back or thin them out and exchange with your friends. That way you both have lovely gardens and save money at the same time.

2. Compost your kitchen scraps, as well as your coffee grounds. This time of year you can’t get in the garden but you can still work towards having a beautiful one. The end result of composting is much better than any potting soil you can ever buy from a nursery or hardware store. The price is right, and this is definitely recycling!

3. Spend some money now on purchasing better quality gardening tools and you will save in the long run. They will last for years, saving you dollars because you don’t need to replace them every planting season. Same goes for gardening gloves, make sure you buy the best you can afford so they last all season. Now is a great time to look for sales and specials on quality tools at your local gardening center.

4. Instead of using mulch, try pebbles or small rocks over some landscaping fabric as a ground cover in your garden. This will save you lots of cash since you won’t need to buy mulch in the spring and fall of every year. This will also save on how much watering you will have to do in the heat of the summer.

5. If you are planning a vegetable garden, plan yours according to what your neighbors are planting so you can share your vegetables when they’re ready for eating. Often people have too many of one kind of vegetable. If you grow different vegetables than your neighbor of friend then you can give them away and get something different back in return. You can also share them with your local food bank and help out the needy in your area. They are always looking for good fresh vegetables.

Happy Gardening! Well when the weather gets right.

Gardening “by the yard”