Gardeners preparing for spring may face increased costs for tools, plants and fertilizers this season due to inflation and changes in the supply chain. Despite these higher prices, strategic approaches can still make gardening an affordable hobby.
Garden shop owners and long-time gardeners are offering advice on how to manage expenses and get a good return on investment.
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The expense of gardening has risen this year, with inflation and shifts in the supply chain driving up prices for various supplies. However, experts suggest that by gardening strategically, enthusiasts can still achieve positive results from their efforts.
Bob Harris, the manager of Gerlach’s Garden and Floral, explained that the cost of gardening varies and inflation has had a greater impact on some items than others this year. Harris noted that prices for certain items have increased.
“Some of the seedlings have gone up some of the plugs we buy already seeded plugs some of those have increased a little bit,” Harris said. He also mentioned that his business has adapted by changing planting methods and materials to absorb some of the rising costs.
Harris also detailed which specific supplies have seen significant price hikes.
“Fertilizers have really gone up because of the processing and with the chemicals they use in them some organic stuff is still very affordable, tools have gone up,” Harris stated.
Long-time gardener Dean Zeller has observed the fluctuating costs of gardening over many years. Zeller shared his extensive experience, noting, “I’ve been coming here probably 30 – 40 years.”
Zeller emphasized that gardening has never been a cheap pursuit, but his decades of experience have taught him how to maintain a garden without overspending. He recommends planting flowers that return annually for better cost efficiency.
“You want to put in the flowers that come up year after year,” Zeller advised. He added, “you can mix some annuals in with them, but you got to replace those the next year.” Perennials are generally more cost-efficient as they are easier to maintain and survive for multiple years after initial planting.
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Other methods to help reduce gardening costs include propagating current plants to create new ones, starting plants from seeds and using composting as an alternative to purchasing commercial fertilizers.
All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by WJET/WFXP. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat information into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by WJET/WFXP staff before being published.
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