Back in 2014 I was sat in an office of a financial lender looking to secure some cash for investment in my garden. Somewhere in between talking about fraud protection and interest rates I decided that lumping a large amount of money to pay a private company to renovate my garden would be too easy, and that I should do it myself, or at least as much as I could. I spoke with a good friend of mine Travis Cadman who is a professional gardener by trade. After picking his brains and understanding how much I could do on my own, I decided against the loan and rolled up my sleeves. I have paid for some help along the way, mores for the bits which I didn’t have the knowledge to do, but beyond that the garden is very much my own work and here is why I’d recommend that you do the same.
Cost Effective
The most obvious reason for carrying out this kind of work on your own is that it is far more cost effective. Originally I was quoted $5,800 to renovate the garden yet I managed to get the same results for just $1,900 because I did so much of it myself. This not only meant that I don’t have the debt that I was planning to have, it also means that the garden itself cost far less, yet the value added on to the home is the same. Here in the USA people want homes with gardens all ready and for my $1,900 investment I have added at least $3,000 on to the property value.
Difficulty
Many of us put off working in the garden because we don’t think that we have the skill or the ability to carry it out, this couldn’t be farther from the truth. In fact gardening requires very little technical knowledge and you can comfortably do it on your own, albeit with the help of an online tutorial or two, or a good neighbor who knows what they’re talking about. Most of the gardening work which you’ll be doing will be weeding, carrying and chopping down, the rest of it comes down to patience.I didn’t think that I had what it took to alter the garden in the way that I have but lo and behold it turned out great.
Pride
When we sit out in the garden enjoying some ice tea on a hot summer’s eve, I like around and feel a sense of genuine pride at what I have achieved. There is something very special about doing something with your own hands and then enjoying the fruits of your labor. This is a feeling of pride which I would never have had if I had simply handed some cash over to a gardening firm to carry out the work for me.
It is easy to throw money at the garden but why not try and have a go yourself? Save money, exercise and feel pride in what you have been able to achieve.
