Look in Somebody Else’s Flower Box
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OK, maybe I lied. Maybe I do have a few frugal ideas left. Kim lets me hang around in case I get inspired. Today I'm inspired... and it happens to be Wednesday so I thought I'd post.
I have a purple thumb, but I'm persistent. I have killed two of just about every plant I've ever tried to grow. I've learned that annuals in a large pot on the front porch work for me. I just have to remind the kids to water them. Thank God it's rained most of the summer! lol
Other than commercial gardens, the only private gardens I've ever toured were members of the garden club I belonged to several years ago. I only joined in hopes of learning something, which I didn't, or to be inspired, which I wasn't. I was completely intimidated. Many of these women were master gardeners and most of them were retired with y-e-a-r-s of gardening experience. They had amazing gardens. I had 3 boys under the age of 6, the ability to kill marigolds and a raw property that needed serious landscaping to be even a little plantable. Gorgeous dream gardens weren't going to happen at my house.
One of the ladies from church invited me to her house last week. When I pulled in to the driveway I was completely blown away. From the red, white and blue buntings and rockers on the front porch; to the white picket fence with arbor, gate and climbing roses; to the hostas growing in the shade, somebody should take pictures of this place for a magazine! I was smitten. I asked her about her experience, how she did it, where she started, etc. Because it was raining I didn't get a tour, but I was able to go back today.
Sally is a mere mortal with a job, husband, several grandkids and a normal life. She has no master gardener certificate and told me she's killed her share of plants too. She said she just wanted to garden and starting planting things she liked, one plant at a time. Some grew well and some didn't. She learned what worked and moved or killed what didn't. I love the style that she's established! Romantic cottage gardens with lots of roses make me swoon.
So often we get intimidated by the "master gardeners" of frugality. We see how many amazing things they are doing, how much money they are saving, how many thousands of dollars of debt they've paid down or what great finds they nab. Sometimes it's discouraging to those starting out. But like my friend Sally just picked one plant and put it in the ground, you only need to embrace and apply one frugal idea at a time. You also need to find someone with a garden you love to answer your questions and inspire you as you get started. The same goes for frugality.
When you read blogs on frugality, I encourage you to pick up hints and tips, but also remember that this person, like my master gardeners, may have spent the last 10 years learning how to be frugal. I also encourage you to find bloggers whose lifestyle is similar to yours. I don't read blogs on serious portfolio building. That's Rich's thing. I read frugal blogs written by moms like me trying to be better homemakers. They inspire me, like Sally's garden.
Today I realized it won't take too much to transform the gardens the previous owner left into something that will make me smile. When I read frugal blogs I know that by applying a couple ideas I can save my family some additional money. Gardening doesn't seem quite so scary anymore. Frugality hasn't been scary for quite awhile. And if I need a bit of inspiration or a garden question answered, I have Sally's number. Or I can pop on over to the Frugal Hacks blogroll and rub shoulders with some of frugality's finest. 
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3 Responses to “Look in Somebody Else’s Flower Box”
July 2nd, 2008 at 9:14 pm
Thank you for this! I recently started “CVSing” and sometimes get discouraged because I’m not near as good as the pros.
But I’m saving money and that is what counts! Thanks for the reminder.
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:26 am
Great post!
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:33 am
[...] Janel has a wonderful post at Frugal Hacks comparing frugal living skills to gardening skills. The post title is “Look in somebody else’s flower box.” [...]
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