Tips for Budget Landscaping

Here are a few tips in the areas of value, creativity and maintenance that will allow you to landscape beautifully on a realistic budget.

VALUE

It is important to remember that landscaping is not about begin cheap, but about sucking the most value out of each dollar. Try to remain patient in searching out bargains so you not stuck paying full price where it can be easily avoided.

TIP 1: Rather than purchasing your plants from a professional landscape nursery, you should try poking through the garden landscape section of your local discount department store. If you are open and diligent enough, there are great sales to unearth. Be sure to check for any insects and overall plant health when bargain plant shopping

TIP 2: Online auctions on eBay are a great location to check out plants that are up for bid in your price range. Don't forget, however, to note the seller's ratings to get a sense of the plant quality since you are not able to see it firsthand.

TIP 3: Try to be patient. After Mother's Day the price of flowers drops consistently until the end of June during which you can find fabulous deals. Of course, the selection will be more limited and the bedding plants may need a little extra care to get them back to their prime. Promote healthy new root production with a little "Superthrive."

TIP 4: It's a good idea to start your own compost bin in order to cut down trash in your home and save money on fertilizer to boot! Both the internet and your local library will help you with steps for composting your own landscape.

CREATIVITY

You don't have to sacrifice all your landscaping funds to landscape accenting. With a little creativity, ingenuity and crafty use of recycled materials, your garden landscape will be original, interesting and full of life!

TIP 1: Rummage through your garage to find buried treasure than can speckle your garden with household charm. From a dated and rusty red wagon to an antique yard ornament, garage finds can bring character to your garden landscape.

TIP 2: Sit down with your kids and paint over clay pots. It doesn't take a lot of skill, just a little imagination and the resulting colorful pots can instantly liven up your landscape. Container gardening can accent any small outdoor space.

MAINTENANCE

Although it seems obvious, many people neglect to take care of their landscaping tools. Tool maintenance will give tools longevity and save you the money of replacing poorly cared for tools.

TIP 1: It is extremely important to drain your hose, coil and store it off the ground for the winter months.

TIP 2: Winterize you mower by first draining or using the last of the gas and oil and then cleaning all the surfaces including the air filter, top, underside and mower blades. Add a thin coat of oil to the blades to thwart rust. In the spring time you will need to clean or replace the spark plugs of your mower.

TIP 3: Your hands are the most important landscaping tools so take care of them! Use gloves to buffer yourself from rough surfaces and apply a good moisturizer to prevent chapping.