Best Money Saving Advice
callie25
11 years ago
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sushipup1
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agograinlady_ks
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Old School HOA Board needs money saving landscaping advice!
Comments (11)Oddly enough, I am presenting Phase IV of a 1970' condo redo tomorrow morning. The thing that you might find interesting is that they are converting a lot of area into lawn to save on maintenance costs. The cost of bark mulch and weeding has been killing them. The maintenance crew cheif loves it more than anybody. Mowing equipment is very fast and just about anyone can do it with good results. Environmentally incorrect? Well, here's the thing. There is high nitrogen in the ground water from septic systems that migrates from miles away toward the coastal ponds in the area. Lawn is a heavy consumer of nitrogen. One way to look at that is to assume that excessive fetilizer will be dumped onto the grass to try to make it greener than green resulting in the excess going into the groundwater and eventually causing algae blooms in the ponds. An alternative is to harness the grass's ability to consume nitrogen by using wells to remove the existing groundwater with its excessive nitrogen from the ground and feeding it to the grass. The water returns to the ground and continues on to the ponds with less nitrogen than it had before because the grass uses it up. I'm sure that it is a very different ecosystem where you are than what we have up here, but it is interesting in terms of regional differences. Think about all of the conditions the various parts of your site are in such as lawn, natural woodlands, perennial beds, younger shrub plantings, treed areas, understory areas, buildings, pavements, surface water or whatever else there is. Ask yourself and others what they really like about where the current landscape. That is how we started with this and another similar condo redo project that I was involved in. That will give you (the collective you) a better understanding of the quality of life issues that are part of what you as a community value. Those quality of life values have to balance out with other values such as cost, environmental consciousness, or others. It can be very easy to make a mistake in applying only your own balance of values and imposing them on your community with only the best of intensions. You stated that one of the problems that is driving up the cost of your maintenance is the mature planting. You also make a strong statement about the unused lawn area in terms of energy, water, emmissions, and money. The assumption is that what lies between these two extremes of conditions is either very little in terms of area, or does not drain your resources. Could converting toward those undescribed conditions keep maintenance costs down without introducing an experimental condition or changing the quality of life that the community enjoys? Look around your area to see what is working on other sites before you become a pioneer. Usually, good ideas catch on and become common place especially if they are economical. If you don't see fabulous swathes of wildflowers as you envision it is much more likely that they are not so easy or not so economical than thought rather than you being the first to consider it. One of the best things you can do for economy, environment, maintenance, and successful landscaping is to put in place what would grow naturally. You need to be more proactive than just getting a list of native plants. You need to know the local conditions very well and recreate what would grow there if we all disappeared and nature reclaimed it. You also have to be very aware of what might try to "reclaim" your plantings. The biggest problem with the wildflower "set it and forget it" seed mixes is Darwinism. Competition. Sometimes it is competition between what comes out of the seed bag, but more likely it is going to be some other crop that is better suited than what was in the mix. Local conditions are going to weaken some plants dominance while enhancing anothers. What will you wind up with? Hopefully, others in your area have found out and it is good, but you should do your best to find out before you commit....See MoreRose Gardening Is Expensive! What Are Some Ways Of Saving Money?
Comments (23)So much great advice! Thank you Ingrid and Michaelg! I know someone who goes to a feed store for horses. I will tell him to pick me up some 40lb bags of alfalfa and I can collect leaves from the local parks to mulch with. Checking Ashdown and Vintage for the sales, too. Thanks Diane_nj, Moroseaz, Silverkelt, Karl_bapst_rosenut, Predfern, Terryjean, Sammy, Jacqueline3, Roselvr and Canadian_rose for the wealth of info.!!! You all have made me realize that compost makes the garden world go 'round. Also thanks Hoovb and Particentral, for putting things in perspective. I suppose it's all relative and there are other hobbies that can be more expensive, but creating a gardening budget will help me get to the point of being wealthy enough to fly airplanes as a hobby, keep show grade koi and collect expensive art. Now, dealing with show dogs is not a hobby I would pursue. :) Juliet...See MoreBest Money Saving Tip For Me
Comments (4)cowboyind, Here I thought you were just getting a "buzzz" out of it. (;^)) Hadn't noticed that, as a matter of fact. Whether your message was hypothetical or not - the issue of the number of hypothetical hours remains the same. We earn "before-tax" money, but buy (most, i.e. non-deductible) goods with after-tax money. Which makes the concept of whether we want to exchange that amount of effort for so much money to buy certain goods even more relevant, for the number of hours is (almost) *always* larger. Another good idea along this line is, if we think that we really do want to buy the item, to ask ourselves whether we might be able to arrange to get the item at even less expense using another channel. For example, buy a (used) item at an auction, estate sale, etc. where there are quite often some really good bargains to be found. But - take care. Be sure that you know the market value of items that you desire before going, and keep your emotions in check. Sometimes, in the heat of an auction, people get their egos involved and bid items up to higher than retail value. Linens and some household accoutrements often go for next to nothing at auctions. With, often, a number of other itmes in a box - that you may be able to sell individually later in garage sales for more than you paid for the whole box, originally. So, you got what you wanted free - didn't you? Who can beat that? Unless you can get someone to pay you to take certain items off their hands. How often have you run on to such offers? Garage sales are a good source, as well. I bought a couple of (snmall) radios last year for $1.00 and $2.00. Good wishes to you and yours, ole joyful...See MoreBest Way to Save Money - Guaranteed!!!!!!!
Comments (11)"QUOTE>The best way to save money is to... NOT spend it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If you don't spend it, you save it. Don't think too hard about it. Putting it under your mattress gives a better return than spending it!"QUOTE> As a single person with no children I sort of agree with this. I'm not big on investing. Perhaps once I'm done with school (returning adult changing careers). I have direct deposit and don't really pay attention to my money. I pay my rent, credit card bill, phone bill, food bill, car payment and ins. Those checks go out every month.(except car ins. I pay that in a lump sum every three or four months, I don't pay attention) As a recovering shopaholic I don't purchase much of anything. I'm too busy anyway with work and school. So I basically ignore my money. I find that when I do finally look into my bank account I end up with so much just sitting around. Last year I looked and to my suprise I had six grand just sitting there. It accumulated over a few months. I finally did open a online account and put it in there and now it sits there being ignored again. I transfered my credit cards to my credit union, my car loan to the credit union and pay my tuition out of pocket so no bill once I'm done. All that extra income will be all mine. I just spent about six grand on new furniture but I'm paying it off monthly (union cc special super low rate until its paid :)) and letting that suprise six grand that accumulated just sit in that online account. When it reaches nine thousand I will pay off my car. Then pay off the credit cards with the extra from the no longer car payment and lower ins. extra cash. Shouldn't take long. I pay way more than the minimum now anyway. Then once again with the ignoring and we will see how much I accumulate. That will go towards a house down payment. If you have no outside responsibility other than yourself. Ignore your money and stay out of the malls. Don't look at your account for a few months. ( I didn't do this on purpose I'm just real lazy when it comes to balancing a check book and if I didn't have direct deposit I would walk around for weeks with a live check because I always forget) When you see the extra in the account you tend to spend it. I know I have enough to cover the checks I write so I don't think about what's left over. I ignore it and then one day take a peak and suprise large sum looking back at me. I don't recommend this to everyone because it obviously won't work for all. Keeps me in line though. I see money that has no obligation tied to it and mall here I come!...See Moreemma
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