Some find gardening to be a relaxing activity, but it’s not so calming if digging around in soil ends up burying you in out-of-control costs.

The San Jose Mercury News is here to help with green-saving advice for green thumbs, by way of Steve Jacobs’ San Diego-based Nature Designs Landscaping.

Here are five tips from the story:

-Plant perennials instead of annuals. Annuals are short-lived, use excessive water and must be replaced, while there is a large selection of drought-tolerant perennials that can live for many years and offer plenty of beautiful color.

-Eliminate lawn where you are not using it. Lawns are one of the most intensive maintenance and water-consuming plantings in a landscape, requiring weekly mowing, edging and recurrent irrigation.

-Leave lawn clippings – don’t bag. Many lawn mowers have a recycling feature which allows you to mow without bagging the clippings. Lawn clippings contain water and nutrients that can benefit your lawn. The result is a need for less water and fertilizer.

-Prune naturally. When you prune for the natural growth habit of the plant, you will reduce the amount of pruning needed per year, resulting in decreased costs.

-Cut back on water. Reduce your watering schedule to the bare minimum required to keep the yard and garden healthy. Overwatering can cause excessive growth, requiring even more maintenance, a higher water bill and a greater instance of disease that will require further intervention.

Check out the story for more along those lines. A bonus tip from us: Chia Pets and Venus Fly Traps always seem like good ideas at the time but always end up disappointing you in the end, mocking you for your inadequacies until their dying breaths.

Action Line: Money-saving gardening tips for tough economic times [San Jose Mercury News]
(Photo: ianjacobs)

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