I don’t know about you, but I start to go nuts when I am cooped up and haven’t been outdoors for too long. Ever since we installed the fence {Best. Decision. Ever.}, I’ve really worked at turning the yard into an extension of our home. I know we are leaving the house eventually, but in the meantime, I’d rather spend most of my days in the out of doors, than the living room. After all, in the end, having an safe, vitamin D laden place to go bra-less while the birds chirp and the flowers bloom is about as good as it gets. 😉
Just like decorating the indoors, creating your outdoor sanctuary can get a little pricey, if you let it. Luckily, we are not the type of people who let it. I spent most of the winter racking my brain on ways to continue to make our yard an oasis without spending money. I thought I’d share some of my low-cost or no-cost options with all of you, because hey, that’s what friends are for.
- Think outside of the box…or planter. Having a pot of flowers can pretty much put a fresh coat of perspective on any outdoor space. Rather than hitting the store and buying a big fancy pot or container, get creative. Look around your house for alternatives–baskets, apple crates, pallets, cinder blocks, etc. will all hold dirt with only a minute amount of ingenuity. Pop some flowers into that dirt, and you have yourself a clever little bit of individuality.
- Beg, borrow or steal. Okay, let’s not get crazy with the stealing part, but there are plenty of plants that can easily be divided with the permission of your friends and neighbors. Perennials, like Hosta, Daylilies, Irises, etc. can all be divided and then transplanted into your yard. No need to pay for them at a nursery.
- Compost, compost, compost. Buying prepared garden soil and compost is expensive. Tossing your kitchen scraps and other bio-degradable waste into a big heap is not. Make your own, save big bucks.
- Hit the garage sales and thrift stores with an open mind. Patio furniture, benches, fire pits, etc. can all be expensive brand new. If you have a little time, spray paint, and elbow grease, you can polish a pretty crappy looking set for next to nothing. Plus, you are saving it from heading to the landfill.
- Trellises have high impact {hello, wall-o-green!} for minimal dollars. In fact, you can totally make your own rustic trellis with items on hand.
- Use materials other than plants. Plants rock, don’t get me wrong, but they are not the only thing that makes nature beautiful. Rocks, driftwood, etc. that you scavenge on your hikes and camping trips can all add a ton of visual appeal–and if you are willing to look, they are free. {For the record, in some locations, it is illegal to haul rocks out, so make sure to check with your local laws and ordinances.}
- Pathways, using pebbles, bark or walking pavers cost minimal money {especially if you can glean a the materials from sites like craigslist}, but add a lot of pizzazz {I don’t know why I don’t use that word more often?} to your yard.
- Get crafty and make your yard a reflection of your own personal style. Paint your flower pots a bright color, paint the chairs a bright color…go nuts and do a mural on the fence. All of the previous options will add a “custom” look of whimsy to your yard. I personally go for fairy gardens.
- Start flowers from seed. Flowers are one of the easier things to start from seed, especially if you have a grow light.
I guess the takeaway here is that you can have a yard of GREEN, without spending a ton of GREEN. {“Green” is the word of the day–PeeWee Herman style}. 🙂
~Mavis
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Zulily 
Hi Mavis!
I’m doing my first “real” veggie garden this year. One where I actually prepared the beds, used compost, planned everything out, etc. A few years ago I tried one where I just haphazardly threw seeds into whatever dirt was already there, hosed it down with water every once in a while, and mumbled under my breath months later because my magic beans didn’t turn into some gigantic veggie producing miracle garden.
We currently have two garden beds going, both 7’x3.5′ that were purchased from Sam’s Club. 
The one on the left has tomatoes, jalapeno and bell peppers, blue lake bush beans, peas, spinach, and one tigger melon plant. The far left looks empty because I just planted eggplant, another pepper plant, and carrots a couple of days ago.
The bed on the right has cantaloupe, onions, lettuce (that isn’t doing very well), cucumbers, one cabbage, marigolds, butternut squash, yellow crookneck squash, zucchini, and watermelon. 
As I was taking pictures to send you I noticed that one of the watermelon vines has a flower, yay! The watermelon plants are all that my husband cares about. We eat watermelon like crazy in our house.
The barrel planter in between the two beds is my 8 year old daughter’s flower garden. She planted the seeds a couple of weeks ago.
In the front yard, we have some irises growing. I’ve seen them called fairy irises and African irises, so I’m not sure what’s correct, but they’re nice to look at.
We have some good wildlife here that is beneficial to the garden, such as the many lizards that are around any given time of day. 
I often see them hanging out on the tomato cages. Eat those bugs, guys! 
We also have sandhill cranes that walk around in the field behind our house. Their call is hard to describe, but it sounds like something out of Jurassic Park. I’m told they have a taste for bugs and mice.
And of course, like anywhere else, we have the not-so-beneficial wildlife. We have a pesky neighborhood rabbit that has eaten a ton of plants in the front yard down to little stubs. This morning I caught him/her munching on the holly bush near our garage. I was always told rabbits didn’t eat holly, but I guess they do!
We’ve seen bluebirds and cardinals around so we set up a bird feeder and a hummingbird feeder a couple of weeks ago. So far I haven’t seen any birds at either one. 
I’ve never had birds take so long to find free food before, so I don’t know what the deal is, but hopefully they’ll show up soon.
Other than gardening, my daughter and I are working on our latest project of making over a vintage dollhouse. We bought it at a yard sale for $5 and it makes me happy every time I see it.
