I just read this article on Dollar Stretcher: Guerrilla Gardening by Jeffrey Yeager

I wanted to start a thread on it because I have seen many recent posts about people who are new to gardening.

Like the article says (and I totally agree), Gardening can be a really expensive hobby if you make it BUT you can do it really frugally too.

I think that new gardeners usually start out doing it the expensive way: buying plants from the nursery and mostly buying easy annuals. But gardening and having a beautiful yard doesn't have to be that expensive!

When you are choosing plants for your yard, think about the return on your investment. If you are determined to buy plants (already grown) from a nursery, then spend your money wisely. Annuals only last a year. So, they may be really cheap but you won't get a lot of enjoyment out of them. You may spend more for a bulb, but most will multiply and come back easy year. So, it's worth spending a little more if you know that the plant will come back again and again!

Then, one thing you will learn quickly is that most gardeners love to share: whether it's just their general knowledge/advice or their plants. Perrinnials (those come back easy year) and/or most bulbs are easy to divide and share. Most people are more than willing to share, especially if you are willing to do the same. My grandfather, for instance, loves irises. He has so many colors, yet if he sees a color he likes in someone's yard, he will just stop by and ask if they would like to trade. He has met some wonderful people this way and has a whole variety of colors as a result.

Also, once you get confortable and are willing to give it a shot: many flowers and veggies are so easy to grow from seed... and growing from seed is much cheaper than purchasing plants in the store. For instance, Zinnias are very easy to start from seed and you can easily save the seeds from them to use the next year. All you have to do is take your flowers and lay them out in the sun to dry... Then put them in a baby food jar in the fridge crisper. And you will be set for next year!

Anyways, I just wanted to bring this up for those who are new to gardening. It's so easy to go in the beautiful nurseries and get caught up in the high prices. But just remember that there is a frugal alternative and you may even find it more rewarding: make new friends by sharing plants and take pride in items that you grew from seed all on your own!

God bless,

Julie