When designing your front yard, you don’t have to settle for boring just because you’re on a budget. There are so many ways to put your creativity to work when trying to make a beautiful front yard.
There are plenty of affordable landscaping ideas on apps such as Pinterest or Instagram where you can see photos and get additional inspiration. These apps have allowed homeowners to see their front yards in a new light and provide you with several low-maintenance ideas to update your home’s exterior.
Beautiful front yard landscaping doesn’t need to cost a ton of money, you can make big changes by just adding one or two of the ideas on this list.
Without further ado, here are the top ten front yard landscaping ideas on a budget.
1- Planting Perennials
It is important to look at the bigger picture when deciding on what flower you would like to plant. The safest option you have are perennials. There is a wide variety of perennial flowers that look in great yards of all shapes and sizes.
Long blooming perennials can save money in the long run since these flowers can last for two or more years. This means you don’t have to constantly replace them. Some of the top perennial choices to plant in your front yard include roses, black-eyed susans, coneflowers, catmint, lavender, and daisies.
2 – Installing a Stepping Stone Walkway
One of the surprisingly cheap DIY front yard ideas is installing a stepping stone walkway. While this may require a certain amount of work, it is definitely worth it.
When installing a stepping stone walkway, you can either dig holes and fill them with cement or if your budget allows you to, you can buy stones separately from a landscaping supply store.
3- Planting a Tree
Some cheap landscaping ideas include the basics such as planting a tree. A tree is the perfect focal point for a small front yard.
Bonus tip! If you buy a sapling rather than an old tree, you can save anywhere from $200 to $2000. Once the tree has fully grown, it can provide your home with much-needed shade. Soon enough, you can lower your cooling expenses by 30%!
4 – Evergreen Border
If you want to have that certain curb appeal without having to go through regular maintenance of your front yard, an evergreen border may just be the answer you’ve been looking for. This is perfect if you want to avoid caring for a big flower garden, but still want to achieve a pop of color in your front yard.
Consider planting azaleas or rhododendrons that can produce beautiful floral displays during summer and spring. If you mix these with non-blooming evergreens, they add a bit of character to your entryway without having to do any extra work.
5 – Log Planters
Planters are a great way to add a rustic feel to your front yard’s landscaping. If you use a hollowed log or stump, you can achieve a natural display of a cottage garden as compared to using plastic or concrete.
A great way to save money is to try and find an old log in your backyard, or even your neighbors. This is the perfect time to make that post on Craiglist or Facebook to see if you can find someone in your area that is willing to give you their downed tree.
6 – Tree Stump Planter
If you couldn’t find a log planter, a tree stump would work just fine. Tree stumps are expensive to remove and can often cause unintended damage to nearby plants or structures. So, instead of removing a stump, why not turn it into a planter? You get to save money and reuse the natural elements in your yard by doing this.
You can turn an ugly tree stump into something breathtaking. Start by creating a hollow in the stump, and proceed to plant it with annuals or low growing perennials.
7 – Mailbox Flower Bed
Even with a small front yard, there will still be a patch of soil for you to work with. You can consider creating a mailbox flower bed. Make the most of the small strip of ground in between the road and the sidewalk by using ground covers or annuals to bring a smile to your mailman.
Of course, you have to make sure that this piece of land belongs to your property and not your local municipality because they may ask you to have this roadside flower bed removed. In this case, using flower pots around the mailbox is a simple way to add color to the front yard, without digging.
8 – Stone Edged Flower Bed
To spice up your ordinary flower bed, you can use stones to establish and define it. Flower bed edging gives your front yard a clean neat look and enhances curb appeal. With this idea, you don’t necessarily have to spend too much. Simply pick out some “good looking” stones and have them arranged nicely around a flower bed.
Not only does landscape edging help you define the division between the flower beds and the lawn that surrounds it, but it will also help when trimming the grass.
9 – Plant Hangers
Another great DIY idea for those with small front yards is to install plant hangers, especially on signposts. This signpost that shows your house number can serve as a display space for a plant hanger or a hanging basket.
Metal hanging baskets are inexpensive and easy to hang on a fence or post. You can be creative when choosing what kind of hanging basket you would like to put up as well as what plants you would like to put in it.
10 – Mediterranean Front Garden Designs
If you’re someone who cannot sacrifice too much time each day to maintain your front yard, a Mediterranean front garden would be the perfect landscaping idea for you.
The struggle of maintaining an attractive front yard is real if you live in an area where the temperature regularly reaches 100 degrees or above. The most commonly used plants, such as blooming annuals, simply won’t survive.
Plant water savvy plants such as fan palms, Mediterranean herbs, low-growing junipers, and other leafy ground covers in your flower beds. These all look great in front of the house and don’t require constant watering. You can include a small rock garden in one corner to add dimension to the landscape while keeping with the low maintenance vibe.
More Ways to Get Front Yard Garden Ideas on the Cheap
It doesn’t have to be expensive to create a beautiful front yard. There are many cheap garden ideas to save money and make the most of the native plants in your area.
Start by taking some time to really focus on the overall curb appeal of your front yard. Try to look at it from a passerby’s viewpoint and consider the elements that you would like to see in a friend’s home. Sometimes it’s easier to get ideas once you take a step back and look at your home from a distance.
Walk around the neighborhood and make notes of the plants and flower beds that really stand out. Add them to your wish list. Take a look at nearby restaurants and offices to see what type of landscaping they use. This should give you a ton of good ideas for the front yard.
Be resourceful when shopping for plants and supplies. Look for end of season sales at the garden store. Find out when they get deliveries. You can often find discounted items a day before or after since they are trying to make room for new stock.
Save money by trading landscaping ideas and supplies with your neighbors. Join plant swap groups in the spring and sign-up for community groups such as Craiglist and Freecycle. You can often find great landscaping supplies like pots and planters on those lists.
If you’re on a tight budget, you don’t need to spend a fortune to give your garden a boost. A few simple additions to the front of the house can make a big difference!
For more gardening design ideas, visit us at www.TopTenGarden.com.