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Financial Success
"The secret of financial success is to spend what
you have left after saving, instead of saving what you have
left after spending."
-Anonymous
Gardening on a Budget
by Jonni McCoy of MiserlyMoms.com
Question: I want to be able to landscape my yard, but flowers and shrubs are so expensive. I've tried to plant some perennials so they'll continue to bloom every year, but our yard still needs lots of work. Any suggestions on finding inexpensive plants, shrubs, and/or trees? I'm tempted to go to the woods and look for things to steal every spring! And we all know that's not right. Please help if you can.
-- Catherine
Answer:
Gardening is the No. 1 hobby in
America. But it doesn't have to
cost you a fortune. I know
friends who purchase
ready-to-plant flowers and
shrubs every spring. This costs
them $200-300 per year. It is
convenient to have an instant
garden, but it can be done for
less.
Growing your own plants from seeds can save you a tremendous amount of money. A packet of seeds that costs $1 can yield up to 50 plants. That's 2 cents per plant, as compared to $2-$5 per plant for full grown.
I plant my seedlings indoors several months before planting season. If you live in a warmer climate, you can start the seeds directly outdoors when the danger of frost is over. If you need to start indoors, place the seedlings in a sunny area. I use inexpensive pots or seed starter trays. Another option is to use egg cartons. Place one half of an empty egg shell in the bottom of each egg holder for added fertilizer. I place the pots on an old cookie sheet to catch any water spills.
I try to make my gardening investment provide some sort of "return."
Therefore, I plant more vegetables than flowers. It helps cut back on my
grocery expenses. Some plants are more costly to maintain than others. Many require lots of water, special fertilizer and costly pesticides. Roses are a good example of a high maintenance plant. Make sure that you know what your plants will require before deciding what to plant.
Fertilizing and mulching a garden can run up quite a bill, so here are some
cost saving tips:
Growing your own plants from seeds can save you a tremendous amount of money. A packet of seeds that costs $1 can yield up to 50 plants. That's 2 cents per plant, as compared to $2-$5 per plant for full grown.
I plant my seedlings indoors several months before planting season. If you live in a warmer climate, you can start the seeds directly outdoors when the danger of frost is over. If you need to start indoors, place the seedlings in a sunny area. I use inexpensive pots or seed starter trays. Another option is to use egg cartons. Place one half of an empty egg shell in the bottom of each egg holder for added fertilizer. I place the pots on an old cookie sheet to catch any water spills.
I try to make my gardening investment provide some sort of "return."
Therefore, I plant more vegetables than flowers. It helps cut back on my
grocery expenses. Some plants are more costly to maintain than others. Many require lots of water, special fertilizer and costly pesticides. Roses are a good example of a high maintenance plant. Make sure that you know what your plants will require before deciding what to plant.
Fertilizing and mulching a garden can run up quite a bill, so here are some
cost saving tips:
- Manure
can be gotten for free from
horse stables and chicken
farms. Often manure comes
with weeds or seed, but
composting it before use
will heat up the seeds and
kill them.
- Mulch is
free in some cities if they
have a recycling program or
a local public farm. Also
ask tree services what they
do with the mulch they
create after trimming trees.
- Making
your own compost pile will
save you from buying
expensive soil for your
garden. There are books at
the library that tell you
how to start one cheaply and
easily.
- Seeds go
on sale in March and again
mid-summer for as low as 5
cents per packet. You can
also save the seeds from
your own plants and store
them for next season (don't
let them get too hot or
cold). I purchase my seeds
from seed catalogs. It has
proven to be cheaper and the
seeds are a better quality.
- Join a
garden club in your area.
Members will invite you over
to look at their gardens,
and they will probably send
you home with tons of
plants. If there is no
garden club near you, just
stop by and ring the door
bell where lovely flowers
are blooming. They take it
as a compliment.
- I get free stones and rocks to line my beds and mulched areas from a local cemetery. They have an enormous pile from when they dig up graves and most are free for the taking (ask first, please).
Happy gardening!
© Jonni McCoy.
About the Author:
Jonni McCoy is a leading
expert on shopping and frugal living. She has
written numerous books, including
Miserly Moms.
Visit her website at
www.MiserlyMoms.com.