Garden Decor Hacks – Outdoor Decorating Ideas On A Budget

Toy Truck Used As A Planter For Succulents
dump truck garden hack
(Image credit: Nikki Tilley via Gardening Know How)

Looking for quick and easy garden décor ideas? Here are a few simple garden décor hacks that won’t break the bank. 

Outdoor Decorating Ideas on A Budget 

Old toys make great planters, and you can pick them up for next to nothing at thrift stores and yard sales. For instance, fill the bed of a toy dump truck with potting mix and plant it with succulents or colorful annuals. Metal or plastic lunch boxes work too. 

Similarly, old, rusty, or beat-up wheelbarrows or toolboxes make great upcycled DIY garden décor when planted in a variety of colorful flowers, along with trailing plants like bacopa or calibrachoa to soften the edges. Be sure to drill a few holes in the bottom to provide drainage and prevent plants from rotting. Don’t limit yourself there – try planting in an old dresser, desk, or even chairs.

Solar-powered string lights or rope lights are among the all-time best outdoor decorating ideas on a budget. String twinkle lights along a fence, on a corner of a roof or porch, bordering a balcony, in a gazebo, around a tree or light post, or any place you want to add a little whimsy. 

Tire planters are a good way to recycle old tires, which are typically usually destroyed by burning and release toxins into the air. Paint the tires with non-toxic outdoor paint and arrange them in single tires or tiered arrangements. There are a few possible factors to consider; keep in mind that tires warm the soil quickly, so select plants that can tolerate extra heat. Some experts think that tires shouldn’t be used for planting edibles. It’s also true that toxins can leach into the soil, but this happens very slowly, over a period of years. 

Here’s a super simple idea that will brighten up a wooden fence: just drill a few holes in the fence and plug the holes with cheap glass marbles. The marbles will glow when the sun hits them. The holes should be slightly smaller than the marbles, which ensures they fit snugly.

Mary H. Dyer
Writer

A Credentialed Garden Writer, Mary H. Dyer was with Gardening Know How in the very beginning, publishing articles as early as 2007.