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lesleyann_gw

Free Rocks!!

lesleyann
15 years ago

For those of us who are on a tight budget, I have found a solution to getting rocks for free. I have looked around at various locations for inexpensive rocks to build a bed and was FLOORED at the costs. $220 a pallet or more!! Sheesh!! Well, on our way home with a load of free compost from the stables for handicapped kids, we passed a site where they are getting to build yet more condos. There on the formerly beautiful hillside were earth movers tearing up the land, then it hit me! Go ask them if we could get rocks!! Now they aren't the perfectly rounded pretty river rocks or flagstones, but they are beautiful and unique local stone. It helps that I am in a "rocky" area. Ta DAH!!! Building materials for my new bed!

Well, once we got it installed, we thought it would be nice to have a stone area dividing the bed from the lawn, so off a hunting for bargains I went. After seeing the bags of stone at home depot for 3.38 a bag, I decided to pass on that idea. Luckily, I live near a quarry. Called them and asked if they sold to the public, lo and behold they did. OK, this wasn't free, but we got 1.13 tons of 1 inch river rock for $43.00 (including our 9.25% sales tax). Sells for $35 a ton. They filled the bed of the truck, and we drove right up to the bed we had just put in and started shoveling away. A bit labor intensive, yes, but hey... didn't have to pull bags and bags off pallets at the Big Box Store, Load them into the truck, load em off the truck and rip open all those bags (to later just go into the landfill). You never know, sometimes it just takes a little thinking outside the Box(store) and a few phone calls or asking the right people and voila!! Cheap or free solutions!!

Happy Frugal Gardening!!

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