Annuals - Millionaire on the Prairie

Spending Time! Use the Money in the Sinking Fund!

Hooray!!! It’s spending time! Break out the debit or credit card because we are going to use the money in the sinking fund!

One of my sinking funds – and I have many! – is dedicated towards my flower garden. I’m an amateur gardener in every sense of the word. Each year, I devote a few hours to planning what I want to buy and where I want to put it. The tail end of winter in Alberta can get mighty dreary so planning my garden is a good way to remind myself that spring is on its way. Container gardening brings me much joy. My wonky knees don’t allow me to comfortably kneel and work the ground like I see others doing. Containers raise everything up off the ground. And there are so many different styles of containers that I find it a bit overwhelming to choose. They’re not exactly perfect since planting can still be a bit hard on my back, but one of my Christmas presents last year was a gardener’s stool. I can hardly wait to use it this spring!

But I digress. My sinking fund for gardening is supposed to cover all of the following over the next few weeks:

compost, fertilizers, potting soil, and worm castings
a wide variety of annuals (petunias, marigolds, geraniums, verbena, sweet potato vine, coleus, and whatever else catches my eye while at the greenhouse)
new containers for all my annuals
new gloves, tools and hoses (if necessary)
more perennials and bulbs (lamium, hellebores, hostas, daffodils, tulips, balloon flowers)

Perennials are fabulous! They usually come back bigger and they bring their babies too. Free plants are a good thing as far as I’m concerned! My balloon flowers were transplanted 2 years ago. Last year, they did just okay and I let them go to seed. This year, I’m anxiously awaiting to see if they seeded themselves. Since they’re one of the last things to emerge in the spring, I’ve got another 5-6 weeks before I’ll have an answer to my question.

Bottom line – I’m always happy to see the return of my perennials, and I do what I can to ensure that they continue to love their space. This year, I’m finally going to implement the wisdom I’ve learned from Garden Answer and will add a new layer of compost to all my in-ground plants and containers. It’s supposed to refresh the soil since I don’t change the soil in my containers every year.

I’m just as much a fan of annuals. They have a place in my heart because they offer continuous flowers throughout the spring, summer and early fall. I’m in zone 3. For me, annuals always start small – since I’m too cheap to buy bigger plants! I don’t mind since I love watching their progress in the first 3 weeks. I’m not super-gentle when planting them, so they need a week to recover from transplant shock. Once settled and well-watered, they start to perk up by week three. Within six weeks, they’ve doubled in size and start to fill in the containers nicely. I love watching my annuals blooms! Watering them brings me a sense of peace, and takes away the stress of the day.

In another few weeks, I’ll be able hitting the greenhouses with my friends. And I won’t worry about how I’m going to pay for what I want. My sinking fund will cover the costs.

You should set up sinking funds too, if you haven’t done so already. I talk a lot about having sinking funds for the non-sexy parts of life, like vehicle insurance and property taxes. Maybe I should’ve also encouraged sinking funds for the fun parts of life too! What are your hobbies? Do you want to travel? Are you going to be buying seasons tickets to the theatre or to sporting events? Is there a new crafting skill that you want to master?

Use your sinking fund to pay for the fun aspects of your life too! I know a lady who blissfully spends her money on concerts. She never hesitates to buy the best tickets for whomever she wants to see! She loves going to concerts so saving money to do so is a priority in her budget. I know another lady who goes to writing workshops. One lady I talks about flying to another city for the day just to visit a particular restaurant. Different strokes for different folks, right? The thing they all have in common is that they identified their priorities and they use sinking funds to pay for them.

Let’s face facts. Spending money so, so, so much better when there’s no worry that it will result in debt. There’s no credit card hangover when you rely a sinking fund to pay for your priorities. When spending time rolls around, you can spend with ease knowing that you have the money to get what you want. The purpose of money is make your life better. It’s meant to alleviate stress, not to create it. Use sinking funds to buy what you truly want and to bring your dreams to life. There’s truly no down side to doing so. Happy, happy, joy, joy all around!

Money well-spent is never wasted!

I am an amateur gardener. Essentially, this means that I don’t know what I’m doing but I do it with enthusiasm. Each year, I pick my tried and true favourite annual – petunias – and then I buy new plants that I want to try. My winters are spent watching various gardening channels on YouTube and making lists of what I think will grow well for me.

Last year, I tried coleus for the first time… and I completely fell in love with this gorgeous, vigorous plant. It’s the only thing I’ve ever paired with petunias that could match the petunias’ growth habit. Take a look at this container. There are only 3 coleus plants, and three petunia plants. Those little splotches of pink and orange near the edges are flower from two of the four begonias that I planted with the coleus and the petunias. A little tip from me to you – begonias cannot keep up with petunias and coleus.

