I have heard people say to me in the past that gardening is an expensive hobby, but it certainly doesn’t need to be. There are loads of ways you can make gardening a fun pastime and save money along the way.
Here are some of my favourite cheap gardening tips.
1. Clearance section
Head to your local garden centre, DIY store or even supermarkets and visit the garden section.
You’re likely to find a clearance section where plants will be as cheap as 10p.
These flowers and plants may not be looking in the best state (they are in the clearance section after all!). But with a little TLC, they’re likely to turn into beautiful plants.
2. Household recycling centre
Your local household waste/tip centre will usually have sections for things that would eventually be taken to charity.
There tends to be spades, forks, rakes, plant pots and lawn mowers that you can buy really cheap. Get a bit of polish on them and they’ll be as good as new.
3. Upcycle
If it can hold soil, you can plant in it. You can use old tyres for pots, egg boxes for seeds, buckets and barrels as water features.
Old dustbins are great for growing potatoes if you drill some drainage holes round the bottom, drain pipes are great for planting carrots. Use your imagination and you’ll find the most random things.
4. Free seeds
Head off on a woodland walk and you’ll find lots of tree seeds that you can collect up to use to grow your own plants.
Look for acorns (oak tress) conkers (chestnuts), pine cones (pine trees), helicopters for sycamores.
5. Perfect plant labels
Head to your local coffee shop where you can pick up some of those wooden coffee stirrers.
Get a marker pen to write the plant name on with, pop it in the ground next to the associated plant for a fab plant label. You could also use old wooden spoons for larger plants that creates a great kitchen garden feel.
6. Compost
Of course, making your own soil is a great way to save those pennies. You can compost teabags, cardboard, fruits and vegetable scraps.
Pick up a compost bin from the council, sometimes they offer discounts for them, so enquire with your local council. If you don’t want a bin, try leaf bags, fill these with compost and leave them around the back of your shed for around a year and then you should be able to use the composted matter as soil. You can also make your own compost scoop out of a milk carton.
7. Garden clubs
Join a local gardening club or allotment society. It usually only costs a couple of quid for a membership and it’ll give you access to potentially borrowing stuff, as well as discounts at garden centres. So it’s a worthy investment!
It’s incredibly useful if you need to get your hands on large equipment like leaf shredders, blow vacs, or rotavators. Garden clubs also provide advice and friendship, take a look at my blog about setting up a community garden for more info.
8. Revamp, don’t replace
If you have an old patio, fence or shed that’s looking a bit worse for wear, don’t spend loads of money redoing it.
Instead get hold of a jetwash (ask around if you don’t have one, or hire one for the day) and give it a blast down. You could then fence stain or paint using outdoor paint to give it a bit of life.
9. Free flower seeds
Keep an eye out for plants such as poppies, hollyhocks and sunflowers, as soon as they start to set seeds, collect them up.
I like to use a Tic-Tac box as a storage container, and use a marker to label them with the plant name and date so you don’t forget what plants they are from.
10. Survive the winter
A common issue is people’s bedding plants dying over the winter as soon as the first frost hits and then they have to pay for a replacement.
Plants such as geraniums, fuchsias and alike will survive if you bring then inside. Put them in a greenhouse and porch where it’s cold and frost free and they’ll survive the winter and grow bigger and stronger every year.
With these top tips you can make the most out of your garden without breaking the bank. These ten ways to save money gardening are a great way to get started. Let me know your money saving gardening hacks in the comments or on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
David Domoney is a Chartered Horticulturalist, Broadcaster, and Author. David has worked with a number of the UK’s leading garden retailers as a plant buyer and strategic consultant. With more than 30 years experience, in horticulture, David is as passionate about plants now as he was when he bought his first plant at a village fete.
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