The global pandemic has ushered in an era of unparalleled savings and increased financial awareness, and because there’s no telling what we might face due to uncertainty, people from across the world are doing their best to pinch pennies and brace for any economic turbulence. And in the case of homeownership, many households are investing their hard-earned cash into smart home projects that can net them excellent appreciation on property value in the event that they ever need to pull cash out through a mortgage.
One such famous home improvement project trend that more and more people are adopting is the construction of a backyard garden with the hopes of growing their own vegetables and saving some money on the side. However, what many people fail to realize is that a backyard garden is not a fool-proof project by design and carries its fair share of potential downsides and shortcomings. So, to help bring everyone up to speed and prevent homeowners from committing to a project they’ll end up regretting, we’ll be going over some of the important talking points you must consider first.
#1 Bad For Limited Backyard Space
Unless you have a sprawling backyard with more space than you could ever imagine to use up, then you must strictly re-evaluate the opportunity costs behind building a backyard garden that could prevent you from doing anything else. Remember, the same backyard space could be used for other activities like holding a barbecue, inviting some friends over, and any other social gathering or fun time with the family. And even if you manage to cut corners by making your garden much smaller, is it still worth it by then to grow veggies in such a miniature plot? Always take into account the space constraint before committing a huge section of the backyard to anything specific like a garden.
#2 Can Attract Unwanted Pests
While many of us love to focus on the idea of harvesting fresh veggies from our backyard, we can’t forget that the same plants also end up attracting unwanted pests into our homes. Sure, you could keep the backyard garden maintained and monitored before anything gets way out of hand, but on the off chance that it goes from meager to serious infestation, would it have still been worth it to build the garden? Plus, if you’re more interested in growing aquatic plants, you might attract mosquitoes, and we recommend getting professional mosquito removal before anything goes awry.
#3 Unexpected Costs Can Go Out of Control
There’s no denying that backyard gardens can save you money in the long-term as you spend less and less on your grocery trips for fresh veggies, but this idea of saving money through the garden doesn’t always account for unexpected costs when building the garden itself. While we’d like to think that everything will go as planned and all we have to do is the bare minimum, this is never the case when it comes to any home improvement project. For example, the soil in the backyard might not be the best for growing your own veggies or have clearance issues with some pipes if you’re building anything elaborate.
#4 Not for The Busy Lifestyle
Last but not least, never forget to factor in your personal lifestyle activities and if you even have the extra time to commit to a backyard garden. Many people like to think that caring for plants is as simple as watering them every morning, but it’s a lot more detail-oriented than you’d imagine. So, if you don’t have the extra time to go about garden maintenance and learning the craft, then you’re better off saving your budget for other projects.
However, They Can Still Be Good Under Certain Conditions
Nevertheless, this isn’t meant to underplay the benefits of owning a backyard garden but just to highlight some of its shortcomings for more people to know about. Of course, there’s still plenty of merit to building a backyard garden as long as you manage to keep track of two certain conditions.
- Always Think Location: Good location always plays a huge factor in real estate, and the same principle applies when considering the possibility of building a backyard garden. We recommend more peaceful neighborhoods over busy and bustling streets because these features can take away from the therapeutic nature of gardening. Also, it’s a good sign when other neighboring homes feature backyard gardens as well.
- Evaluate The Cost-Benefit Ratio: Jot down all the upfront costs and a bit extra for unexpected ones and evaluate the cost-benefit ratio of building a backyard garden first. If the numbers point to a favorable outcome, then build to your heart’s content. However, if the numbers say otherwise, then you might want to hold off on the thought of building a garden in the meantime.
Make the Smart Choice
Overall, there are many factors that could potentially dictate a less favorable outcome when building a backyard garden, so take note of these important points before you make the decisions to build one yourself. While it may look nice on the outside, it all boils down to making the smart choice to getting the most out of your projects.
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