The Ultimate Budget Guide to Early Gardening Gear (What You Can Find at Ollie’s)

March 13, 2026

A boy is watering a garden with a watering can.

Make your spring garden prep plans, fit the budget, and discover what else you can bring to life with early gardening essentials.
Ollie’s has garden tools for those on a budget in strong metal styles for adults, and durable, plastic beginner gardening tools that are perfect for kids.
Find everything you need to get growing. Discover cheap outdoor supplies and large designer ceramic pots for your repotting projects.

There are many different ways to set up a garden and get things growing, whether you have an apartment porch, a cozy patio, or a big backyard. Just before spring hits, retailers are trying to sell you everything imaginable in garden supplies, but the truth is that planning and gardening on a budget is easy when you know where to start.

We’re going to share some of our favorite Ollie’s discount gardening items, DIY methods, cheap yard tools, and budget-friendly gardening ideas with you.

Start With the Right Hose

Before you even start thinking about what you want to plant, you need to think carefully about location. Your spring garden prep should include considerations for:

Sunlight/shade
Protection from the elements
Water supply and accessibility

Will you need a 25, 50, or 100-foot hose? You may find expanding garden hoses to be convenient for storing, or you may prefer a standard garden hose with a retractable reel to best suit your needs.

Ollie’s often carries discount hoses and garden hose attachments for gardening on a budget.

Basic Gardening Tools

Every gardener has at least one set of the basic tools, like a hand trowel for digging, a hand cultivator or fork for breaking up soil and removing roots, and a pair of gloves to protect your hands from thorns and from getting blisters.

At Ollie’s, you’ll find durable plastic and metal tools that will get the job done right. With budget gardening tools this affordable, you can buy a set for the kids, too! It never hurts to have a few extra helping hands for spring garden prep and maintaining your garden later in the season.

Garden Soil

One thing most people underestimate when starting a garden is the amount of garden soil you will need.

Bagged garden soil is the easiest way to get potted plants up and growing. When using raised beds or planting directly in the ground, the dirt you have will benefit greatly from mixing it with bagged soil. Ollie’s has you covered with a variety of budget gardening soil options.

Plant Food

Starting with a quality potting soil is great, but your plants will eat up the nutrients in the soil eventually. Supplementing with plant food will help your flowers, fruits, and vegetables grow bigger and better.

At Ollie’s, you’ll find plant feed and budget gardening tools in popular brand names like Scott’s, Miracle-Gro, Bayer BioAdvanced, Magnavox, American Way, and many more at prices up to 60% off big box retailers.

Weed Preventative

Spring garden prep isn’t just about planting! It should include preventive measures against weeds.

At Ollie’s, you may find practical gardening supplies like landscape fabric and select weed-control products depending on the season. These early-season finds can help you build a barrier before weeds become a bigger (and more expensive) problem.

If sprays aren’t your style, try simple, budget-friendly methods. Weed barrier cloth can help block growth in garden beds. For an even lower-cost option, overlap flattened cardboard and cover it with mulch to create a temporary natural barrier.

Starting early with simple supplies can save time, money, and frustration once peak growing season hits.

Pots & Planters

When gardening on a budget, you may be tempted to grab the cheap planters and the plainest plastic pots that will hold dirt.

At Ollie’s, you don't have to put function before style when it comes to planters. Every year, Ollie’s gets a big selection of affordable and absolutely beautiful glazed ceramic pots and planters of all shapes and sizes.

You can find the perfect vibe to match your porch and garden decor. We also stock a range of discount plastic containers for starting seeds and repotting projects.

Garden Decor

Your perfect garden is a place where you can relax in the beauty of nature while the fruits of your efforts grow. Make your garden space feel even more inviting with discount spring décor!

Flowers and vegetables take time to blossom, but you can get a head start on colorful accents with items like garden statues, animal sculptures, and colorful flags that suit your personal style.

Garden decor can also double as a powerful pest deterrent! Items like sparkly pinwheels and shiny suncatchers can scare birds and small critters away. Solar-powered garden decor makes for a pleasant evening atmosphere.

Try This Spring Budget Gardening Project!

Potatoes on a black background

Make a Potato Basket

Believe it or not, you can actually grow potatoes on your back porch using simple supplies!

You will need:

A tall laundry basket with holes from Ollie’s
Seed potatoes, cut into chunks (2-3 eyes each)
Garden soil
Garden mulch or straw
Water

Steps

Let the cut potatoes dry.
After cutting seed potatoes into chunks, let them sit out for a day so the cut sides can dry and form a protective layer.
Add a base layer.
Fill the bottom of the laundry basket with 4–6 inches of garden soil.
Place the seed potatoes.
Set the potato chunks on top of the soil with the eyes facing upward. Space them a few inches apart.
Cover and layer.
Add more soil until the potatoes are covered by about 2–3 inches. Add a light layer of straw or mulch on top.
Water lightly.
Keep the soil damp but not soaked.
Build upward as they grow.
As green leaves start to pop up, add more soil and straw to cover the lower stems. Continue layering as the plant grows taller.
Harvest time!
When the foliage turns yellow and dies back, stop watering. Dump the basket out onto a tarp and gather your potatoes.

Prep Your Garden With Help From Ollie’s

Growing beautiful flowers and delicious fruits and vegetables is easily achievable with a little attention to care and some awesome budget gardening supplies from Ollie’s!

Shop cheap seeds and starters, home and garden supplies, and everything you need for spring garden prep. You never know exactly what cool lawn and garden supplies you’ll find at your local Ollie’s. Check out our current flyer today for our biggest deals!