How to Landscape Your Yard on a Budget

When people drive past those amazing yards that looks as though a professional came through and sprinkled their magic, a touch of jealousy often reaches out and smacks them around. Maybe this is because they feel that they do not have the skill to do all of that on their own or maybe it is because they are on a very limited budget and feel as though they will never have a yard to be proud of.

The thing is though, there is a lot that can be done on a limited budget if you simply know where to look and what to do. When it comes to the design of your landscape, if you do not have many ideas of your own that you can confidentially come up with, simply look for ideas from completed projects. Look through magazines and books and take out or copy the pictures that you think are nice.

Maybe you love the whole look or maybe there are one or two things in that picture that you would love to recreate in your yard. Also, if there is a house in your neighborhood with landscape that is “picture perfect” feel free to snap a quick photo of their yard to use as a reference. If you feel uneasy about this, simply stop and ask permission. After explaining how much you love what they have done with the yard, they will most likely have no problem with you taking a quick picture.

Shopping Cheap

If you are thinking of getting a retaining wall put in or you would like to have some decorative stones throughout the yard then you need to look around before making your purchase. For those without a budget heading to the local stone supply company is no problem, but for the rest of us, that is something that just will not work. The first thing you want to do is to price the different types of stones, bricks, and even railroad ties that may work in your yard. Get an idea of what they would cost for you to purchase the “traditional way”.

Then start looking through the local wanted ads or online venues such as Craigslist. Many times there will be people posting extra landscape materials or supplies that they have leftover from their project or that they need to sell in order to pay some of their bills. Some people even are willing to deliver the landscape to you for some gas money. If that is not working out for you, start driving around the neighborhood. Can you think of any abandoned houses that have been vacant for a while or homes that have had a pile of rocks sitting in their yard for the past four years? If there is someone living there, try stopping by and asking if they would be willing to sell the landscape.

Look For Unused Landscape Around Town

With this economy being such a tough time for a lot of people, you never know when your knock at the door would be a blessing for them as you would be providing them with money to eat off of for a week or to pay their past due electric bill. Everyone could use some money and everything is for sale at a price. With your knowledge of how much the landscape would cost via the “traditional route” you will be able to make sure that you are also getting a deal.

If the house is vacant, a simply trip to the local courthouse with the address in hand will give you the name and contact information for the owner. Most likely, if the home has been vacant for years, they do not care about the landscape rocks. A quick call to see if they would be willing to give the landscape away could land you some free stuff. Otherwise, you could offer to pay a small amount of money. Since none of the landscape is being used, you will probably luck out.

Source: Moreno Landscaping