Coleus side vs. Petunia side of same planter!

This year, the “new” annual is verbena. So far, I’m very happy with my 2 verbena plants. If they can handle the hot, hot summer sun that’s due to arrive in July and August, then I will be adding verbena to my yearly list of favorites. Take a peek at these little beauties.

In addition to coleus, petunias, and verbena, I also selected geraniums, marigolds, sweet potato vine and begonias to fill up my planters. It’s been a week and, so far, everything is still a live. My goal is to keep it that way!

And while I’m not an expert, I’ve learned a few things over the years. Firstly, it’s much cheaper to plant perennials in the ground and save the annuals for my containers. While they might cost more at the front end, a healthy perennial will come back year after year. They’ll flower beautifully, though for a shorter period of time. I enjoy feeling accomplished when they come back each year. It means that I managed to properly care for them – not too much fertilizer the year before, the right amount of water, a perfectly selected spot with light they found most pleasing.

Perennials make for good investments. I’ve learned this with my hostas. I transplanted three last year, but only two came back. I’m not sure what I did wrong with third one but something clearly went awry. No matter – I’ve already replaced the dead one. Next year, I expect all three of them to come back and fill in a very awkward little spot I have near my garage door.

This year, my shed came down. There’s now a 6′ x 6′ patch of dirt in my yard that’s in desperate need of something green. As I already have a very large yard, I refuse to plant anymore grass. I have too much as it is. Again, this nearly cleared patch of land is in a strange spot. The shed was nestled under two healthy, large lilac trees. As a result, this spot sits in shade except for roughly 3-4 hours in the afternoon. So I think it will be a shade garden… once I figure out what can live in the shade and survive the hottest sun of the day.

Ahem… Blue Lobster, this isn’t a gardening blog. Yes, Gentle Reader, you’re right – it’s not. This is a place where I share my thoughts about money and encourage you to spend yours in a way that will make your dreams come true.

I’m talking about plants today because they take my mind off of my money. Yes – I said it. Sometimes, it’s good to not think about money. Obviously, I need money to buy my plants. I needed money to buy the worm castings and potting soil. Money definitely facilitated the purchase of my new containers this spring. There’s a good chance I’ll need money to pay for the water that’s used between rainfalls to keep my plants alive and happy.

Coleus, sweet potato vine, begonias, geraniums… love them all!

Yet, when I look at my wee little plants, I don’t see money. Instead, I see pretty flowers. One of my annuals was planted as a Hail Mary. I don’t know what happened but this little petunia was lying on its side, unlike the other plants in the six-pack, and refused to remain upright. It wasn’t dead though, and the roots were still attached to the crown. I had a small spot in my self-watering container so I dug a hole, carefully inserted Little Floppy, and watered gently. That was a week ago. Today, I discovered that Little Floppy has doubled in size and is already pushing buds. I expect to see a flower by this time next week.

My plants calm me. There’s nothing I can do about inflation. Volatility in the stock market will rock the value of my portfolio. More often than not, world events make me sad. So I turn to my plants. They offer me respite from an irrational amount of worry about things that are out of my control. Every day, I can step outside for some fresh air and watch the magic of nature up close.

And since this is a blog about money, here are some numbers. So far, I’ve spent about $250 on my plants this year. Most of it went to annuals, but some of it went to perennials too. Specifically, this year I’ve purchased a new hydrangea bush, my replacement hosta, and a second hosta for a different location. The shed-spot needs more plants, so I expect to be spending another $100-$200 to get sufficient plants to create the shade garden I want.

The few hundred dollars that I’ve spent, and will spend shortly, on my plants will make me happy for a very long time. All things considered, I view it as money well-spent.

Like I’ve said before, not every expenditure is going to put a smile on your face. I don’t know anyone who’s excited to pay for parking tickets or property taxes. Nonetheless, you should be spending atleast some of your money in ways that make your heart sing. For me, it’s plants. What is it for you?

Spend Your Money on What You Love!

Today, I’m encouraging you to spend your money on what you love. The beauty of personal finance is that it is uniquely specific to what each individual needs and wants. There are general, overarching financial needs that everyone has – think emergency funds, retirement accounts, and just-for-fun money. Everyone who is alive needs to have these in one form or another.

However, my just-for-fun money will be spent very differently than how my family & friends spend their just-for-fun money. This is why I want you to pay very close to attention to what makes you happiest, and then I want you to spend your money on what you love.

