Maintaining a garden can be a rewarding hobby, but it can also be costly, especially if you rely on expensive products and services. However, there are plenty of cheap and effective ways to care for your garden that can help you save money and still enjoy a beautiful outdoor space.

Here are some of the best ways to keep your lawn healthy on a budget:

1. Use compost: Compost can enrich soil and reduce the need for synthetic fertilizers. Compost can be made from food scraps, yard waste, and other organic materials.
2. Choose native plants: Plant drought-resistant or native plants that are adapted to the local climate and soil conditions. These plants will require less water and maintenance.
3. Add mulch: Mulch around plants to retain moisture and suppress weeds. Mulch can be made from organic materials such as wood chips, leaves, and grass clippings.
4. Water deeply: Water plants deeply and infrequently to encourage deep root growth and reduce the need for frequent watering.
5. Invest in irrigation: Use a drip irrigation system or soaker hose to deliver water directly to the root zone of plants, rather than watering from above.
6. Collect rainwater: Collect rainwater in barrels or buckets to use for watering plants and reduce your water costs.
7. Use organic pest control: Organic pest control methods such as planting companion plants, releasing beneficial insects, and using homemade pest repellents.
8. Prune plants: Prune plants regularly to remove dead or diseased branches and encourage healthy growth.
9. Turn to hand tools: Use hand tools rather than powered tools to save on energy costs and reduce noise and air pollution. These could include a hand-held pruner, a manual seed planter or dibber to plant seeds and a manual lawn edger or string trimmer to edge the lawn and trim grass.
10. Recycle and repurpose: Use recycled or repurposed materials in the garden, such as old tires as planters, pallets as raised beds, or broken pottery as decorative mulch.
11. Add variety: Plant a variety of vegetables and herbs that can be harvested and used in the kitchen, saving money on groceries.
12. Go above ground: Grow plants in containers or raised beds rather than in the ground, which can save on water and soil amendment costs.
13. Attract pollinators: Plant a variety of flowers, herbs, and vegetables that attract pollinators, such as bees and butterflies. This can help to increase the productivity of your garden and reduce the need for pollination by hand.
14. Make cover: Plant a cover crop in fallow areas of the garden to enrich the soil and suppress weeds.
15. Measure it: Use a rain gauge to monitor soil moisture and avoid over-watering and soil thermometer to determine the best time to plant seeds and seedlings. Also use a pH test kit to determine the acidity or alkalinity of your soil and adjust as needed and a a soil auger or trowel to test soil moisture and determine the need for watering.