If you’re someone who enjoys spending time in your backyard or you plan to do a lot of entertaining this summer, we’re pretty sure that you want your yard to look as scenic as possible. And while you could certainly hire a professional landscaper to manicure your lawn, if your budget is tight, there is another alternative: you can do the work yourself. Sure, it might initially seem a bit intimidating but with the right instructions, you can end up with the kind of backyard you’ve always wanted at a mere fraction of the cost.
Would you like some budget-friendly DIY landscaping tips? If so, we have offered five great ones for you below:
Do online research. Thanks to the information highway known as the internet, you can find tips on how to do just about anything, including landscaping. So, before doing anything else, spend some time online doing a bit of research on the kinds of plants that are available and tools that you should use. Some of our favorite websites include DIY Network, HGTV and Do It Yourself Landscaping. For DIY Network and HGTV, just go to the site and put “DIY landscaping” in the search field.
Create a landscaping plan. Once you have a pretty good idea of how you want your backyard to look, it’s now time to create a landscaping plan. You can start this by assessing the state of your yard including the soil and grass. Look at how the sunlight falls and also the way the rain flows onto your yard. All of these things will help you to create a plan that will work best for landscaping your backyard. One website that can assist you is BHG. Go to the site and put “landscape plans” in the search field.
Shop for tools during the “off season”. Being that a lot of people are more proactive about landscaping during the spring and summertime, stores tend to sell landscaping tools at a higher price during that time. So, if you want to save some money on the equipment that you need, opt for purchasing it during the autumn or winter seasons. Also, if you are going to buy tools online, go to websites like Coupons and Retail Me Not for promo codes that can save you money, especially on shipping costs.
Consider using seeds over plants. If you were to ask a professional landscaper for landscaping ideas that can save you money, something that they might tell you is that when it comes to plants and flowers, you should purchase seeds rather than plants. That’s because seeds tend to be much cheaper, plus you can oftentimes find more exotic varieties. One website that sells grass seed is Cutting Edge Grass. One site that sells plant and flower seed is Park Seed.
Don’t forget to recycle. Whether it’s tools, decorations or landscaping equipment, who said that you have to buy new? Thanks to yard sales, thrift stores and websites like Craigslist, you can find gently-used things that you need without spending a ton of money on them. And besides, buying used is also a great way to recycle which is ultimately great for the environment. Happy landscaping!