Landscaping your yard On a Budget

Is it possible to have a unique look to your yard without investing thousands of dollars to it every year? I truly believe it is. By practicing some basic conservation ideas you can save money and still make your yard look great.

1. The best way to stay within your means when it comes to landscaping is to do the job yourself as with many other areas of budget concern. This would mean doing everything, from picking your plants to weeding and pruning. Now to many of us who really enjoy being out in the yard this is fun. For those of you who question your knowledge and ability, the information age is in full swing and it is not hard to educate yourself well on all the different tasks specific to your yard.

As for the weeds, you are probably going to have to expect a few. If good isn’t good enough when it come to waging a campaign against your weeds (and this is especially true of your lawn) you are going to end up spending a lot of time and money on various chemicals and treatments. These procedures may in the end be doing more harm than good. Be satisfied with some weeds in your lawn, particularly if they have some intrinsic appeal, such as clover.

2. One great new innovation that is all the rage is the art of xeriscaping. Xeriscaping refers to landscaping and gardening in ways that reduce or eliminate the need for supplemental watering. It is often promoted in areas that do not have a good supply of fresh water, but it is also catching on in other areas as climate patterns shift. With water becoming an ever more valuable commodity, many homeowners, when it comes to their yard, are seeking to conserve their water costs by choosing plants that do not need as much water to survive. These plants are available in many different varieties, and they will add a splash of color to your yard while still saving you money. Knowing which plants tend to use a lot of water like cedar hedges, for example, is crucial so they can be avoided. You won’t want to plant any of these if you are concerned about your water costs!

Another way to save money on water is to include material that has good water retention qualities when you’re planting new plants. For example, Peat moss is very inexpensive. When you mix it in with the dirt and bone meal while planting your new flowers or hedges, any water that goes near the area will be soaked up and retained for later use as the plant’s needs dictate.

3. Don’t be afraid to skip the nursery and buy your plants at a box store. A lot of the time, the plants you buy at a big store that carries many varieties of items will cost much less than those at the local nursery. These plants will not have been tended as carefully as the nursery plants, but with some care taken when you’re planting and tending them, they will grow just fine and should grow to the same levels as the plants which cost more but took less time initially in tending. Most do-it-yourself gardeners like to maximize their time outside anyway, so the extra attention these plants may need will help to increase the time spent on your hobby.

4. One way to keep a low budget in your landscaping is to limit your green space. Smaller lawns and fewer flowers mean less materials needed for the upkeep. Watch what you use as your replacement, though some types of landscaping rocks (such as lava rock) can be incredibly overpriced. Bark mulch can be a fairly inexpensive option, but again, you have to be willing to invest a little extra time into its containment and maintenance. I personally don’t like this option because I love my flowers too much but it will save you money in the long run.

There are many more ideas for landscaping on a budget but we will have to wait for a different time to discuss them.

Landscaping On a Budget “by the yard”