The Frugal Flower Garden

Sure, gardening can be an expensive hobby what with buying all the special gear and equipment, the fertilizers and sprays, not to mention the cost of the plants. But if you are gardening on a budget, there are many ways to garden inexpensively (and beautifully) using these money saving tips for frugal gardening. And remember, gardening cheap absolutely doesn’t mean it won’t look perfectly beautiful!

Learn to Propagate and Get Free Plants

Boost your horticulture skills and learn the age old art and craft of plant propagation. People have nurtured baby plants for centuries. It’s not rocket science – it’s free plants!

• Grow flowers that seed themselves such as violas, larkspur, bread seed poppies
• Seed: Save seeds to grow your own, or purchase seed to start a quantity of plants at a deep discount over store bought transplants
• Cuttings: One plant can yield multiple tip cuttings for super easy propagation
• Division: Division is a fast and easy way to make more plants, too. Large divisions make larger plants quickly; use smaller divisions make the most from one mother plant.

Swap and Share with Friends

Gardeners are generous and make the best friends! Share:

• Plants: Spread the wealth from each other’s gardens by sharing excess plants
• Tools and Special Equipment : Share bulb planters, power edgers, or dibbles
• Books and Magazines: Share the cost of subscriptions and alternate book purchases
• Start a Frugal Gardeners Club: Carpool to visit gardens and nurseries, make joint orders to garner quantity discounts and save on shipping charges, be creative!

Free Gardening Expertise

• Library: Every town has one, ask your reference librarian to help you
• County Extension: Check here for contact information
• On-Line Resources: Flower Gardens is a favorite, of course!

Recycle Materials

• Propagation Equipment: Use recycled containers for seedlings and cuttings, provide supplemental lighting with ordinary shop lights and fluorescent tubes
• Edging and Borders: Use the old fashioned hand cut turf edge, or recycle concrete blocks, bricks, cedar shakes, railroad ties, upturned glass bottles
• Paths and Patios: Recycle broken concrete as crazy paving, recycle a tree as tree rounds, use old bricks or river rocks for a decorative textured path or patio
• Walls and Fencing: Build formal fencing with recycled blocks or bricks, or create a rustic look using wooden pallets or tree branches. Improvise with found materials.
• Weed Mat: Lay out cardboard or newspaper about five sheets thick, overlap the edges to block out light
• Ask on Freecycle!

Compost is Free

Free Stuff! Compost is a wonderful soil amendment and can be made easily at home for free. Use a simple cylinder of wire mesh or a frame of recycled wooden pallets to contain your compost, or simply pile it in a heap. Composting means you save money on expensive fertilizers and by not purchasing garden trash bags, too.

Use a Mulching Mower

Your mulching lawn mower puts the shredded grass clippings back on the lawn. This is a source of nitrogen and fertilizes the grass. Reduce your lawn fertilizer use accordingly. Or, bag the clippings and use on the garden as mulch.

Tools & Equipment

• Rent rather than purchase if it is a tool you might need just once a year.
• Share with neighbors – Own of you owns the chipper shredder, one of you owns the tiller.
• Buy Used – Hand tools are often available for a song at yard sales
• Go Basic – think hard about which tools you truly need and which ones are frills; will a hand tool do the job (rake) instead of an expensive power tool (leaf blower) that also costs more money to run

Pest Control

• Follow IPM principles — Monitor and Detect, Identify, Control Only if Necessary
• Use the right control at the right time to maximize results with minimal inputs
• Organic or natural controls may be less expensive. For example, let ladybugs control aphids naturally, prevent cutworms with paper collars, try baking soda as fungicide

Watering: Be Wise, Minimize

Cut that summer water bill. Minimize watering – be wise and check the soil before you water. If it’s still damp, you don’t need to water yet. Mulch helps keep the soil moister longer. If you live in a dry area, skip the water-lovers and select plants suited to your soil and climate.

Save Big on Maintenance

Do the garden and lawn maintenance work yourself to save on paying the gardener, landscape or lawn service. This lets you save money at the gym, too. Gardening is great exercise.

Right Plant, Right Place

Healthy plants are cheap to keep! Select plants suited to your site and save on replacement costs, also save on lower maintenance.

Gardening Costs Far Less than You Ever Thought Possible

If you believe the hype, gardening should cost an arm and a leg for special equipment, special clothing, special décor, special tools and of course the bills add up fast when you purchase all those “latest and greatest” premium plants. Determine your budget, follow the above guide to saving money in the garden, and take pride in your developing horticulture skills – and your positively beautiful, frugal garden grown with far less money than you ever thought possible!

more FLOWER GARDENS ARTICLES and FLOWER GARDENS BLOGS Copyright July 20 2007 Barbara Martin All Rights Reserved