Staging is one of the best ways to sell your home quickly. Prospective buyers want to move into a house that doesn’t require a lot of work.
When staging your home, it’s important to take the garden into consideration.
Make sure your garden has plenty of plants and flowers to draw interest from buyers. Of course, you don’t want to spend a lot of money, so here’s how you can buy bargain plants for your garden.
Where to Find the Best Bargains
Instead of heading to the local nursery for pristine plants, consider looking elsewhere for the best deals. You can often find plants and flowers for low prices at school fairs and garden fetes. If the garden centre is the only place available, look for their reduced plants.
Ask your neighbours if they have any extra seedlings or rooted cuttings. Since you know these plants already grow in your region, you should have no problem planting them in your garden.
Offer to trade with your neighbours or give them a small donation. You never know, you may even get a few beautiful bulbs for free.
Be cautious buying flowers with brown bulbs or plants with damaged roots, as they may die before you get to plant them. Shrubs and perennials, however, are great to plant once they’re near the end of the season.
These plants may be past their prime or lacklustre, but they’ll still make the perfect addition to your garden. Plus, you’ll get the best price for them.
Managing Your Bargain Bulbs
No matter where you found your low-cost plants, you need to make sure you do everything to protect them. Even though they weren’t expensive, it’s still a waste of money if they die before you get them planted.
Make sure you find a location in your garden where your plants get plenty of sunlight. If your soil is hard or full of clay, you may need to break it up first.
A hand fork will help you break apart larger pieces and let air into the soil. Before you plant, make sure you add compost or fish emulsion to the soil. This will ensure your bargain plants have plenty to eat.
Once your plants are in the ground. Keep a close eye on them. They will be the most fragile during this time. As the roots grow deeper into the soil, you will see your plants thrive.
If you notice any dead flowers or woody stalk, remove it right away. As the season nears the end, you’ll need to prune your plants. This will ensure they grow back the next year.
Protect Your Current Bulbs
If you already have a beautiful garden and know you’ll be selling your home within the year, try to make your bulbs last. During the season, make sure you properly care for all your plants. Prune whenever necessary to remove dead wood.
Move your plants to an area where they get enough sunlight. If you take care of them now, you can most likely replant them in the next season.
Planting flowering bulbs when they are dormant is a great way to yield colourful blooms. Water and feed the bulbs on a regular basis. You don’t want them to dry out. Add fertilizer to the soil to make sure your plants get the proper nutrients.
If any flowers die away, make sure to remove them right away. This will help keep the other blooms looking their best for longer. Weeds and overgrowth should also be kept to a minimum. Adding a thick layer of mulch will help prevent weeds, while also providing protection against freezing in the colder months.
Take Care When Lifting and Storing
If you need to lift or store your bulbs, do so with caution. Flowers are extremely fragile, and they’re the most vulnerable when being moved. Wait until the leaves die down before moving them at all.
Use a hand fork to gently remove the bulbs, and gently clean them. If you notice any loose layers, remove them.
Roots should be trimmed back. If you notice any unhealthy bulbs, get rid of them. Diseases spread quickly, and it’s not worth taking the chance.
Special Note about Tulip Bulbs
Whether you get tulip bulbs from a garden centre or already have them in your garden, they will require some special attention. To get new flowers the following year, you must lift, dry, and replant the bulbs.
Even if you take great care during this process, there is still no guarantee they will bloom again. If you buy bargain tulips at the end of the season, there is a chance they will never bloom in your garden.
Getting your garden ready to sell requires a bit of manual labour. Search around for the best deals on bargain plants or try to replant the bulbs you already have.
There’s no reason why you can’t be frugal and still have a beautiful garden. You can gain professional tips from your local tradesman on how to prepare your home for sale at the best price.
The effort you put into making your garden picture-perfect is sure to pay off whenever you go to sell your home. You’ll find a buyer in no time at all.