Not so fun fact – inflation in Canada is up 6.7% from where it was last year. Boo!!!

A very fun fact – spring has sprung in my corner of the world. Yay!!!! In a few short weeks, I’ll be shopping at a number of greenhouses, picking up various annuals and containers and fertilizers and stakes and nozzles and potting soil… You get the idea. I’m an amateur gardener, and I love the anticipation that comes with the start of the gardening season. One of my favourite ways to spend my money is on flowers. As a matter of fact, I’m taking a container gardening course tomorrow at a local greenhouse.

When I’m feeling a little blue, I visit another greenhouse and tour their gardens and stroll their aisles. Of all the greenhouses I’ve visited, this is the one where I’m most like to find all of the plants I want in one place. One of my favourite greenhouses isn’t particularly large but they have the most spectacular geranium selection I have ever seen in my life. And it was the only place where I found sweet potato vine when I needed it. It is one of my happy places!

My garden is a work in progress.

For me, it is very easy to spend my money on my flowers. I’m trying my hand at planting perennials, since that’s the frugal way of doing things. Last year’s tulips are emerging and I hope to see some blooms very soon. It took some doing but I finally found some hollyhocks for the south wall along my garage. My fingers are crossed that they come back this year. Due to some landscaping work, I had to transplant several established perennials – hostas, balloon flowers, peonies – last year. I’m holding my breath that I didn’t kill them in the process!

Perennials are a frugal gardener’s friend. A one-time investment can yield years of enjoyment. There are spots in my garden where I dislike trying to plant new annuals every year. If I can get my perennials well-established in those spots, my knees and lower back will thank me…. and I’ll have something beautiful to look at instead of just dirt.

However, I’m becoming a huge fan of container gardening too. Elevated planters have been a game-changer for me. Waist-high and arm-length wide, these wonderful creations allow me to comfortably plant, fertilize and water my wee baby plants while standing. I’m in a zone 3, so I can only plant annuals in these planters but that’s okay by me. While I’m a big fan of perennials, I’m an even bigger fan of annuals – petunias, coleus, begonias, geraniums, zinnias! These are my darlings. They’re so colourful! If I don’t particularly enjoy a colour one year, then I simply don’t buy it the next year. Annuals flower for the whole season, while perennials only flower once. They’re all beautiful but there is nothing more satisfying to me than to watch my annuals bloom continuously all summer.

Indulge me for a moment…

These are my beloved ballon flowers. I started with 2 blue plants, and the white ones came up a few years later. Fingers crossed that they survived my transplanting efforts!

Back to spending your money on what you love

So I’ve been in my current home for 18 years… wow! That seems like a long time, but I swear I just moved in a few days ago. Anyway, ever since my first summer here, I’ve been tinkering with a few new flowers each season. Though I still don’t have a formal gardening plan, I’ve enjoyed the show each year. There are so many beautiful and varied things to try. I’m like a kid in the candy store when I visit my greenhouses!

Today, I’m at the point of seriously considering the benefits of hiring a landscape designer and a crew to build some flowerbeds for even more perennials and some raised beds for my annuals. The only drawback I see to this option is the cost. It won’t be cheap. Yet… the fact remains that I likely won’t regret spending my money on this particular want. I have a great big backyard, that’s currently just grass. Gardening is a great hobby, one I can enjoy for the next 20+ years barring any physical limitations. It’s a way for me to get outside and enjoy all the spots of my property. I’m thrilled to see things bloom, and I like the idea of helping pollinators get what they need to stay alive.

One of the reasons that I sacrificed a few experiences when I was younger was so that I could fully fund my RRSP and my TFSA. I’d also wanted to have my non-registered account well-funded long before retirement. My financial dream had been to create a cash flow that I could live on when I stopped working. Lately, I’ve been crunching my numbers with a fee-only financial planner, and various internet calculators. They’re all telling me the same thing – that I will be okay. I’m starting to believe them!

So now it’s time for me to loosen the purse strings a little bit. I’ve enjoyed the journey up to now, but it’s okay for me to enjoy it a little bit more. So kindly wish me the best as I head to the greenhouses with the hordes of other gardeners. There are wee baby plants in my future and it’s almost time for me to get my hands back in the dirt.

So this is my non-professional and completely non-binding advice to you. Do what you need to do to ruthlessly cut out all spending that doesn’t bring you joy. Get out of debt. Fund your emergency, retirement, and investment accounts to the best of your ability. Spend some fun-money along the way, but not too much! When you’ve identified what brings you the most joy, spend your money freely. Do so with a smile on your face and joy in your heart as you spend your money on what you love!