Hustle Compass

Tag: garden

  • A Side Hustle Creating Hanging Flower Baskets

    A Side Hustle Creating Hanging Flower Baskets

    Hanging baskets offer a perfect blend of beauty and practicality, transforming any space with cascading flowers and lush greenery while requiring minimal floor space.

    The problem most people encounter when buying hanging flower baskets from big garden centers is that they are all the same and boring. It’s hard to add dimension to a patio or front porch when every hanging basket you see has either Marigolds or Lobelias in them.

    They also tend to be fairly expensive to buy, with some baskets pushing $50.

    If you have a green thumb, creating your own hanging flower baskets could be an enjoyable way to earn a few extra dollars.

    Your advantage

    If you want to venture down this side hustle, use creativity and uniqueness to your advantage. When putting together a flower basket, cater the flowers (as best you can) to the location where they are going.

    What flowers would get best with the patio furniture?

    This patio only gets partial sun, why flowers would got best here?

    How could an hanging basket accent this path?

    By creating something special, you can make a name for yourself and set yourself a part from the big garden centers.

    Create the baskets on demand

    To avoid unnecessary expenses and the added work of watering and maintaining flower baskets you wish to sell, create the basket once you get an order.

    It does mean that you’ll need to make a trip to the garden center to buy some flowers each time, so there is a little extra overhead in that regard.

    You may want to have a small inventory of hanging baskets on hand. Most garden centers get a limited supply during the summer months, and once they are gone, they are gone. Having some on hand means you’ll just need to get dirt and flowers for your finished product.

    Pricing

    A few things to keep in mind when you think about how much to charge.

    1. Consider the costs of the physical hanging pot, flowers and dirt as well as your time to create the product.
    2. You could add a discount if multiple pots are ordered to split travel time between each item.
    3. If you are delivering the final product, make sure you also add that time into your final price.

    Two Side Hustles?

    Once you have a customer base, you could also offer to water their flowers while they are out of town for a summer vacation. If they have invested in their garden, they won’t want it to dry out in the summer heat.

  • Watering Gardens as a side hustle

    Watering Gardens as a side hustle

    Consider yourself lucky if you have a green thumb. Many people try, but just can’t seem to make things click when it comes to their gardens. Take advantage of this skill and earn a little extra money on the side.

    Planting a garden in the summer is a lot of work. The summer is also when most people leave on vacation for extended periods of time, putting those beautiful flowers of drying up under the hot summer sun.

    This creates a perfect opportunity to water garden beds and planters while people are out of town.

    Getting Started

    To get started with your garden watering side hustle, it’s just a matter of getting your name out there. Start out with your local communities. Post a flyer on the bulletin board at your community center, church, the local coffee shop or any other place that has a community bulletin.

    Once you start, and do a good job, chances are word of mouth will be your best marketing tool.

    Gear

    Watering gardens when people are out of town is a great way to earn some extra money because it requires very little investment to get going.

    Chances are you can use the watering can where every you are going. If you are worried about the weight of some of the bigger watering cans or reaching up to the hanging planters, you could always bring your own watering wand with you.

    Things to think about

    Consider the area you want to cover. Even though you have a green thumb, do you want to be driving 15 minutes each way to water for 10 – 15 minutes. If you do, make sure you can price accordingly for your time. If you are in your local community, you can walk between houses giving you a little extra exercise each day.

    Pay attention to water restrictions: if it’s been a dry summer, pay attention to any water restrictions in place. Some municipalities only allow watering during certain days based on house number or during certain hours of the day. Make sure you ask first so you won’t be breaking any rules.

  • Starting a lawn services side hustle

    Starting a lawn services side hustle

    Typical suburban homes have a lawn. Lawns need to be mowed to stay in-line with city bylaws, Home Owner Association rules, and to just be a good neighbor.

    The challenge some people have is that during the summer, they are away for weeks at a time and need someone to take care of their yard. Or they are just too busy as it is and would rather pay someone to do it for them on a weekly basis.

    While the cost to have your lawn mowed varies based on location and size, the price range could be anywhere from $30 to over $100.

    Could this be the right side hustle for you?

    If you already have a lawn mower a trimmer you have everything you need to start. With just those two items, you could focus on your neighborhood and walk to the houses you are looking after.

    If you have a vehicle to help you out, you can expand the ares you can work in, but you’ll also want to factor in travel time and fuel costs if you are going more than a few minutes down the road.

    What about a blower? A blower definitely makes clean up easier and quicker, but it isn’t required to start. A simple broom is all you need to sweep of sidewalks at the start. Once you have established some clients and money is flowing in, then you can invest in a blower.

    Starting Out

    When you are first starting out, see if there are some low cost or free ways to get your name out there. You could post a flyer on a bulletin board at the local community center, church or even some grocery stores have local advertising. You could also drop off flyers to peoples mail boxes in your community to start to get your name out there.

    From a scheduling standpoint, plan your first few clients around your current commitments. If you have a 9-5 plan for nights or weekends.

    Think about safety gear

    If you are going to be operating lawn equipment for extended periods of time, it would be worth with to invest in some eye and ear protection.

    Lawn mowers, trimmers and blowers all produce a lot of nice, and extended exposure can result in hearing loss. Consider buying some ear protection, like these safety ear muffs from Dewalt. For under $25 it’s an investment worth making.

    Plenty of debris can be produced when mowing a lawn. Always make sure you have eye protection as well. These 3M safety glasses are a small investment to protect your vision

    Other things to think about

    Disposal: When mowing a lawn, setting your mower to mulch is the simplest as you won’t need to worry about disposing of grass clippings. If you do bag grass clippings you’ll need to get rid of them in a proper fashion. Some cities and towns have green bins, and if you are upfront about it, using your client’s bin might be an option. If not you’ll need to see how to properly dispose of them

    Insurance: As you’ll be working on other peoples property, you might want to look into having insurance for incidental accidents. Things like if your mower accidentally clips an underground sprinkler head. Having some insurance on your side in case something big happens might remove some stress from your shoulders

    Maintenance: Since you’ll be using your equipment more than you normally would, it’ll wear down quicker. Look into how often and how much it’ll cost service your lawn mower, then add a portion of that to your prices.

    Gas vs. Electric: If you are doing multiple homes in a row, a gas powered mower is likely your best option. If you go battery powered, it’s probably best that you have a back up battery or two available so you don’t end up without power and have an unfinished job to do.

    Noise By-Laws: Be aware of local noise by-laws. Some municipalities have noise by-laws in place that prevent mowing lawns after certain times of the day. While others have effectively banned gas powered blowers based on noise levels. Don’t get in trouble with the city or an Home owners association because of noise.