Every year I garden. I love to work the soil and plant my vegetables. My children help and it makes me happy that they are seeing us work together to provide food for our family. It’s not easy. Gardening is hard work. But it’s so worth it. I thought I’d show you a few things I do each year that saves me money when I garden. So here’s my 5 easy ways to save money gardening.

 

5 Easy Ways to Save Money on Gardening

1. Save your seeds. You can do this in a few ways. You can buy organic fruits and vegetables and save those seeds. To do this I just lay them out on a paper towel to dry. Once they’ve dried I place them in a ziplock bag and write on the bag what the seeds are. This way I’m not paying for expensive organic seeds and I’m using them to feed my family. It’s a win/win. I have a very small yard and a small garden. But I love using my yard to feed my family. 

2. Make a rain barrel. We have made 3 of these now. They’re super easy to make. First get a rain barrel.  We got ours off of Craigslist but a lot of car dealerships have them too and may be willing to get rid of them without paying for them. Then we got a rain water kit like this and converted it.  I do get some money if you order that from my link. It helps to keep my site running. Once I got the kit it was super easy for my  husband to convert the rain barrel. Now we have rain water to water our garden year round. Last year we had quite a drought here and needed our rain barrels. Always be prepared I say! Plus it saves you money too! Check your laws in your state. In some states it’s against the laws to have a rain water barrel. Insert eye rolls here. 

3. Do not use pesticides. Do companion gardening to keep bugs at bay. For instance if you plant x then plant y to keep bugs at bay. This really works. I’ve been doing it for years. We plant beans and we plant them by cucumbers to keep bugs at bay. Check out this article to see what should be planted where and what needs to be avoided when companion planting. It works. It also will leave the bees here to help continue to feed our planet. WE need the bees so please stop using pesticides. Tell your friends.

4. Use toilet paper tubes to start seeds in then plant in garden. Save your toilet paper tubes and fold the bottoms in. Then fill with potting soil and your seeds. Keep inside until ready to plant. When ready to plant put the entire thing in the ground. It will allow your plants to thrive and the toilet paper tube will decompose. It’s a great way to put your new fragile plants in the ground. 

5. Propagate your own plants. It’s really not hard! To do this you just have to dig up your plant when it has finished flowering and gently remove the soil from the roots. Using a sharp knife you then divide the plant, and remember to not let the roots dry out. Plant each division into the soil, adding compost or potting soil at the same time. Water and watch them thrive. This way you use the plants you already have to make more. I do this all the time. I have indoor plants I do it with and I did it with lambs ear and hostas too. It’s nice to get more plants out of the plants you already had! 

In the above pics are my indoor plants. I always put them out in the spring and summer. They are three times that size now and I’ve propagated them into 4 different containers too. They’re really happy and thriving.

What ways do you look for to save money while gardening?