How to Create Beautiful Yards and Landscapes on a Budget - The Images of Spring

Hi, I'm Katie and I'll be your host for the day.   Follow along as I take you on the grand tour of my personal landscape and various gardens I've accumulated over the years, most of which have been given to me by others. I hope you enjoy the tour, get lots of inspiration and embark on your own personal gardening adventure. Please leave any questions you have at the bottom of this blog in the comments section and I will be sure to get back with you right away. Thanks for coming.

My eldest daughter learned it's easy to get a big patch of strawberries going.  She planted four plants three years ago and now has a huge strawberry patch. Aren't they beautiful, if you look closely you can see the morning dew on them.

Anyone with a strawberry patch needs to clean it out in the spring as many new plants come up crowding the bed. You could ask for some starts and offer to clean the bed of any weed while doing so.

There are lots of people out there with trees like mine you are about to see. These people often have baby trees sprout up in and around their trees in the spring. These little saplings take a lot of TLC. Ask around and let it be known you'd love to take one in and nurse it to a healthy full grown tree. This will make most any plant lover happy to watch for baby saplings saving them for you. 

This tree is an endangered species. It breaks my heart, this is an image of me laying down on the ground looking up into the canopy of our beloved purple ash.  The leaves turn a shade of purple once the leaves have matured near the middle to end of spring or early summer.

 It was such a little guy, I planted it near the edge of my koi pond where I could keep a watchful eye on it.  As you can see this amazing tree snapped out of it and now has me rethinking where I planted this little guy.  This healthy Japanese maple is out growing it's home.  But it is amazing and I do love it.  

This beautiful tree is another Japanese Maple, it lives just across the koi pond from the little green thread maple you've just met. It is a beautiful tree I had this tree moved from my former home after buying the house we now live in. Did you know trees can be moved if done so professionally?

I had a professional dig up and re-plant this special tree.  I've moved many trees. My trees are a big part of the family, they go where we go. 

There are endless resources for free building materials like those you're about to see in my own front yard just outside my front door. Great places to find free materials is at building and construction sites,  Anytime you see an old business being torn down you can approach the supervisor and ask if there are bricks, stones or rocks they need removed from the site after hours. I have removed an entire large patio area (with the help of friends and family) from tear down sites. Simply get a note of permission allowing you and your help to come by after hours and remove the agreed upon materials. This helps the supervisors get the job done faster and under budget. They most always have the materials removed by their crew and hauled off to land fills which in itself is a huge expense. 

Flowers are a great way to both connect to nature and people. I've enjoyed sharing flower starts and bulbs with many family and friends.  It's a great way to share and enjoy the beauty of nature. I've even successfully shared trees.  I planted a weeping ornamental cherry tree down the street at my neighbors house four years ago. I waited for this tree to get big enough to transplant, did so and today it is a big beautiful tree. The neighbors love it.

All of the flowers you are about to see can be shared, simply dig up a portion of the plants in the areas you would like to thin giving those sections to friends, neighbors and family.

One of my best sources adding to my collection is my uncle E.J. and aunt Kathy.  He's an air force polite, now trains others to fly, and travels extensively. He has brought me rocks from all over the world. It amazes me as to how he brings such heavy additions to my collections and yet I am so grateful. Now I'll dabble a bit in my rocks showing you a few I have added to my landscape.

Many great additions can be found in the old family attic, old buildings and barns as you're about to see below. I live in the suburbs near a big city. You can have nature where ever you live without spending much  I live at the end of a culdesac. Cul-de-sac - French for dead end. which makes for a great living experience. I have the best of both worlds, I've created my own little natural habitat while enjoying the many attributes of the big city, next door neighbors and a quick run for anything I can imagine and all on a budget. Thanks for sharing with me, it's been great having you. I leave you with a few images of my eclectic side adding the many family treasures and oddities I've found.

Much Spring and Renewal, Katie