Spruce Up Your Backyard (Budget Tips)

In an ideal world, everyone would have enough money to spruce up their backyard without worrying about spending too much of it. You could drop thousands of dollars on a new deck and tens of thousands on outdoor lighting and entertainment without concerning yourself with where that money was coming from.

However, that’s not the reality for many Kiwis. Although, that doesn’t mean you can’t spruce up your backyard. Here are a few budget tips that might help you do more with less. 

Make Furniture Out Of Wooden Shipping Pallets

Wooden pallets are one of the most effective ways to ship goods to businesses, which means there is an abundance of them available in New Zealand. Companies often don’t know what to do with them once they’ve removed their stock, so they place them outside their business residence and offer them free to whoever wants them.

Take advantage of these freebies and transform them into beautiful outdoor furniture. Even the most unskilled DIYer might have no problem whipping up sturdy chairs, benches, and tables and making them look brand new with a fresh coat of paint.  

Purchase Discounted Plants

Many garden centres don’t like displaying row upon row of dying or damaged plants. It’s not a good look, and they are typically the last plants that eager gardeners reach for. However, this often means that these plants are heavily discounted.

While they might not look like they’ll survive the trip home, the more hardy varieties might just surprise you. With a bit of care, compost, and patience, they might thrive in their new home, and you might have just scored a real bargain.

Use Solar Lights

Hard-wired outdoor lighting is convenient because you don’t have to rely on the elements to ensure they’re working at their best. However, installing outdoor lighting can be expensive and contributes to your power bill.

Not installing permanent lighting doesn’t mean you can’t have any outdoor lighting. You can purchase inexpensive solar lights that add much-needed ambience to any outdoor space without the hefty price tag.

Solar fairy lights, globe lights, and even security lights can all be options you consider, which might just mean you can entertain outdoors long into the night.

Purchase Materials and Goods Secondhand

Purchasing anything brand new can blow your backyard spruce-up budget. If you’re a savvy internet user with a tight budget, turn to the internet to find what you need. Many homeowners offer leftover materials for sale from their own projects on social media platforms, such as pavers, concrete, fencing materials, decking timber, plants, and much more.

You might even be able to secure plant cuttings at a fraction of what they cost to buy from garden centres, as well as outdoor furniture, pergolas, spa pools, fire pits, and more.

Plant Grass From Seed

Few things are as dull as watching grass grow, but the cost savings can be phenomenal. While there can be instant satisfaction from the installation of instant turf grass, it can be a much more expensive purchase than grass seed.

Fortunately, growing your own lawn from scratch is not as complicated as you might think. You just have to prepare the area by removing old turf, amending the soil if it needs it, levelling the ground, and planting the seeds. After consistent and thorough watering, grass will have sprouted within just a few weeks.

Hold a Friends and Family Working Bee

Friends and family are always willing to lend a helping hand when you need it the most, and that time might come when you start sprucing up your backyard. Rather than pay for labour, which might set you back several hundred dollars, put on a lunch or dinner for your loved ones and ask for their help with particular tasks you can’t do on your own.

For example, you might need someone to operate a digger or help you build a deck. These are perfect opportunities to spend quality time with people you might not see as often as you would like.

Make Your Own Mulch

Mulch can be an attractive addition to any garden while also providing your prized plants with the nutrients they need to survive and thrive. However, it can also be expensive, especially when you need significant volumes of it.

If you have the time and patience, consider making it yourself for free. You might be surprised at how many everyday materials make up a high-quality mulch mixture, such as lawn clippings, newspaper, pea straw, compost, and sawdust.  

Start Sprucing

You might not have a large budget, but that doesn’t mean your backyard has to miss out on the spruce-up it deserves. Take note of these budget-friendly ideas above, and you might be well on your way to a peaceful backyard paradise your whole family loves.