Gardening can be a great way to relax on the weekend. It can be a great way to make some extra money, or to spend quality time with family.
But, gardening can also be expensive. You need to continue to get plants and grow them, sometimes it isn’t as cheap was we would like. So here are ten ways you can start frugal gardening.
Craigslist
A good public place to post that you are looking to for some plants is on craigslist. People are constantly on there looking for deals, or things to do.
Not only can you put that you are looking for plants, you can also put what plants you have extra of and are willing to give away. A win win, you clean up your garden and get some more plants to grow your garden.
Got To Give To Get
To go along with finding plants on craigslist, you have to be willing to give plants away.
Do you remember the kid that would get a new toy and not share? No one liked him, they won’t like you if you are always taking free plants and never willing to give any in return.
This doesn’t mean you have to give your most prized plants away, but do you really need to grow 30 of one plant? Cut it down to 29 and give one away.
If you do, people will be more likely to share and give free plants to you.
Nursery
It seems strange to call or go to a place that sells plants to get free plants, but hear me out.
Nurseries have to sell plants that look a certain way. They aren’t going to be able to sell a plant that is wilting and may be dying, so they have to throw those away. Instead of throwing them away, you could ask if you can have them.
It will require more work to bring them back to life, you may even lose the plants altogether. But, you didn’t pay for it, you only want to do what you can.
Yellow Pages
Searching the phone book for companies like nurseries, landscapers, etc. that are likely to be throwing plants away can give you leads.
Rather than driving to each place and only being told yes by one, you can call and save yourself time and money by only going to places you’ve already been told yes.
Landscaping Crews
Another great place to get free plants are landscaping crews.
They often remove plants from one yard that you would find to be great in yours. They are throwing them away anyway, you might as well get them.
Volunteer Plants
A volunteer plant is a plant that you find in your garden that you did not plant there. They come from a variety of places but the bottom line is they are in your garden and you can move them wherever you want for free.
Friends
Likely you aren’t the only one of your friends that enjoys gardening. Ask around, share what you have and see what they have. Odds are they are going to be throwing some plants away just like you do when you’ve been growing a plant for years.
Strangers
If you have no friends that garden or none that have plants you want then asking strangers may be a great option.
If you’re driving down the road and see plants in someone’s house you would like to have, ask if you can have a portion of the plant. Even if the plant isn’t old enough and they say no, they may just say not yet and in the future, you can have that plant.
Community Garden Groups
Groups can be found in newspapers, online, or Facebook. Finding like-minded people will help you gain plenty of free plants.
Save Seeds
Entirely based on yourself, you simply save the seeds from the plants you grow now, so that when the time comes to plant again you have plenty.
My grandparents grew tomatoes every year, and I don’t think they ever paid for them just kept planting from seeds.
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