The Answer Man

Five Tips for Landscaping on a Budget

04/15/2022

 Everyone wants their home to look nice. Sprucing up your yard with some landscaping can make a big impact on your home’s curb appeal. If you don’t want to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on landscaping, The Answer Man has a few ways that you can save yourself some money:  

Using Stones for Walkways or Firepits   

Creating some walkways around your yard adds a nice and simple touch. A walkway can keep you from stepping on any delicate flowers or keep your shoes from getting muddy. You can create your own walkways with some gravel, or if you prefer some flat, large stones. You can pick up both of these at your local garden center. You might also be able to find suitable stones lying around—just don’t steal them from your neighbor.  

To light up your new walkways, consider purchasing some solar-powered lanterns that you can stake around your walkways. They’ll save you on your energy bill but will still light up your yard and add a beautiful touch.  

If you have any extra stones or bricks from a previous project, you can also build your own firepit! Everyone loves a good firepit on cool summer nights, and they’re perfect for making s’mores with your family. You can also take the ash from your fire pit and use it to feed your plants—just wait for it to cool down.  

Add Some Color 

Adding some color to your lawn makes your house stand out. Planting some perennials which return year after year is a good way to save some money in the long run. They’re a higher cost initially, but they’ll pay off when you can enjoy some beautiful flowers every year. Flowers like tulips, daffodils, asters, hydrangeas, and lavender will add a nice variety of colors to your flowerbeds.  

Laying some fresh mulch around your flowers will help them grow and also keep weeds away. There are certain mulches you can purchase that prevent weeds from growing, and fresh mulches always look great. A couple of bags of mulch will run you $100-$300 depending on how much you need. Some mulches can last up to a few years, so depending on which ones you buy you can save a few hundred bucks next year!  

You can also save some money on mulch by keeping your grass clippings, wood chippings, leaves, compost, pine needles, or straw and laying them around your flower beds.  

Planting Trees 

Planting trees might seem costly, but a sapling is usually only a couple bucks. You will need to take extra care of your sapling to make sure they grow into big, strong trees! Depending on where you plant them in your yard they can shade your house, saving you money on the A/C in the summer.  

Trees also add value to your home when they grow bigger and add decent coverage to your home. You can also consider growing fruit trees like apples or pears for some fresh fruit every year! Depending on what climate you’re in, lemon and orange trees add some vibrant color to your yard—and you can use them to make your own fresh lemonade or orange juice.   

Raised Garden Beds 

Raised garden beds can make your garden look more put-together and visually appealing. They can also deter any pesky creatures from eating your plants! You can make your own raised garden beds with cinder blocks, wood planks, and bricks. You can probably find these at your local dump or use anything else you have around! You’ll probably need to purchase some potting soil unless you already have some. If you want even more color, you can purchase some paint for cheap or use any extra house paint and paint your planters for an added touch.  

You can also repurpose other items to be planters! Old bathtubs, tires, wheelbarrows, buckets, or barrels can make great planter “boxes.”  

Outdoor String Lights 

String lights aren’t just for the winter holidays. You can use them in your backyard for some fun, cheap lighting that creates a warm and welcoming atmosphere. You can wrap them around a tree, hang them up in a screened-in-porch, or create a makeshift light “ceiling” by running them from the house to a tree. LED lights can last a super long time, so you likely won’t have to purchase new string lights for a while. You can also purchase string lights in any color you want!  

Make landscaping a fun activity for the whole family—it doesn’t have to be “work!” If you need any gardening or landscaping tools, make sure to visit C&C Farm and Home for anything you might need.