With Spring right around the corner, it is time to get ready for the great outdoors again. The daffodils are already creeping flowersout of the ground a little more each day in some places and it will soon be time to start working on the garden. Whether or not you have a green thumb, there is a simple way to save on your garden this year. Do it yourself!

If you have been to the local garden center during the spring, you will find some great flowers. However, not all of them will be a great bargain. A hanging flower basket with one or two flower varieties may cost $15.00 and more for a medium size arrangement. A small tray of petunias or one tomato plant you end up spending $2.00 or more on one single plant and sometimes the arrangements aren’t even what you really want.

Try something new this year. Instead of waiting until after the frost clears, get a jump on spring and save money in the process. Go to the garden center and pick out the seeds you are interested in growing. Buy both annual (blooms once) and perennial (blooms every year) and choose the flowers and the colors you like. Pick up a few peat pots or use small plastic containers cut from milk cartons or bottles at home. Buy a decent sized bag of potting soil so you will not run out. You can never have too much soil and can store it easily. About 6 weeks before the warm weather begins to hang around, clear a space on the kitchen table and gather the family. In addition to your supplies, you also need some waterproof medical tape, a permanent marker, a jug of water, and plant food if you have some.

Follow the individual seed directions on each packet to determine planting depth and such and get to work. As you plant each seed packet, write the name of the flower on the tape and stick it to the cup or plant tray. You need waterproof tape because your new plants will need to stay very wet. Keep the seed packet intact and save in a sandwich bag for later reference. Once all the seeds have been planted and labeled, water appropriately and find a sunny location in your home. Keep soil moist at all times and soon enough you will have little seedlings sprouting up all over. As the temperatures during the day begin to warm, you need to acclimate the indoor plants to the outside world before planting time by leaving them outside for a little time each day.

While there is a wide variety of gardening supply choices, you don’t have to spend a ton of money to have a beautiful home grown garden. Discount and dollar stores sell nice-looking pots and garden decorations for low prices, especially seeds which are often 10 packets for a dollar. Whether a part of a garden or a flower pot arrangement, bright flowers or hearty vegetables add some cheer to your property and will also save you some summertime grocery money.