by Rachael Bannen

This summer you may be debating whether or not to dig your hands into some soil and start gardening, plus possibly growing your own crops. Gardening can appear as a daunting or expensive investment to begin, but there are alternatives to the expensive options to get you gardening in a budget friendly manner.

On modernfarmer.com, it is mentioned to plant seed rather than starts. You can typically get significantly more plants for what you pay when buying seeds, versus what you would get paying the same for starts. Also, consider growing organically. It is very budget friendly, through this you avoid spending money on chemicals such as pesticides.

Another great option for getting plants and adding some variety to your garden is doing seed swapping. As suggested at getbusygardening.com doing this with other gardeners allows for you to get some other plants or crops added into your garden for free. Another idea this source suggests, is utilizing your kitchen scraps and planting them in your garden as another way of getting some free plants. Along with this, they suggest using the leaves from your plants as mulch or for enriching your soil.

Another great tip is using a barrel to collect rainwater which can help keep your garden more budget friendly. Another option to take into consideration when building your garden is using containers instead of buying expensive plant beds or paying for the materials, which can be pricey to build. You could use anything from a box, to a storage bin out of your basement, or even palettes to create a garden. This method also cuts back on other supply costs, as it requires less of them, for example they mention it requires less fertilizer.

For more information about starting your garden, you can visit getbusygardening.com or seek advice from your local plant nursery.a