Gardening can get pretty darn expensive sometimes. From the right soil, planters, seeds, plants, fertilizer, and, well, everything else you need to put together a gorgeous garden, the costs can really add up. Often, this can discourage folks on a tight budget from getting into gardening. But we’ve got some great news for you: there are tons of ways to get free plants.

Not just free, but often, easily, quickly, and in ways that help you get to know your own community a little better.

If you’re ready to dig in and find your own free plants today, check out the methods below.

What You Need to Find Free Plants

Depending on the method(s) you decide to try below, there may be some different things you’ll need to get free plants. However, these are the basic supplies you’ll need to get started.

  • The internet
  • Gardening gloves
  • Garden sheers
  • Soil filled pots (some methods)
  • Recycled glass jars with water (some methods)
  • A little bit of time

Best Methods for Finding Free Plants

There are a huge number of ways to find free or almost free plants all over your own community. We’ll highlight the best and easiest methods for finding them, and how to go about each one. Account for the time commitment involved in each and the needed supplies before you start out on any given method.

“Shop” on Freebie Sites

cellphone with social media sites on screen

Image credits: Gerd Altman via Pixabay

One of the things we love most at Backyard Boss is sustainable practices that help the planet. That means “reusing” plants is a great way to not only get freebies but to help our environment just a little bit.

And there are tons of great freebie websites where you can find free plants available all the time. The plants are usually being offered by folks who’ve been doing landscaping, moving, or need to divide their plants. In most cases, the plants are healthy and looking great – and ripe for transplanting/exchanging hands.

Some of the best sites for finding free plants include:

Some community groups on Meetup.com and Facebook also have folks offering free plants, so check the ones in your area out. You might be surprised with a wonderful, free plant selection. Spend a little time, scrolling through the options every couple of days for best results. You'll be the first to spot the plants - just be ready to pick them up pretty quickly once you do find them. Most folks won't hold them for long.

Host a Seed or Plant Swap

person planting small plants in a greenhouse

Image credits: Ekaterina Ershova via Pixabay

So, technically, this one requires you to have some plants or seeds you’re cool with swapping out with other folks. But it is a great way to vary your garden plants up – and have some fun with friends and family while you’re at it.

You can do a seed/plant sweep a few different ways. One – treat it like an actual event when you invite everyone participating to your place at the same time. They bring the seeds or plants they’re offering up to the others coming to the swap. Or, two – you gather the plants and seeds you’re willing to swap with others and make a round-robin style event of it where you, your neighbors, friends, family – whoever! – go to each other’s homes and swap out plants and seeds with each other. You can do this by helping each other plant the new offerings, or just exchange the items. Either way, it’s fun!

Plant Your Raw Veggies and Fruits

basket of veggies

Image credits: congerdesign via Pixabay

If you keep the pineapple top, some of the cloves of garlic, cuttings from raw potatoes that have started to sprout, etc., you can actually replant these and start growing your own produce garden. This doesn’t mean you need to stop eating your produce, but rather, keep the “leftovers” and parts of the veggies and fruits you can’t eat anyway.

There are a ton of tutorials on how to do this well. Some of the best include:

Be a Plant Hero

plants at a nursery

Image credits: cocoparisienne via Pixabay

People and cats need heroes, but guess what? Sometimes plants do, too! And being a plant hero is a great way to not only help out struggling plants that will die without you but get plants for free that you can coax some life into.

Check out the trash bins of garden centers, nurseries, and florists to find and rescue some of these plants (or Walmart, Aldi – any place that sells plants!). Check around yard maintenance companies in your neighborhood. They often have plants that are rooted up and abandoned after a new project gets underway. Check-in on construction sites and homes about the demolished – often the plants here need rescuing because no one would think to save them.

Join the Arbor Day Foundation

dogwood trees lining country road

Image credits: Jana McLain via Pixabay

When you join the Arbor Day Foundation, not only do you get to keep up on the info of the day about trees and plants, but you get ten free trees. Enter your zip code, choose your tree plan, and get those trees shipped in.

Become a Digging Service

gardener digging in garden

Image credits: summa via Pixabay

For this one, you’ll need to put in a little work – but it’s work you’ll enjoy. All a digging service is going around and helping your neighbors by digging up plants they no longer want. Bring pots and soil with you, or jars with water and rooting hormone, to place the new-to-you plants in when you dig them up – and voila – you help your neighbors and get a ton of new plants for your own space at once.

Free Plants Are Easy to Find

Seriously, if you just put in a little work, use the internet a few times a week, and sacrifice a little time to do some digging and driving, you’ll find free plants are plentiful and easy to get. We recommend combining as many of these methods as possible to obtain the perfect ratio of new plants to the space you’re adding to. Or just pick one or two if you don’t have as much time. Either way, you should be overflowing with free plants soon!