How to Garden on a Budget
I have been building/growing my garden for the past two years, and it has all been on a budget. Often times when you are looking for tips on gardening, it comes from people who have been gardening for years or even decades and their gardens are large and well established. As an aspiring gardener, it can be discouraging looking at these lavish gardens setups, thinking to yourself, how much you will have to invest to have a garden like that. That is why I wanted to share these ideas on how to start your garden on a budget and how to save some money along the way. I hope that these ideas will give you the confidence that you can start your gardening journey no matter where you are at financially. Lastly, remember, it is okay to start small.
Use Cedar Fence Pickets for Raised Beds
Cedar is a very popular type of wood to use to make garden beds because it is rot resistant. Unfortunately, cedar can be very expensive. However, you can use cedar fence pickets for a fraction of the cost. The fence pickets are still rot resident, they simply just do not have as smooth of a finish as a standard board might have.
Collect Pots to Start Your Seedlings
While the fancy seed starting trays might be the ideal option, especially for a large farm, they aren’t necessary to have successful seedlings. I bought a pack of peek pots my first year gardening, and with leftover peek pots and all small plastic pots I have saved over the years, I had enough to start all my seeds this year. So save your pots!! I have been collecting houseplants for several years, and I have always kept the containers they come in, just in case. The same goes for any clearance plant I buy, or plant I may be gifted; I always save the containers! As long as you are careful with watering, and up-pot when its time, almost any container will work. If you have the budget to go out and buy the quality seed starting trays then please do that, but I want you to know you can successfully grow seedlings with whatever you have.
Start from Seed
A lot of beginner gardeners like to start gardening with plants they buy from garden centers. This way is less work and may not be as intimidating for someone new to gardening. However, this method is expensive. For example, let’s say you buy a tomato plant for $3.00. When you could instead buy a pack of tomato seeds for $3.00 and have 50 potential tomato plants instead of one. That is such a better deal! You may still be intimidated to start from seed, but one benefit from starting from seeds is that you have about 50 tries (or however many seeds come in the packet) to try to grow the plant and get a harvest. If you fail a few times with seeds, it is okay, you have more chances, but if you fail with a plant you bought from the store, you will have to go back and buy a whole new plant. This can get discouraging and expensive. Don’t be scared of starting seeds!
If You Do Buy Plants, Check the Clearance Section
That being said, we all are tempted to buy those beautiful started plants. You simply have to do what makes the most sense to you, your situation, and your budget. However, if you do want to buy some plants, check the clearance section. In my experience, you can find a lot of discounted berry bushes and flowers that just need a little TLC. I have purchased clearance blueberry and blackberry bushes and a year later they are still thriving! While many of the clearance plants look pretty sad, with a little bit of attention, they will come back to life, and you will have gotten a great deal.
Save Your Seeds!
There are two ways you can save seeds. First, before you ever start your garden you can save seeds from food you eat! This won’t work for every food, and you cannot be sure that what will grow from the seed will be the exact same as the food you took it from, but it is a fun experiment, and you get essentially free seeds. I like to occasionally save seeds from produce I buy from farmers markets that aren’t commonly found at the grocery store, like certain varieties of tomatoes and peppers. The second way to save seeds is after a season of gardening, you will have the opportunity to collect seeds from the plants/fruits you have grown! Save the seeds for next season, continue to do this year after year, and you may never have to purchase that seed again. Overtime the seeds you save will get more and more accustomed to growing in your specific environment and they will thrive! Don’t forget to do your research on how to save the seeds for each plant and if you need to create any protection from cross pollination.
Use a Rain Barrel
I use well water, and therefore do not have a water bill. But if you do pay for your water, I would imagine keeping a garden watered could really increase that bill. You might want to consider purchasing or creating a rain barrel to catch rain water to water your garden.
Maximize Your Growing Space
After going to all the work of setting up your garden beds, you want to make the most of it. Use up every inch to grow food. Because the bigger the harvest the more it makes up for the money you spent on garden supplies. Start with having a plan, plan where each plant will go and about how many you will need to fill the space. Then have a backup plan. What will you do if not all of those seeds germinate? Or what if your estimates are off? Have seeds or seedlings prepared to go in those empty spots. You can also consider vertical gardening to make the most of your growing space. You can use cattle panels to create beautiful arches that will provide more room for plants to trellis.
Make Your Own Mulch or Compost
On a small scale this won’t save you much money, but it is a good habit to get into anyway. Find a compost method that works for you, and then you will get free compost to help fill up and fertilize your garden. I have found with just a 2 person household, you do not make too much compost, but it is a sustainable habit, and I appreciate any free soil or compost for the garden beds! Also consider making your own mulch. If you live in an area with a lot of trees and therefore leaves. Consider investing in a mulcher, you will be able to use that never ending supply of sticks and leaves in your yard to mulch you flower beds, garden, and any other landscaping you want to do.
Swap Seeds & Seedlings with friends
If you have friends or family members who garden, consider doing a seed swap! Not everyone needs to use up a whole packet of seeds in one season, and maybe they would be interested in giving you a few seeds in exchange for a few of your seeds. This means you get to purchase less seed packets but still have a variety of seeds! You can also do this with started seedlings. Maybe you started too many tomato plants and your friend started too many cucumbers and swapping a few would be perfect!
Don’t Give Up!!
Lastly and most importantly, don’t give up! The worst thing you could do is go through all the work and planning of starting a garden and then give up on it halfway through the season without ever getting a harvest. Remember it will eventually be worth it, and you will eventually succeed! If you do make it through and have a harvest, please don’t give up when it comes to preparing and preserving your food. You will most likely end up with more produce than you have ever had one time before, and it can be overwhelming. You will have to incorporate these foods into your meals every week, learn how to preserve, and not let yourself get behind. You do not want to go through all that work, have the homegrown produce on your counter, and have it rot because you didn’t eat it or preserve it in time. It is a lot of work, but it will be worth it!
