Posts Tagged ‘less’

How to Make Money at Home Growing Small Landscape Plants on 1/20 Acre or Less

Aug 5, 2010 Wholesale Cake Boxes

Small town, big town, it doesn’t matter, if you have a small area in your backyard that you can use for planting, then you can make money growing small plants at home. Actually you can make pretty good money on 1/40 of one acre. That’s an area about 30 feet by 40 feet.

You will be amazed at how many plants you can fit in an area that small, and at how much money you can make. Even apartment dwellers can do this! If you live in an apartment, just to get a feel for how fun and rewarding a tiny nursery can be, find somebody with a little piece of ground that they will either let you use, let you rent it, or do a joint venture with you.

Is there really a market for small plants? The market is huge, something like 4 billion dollars last year alone, and the demand is tremendous. As a small grower, you have a tremendous advantage over the larger nurseries, their overhead is very high. As a backyard grower, yours will be almost nothing.

You might be asking; “I live in a small town in a rural area, how many plants can I really sell?”

Tens of thousands if you want to. Most people don’t realize it, but large wholesale growers are the largest buyers of small plants in the country. They sell so many plants that they just can not produce them fast enough themselves, so they buy them from wherever they can find them. Just pack them up in a cardboard box and ship them anywhere you want.

I routinely buy large quantities of small plants and have them shipped thousands of miles to my house. Why do I buy plants if I know how to grow them myself? There are a lot of reasons, but one is because I am impatient and don’t like to grow Japanese Maples from seed. I can buy Japanese Maple seedlings for as little as 75 cents and all I have to do is pot them up and watch them grow.

I also buy large quantities of flowering shrubs that I would like to start propagating myself. I buy them for 50 cents, pot them up, and often sell them the next year for $4.97. But in the meantime I take cuttings from them to propagate for next year’s crop. Then I never have to buy that variety again.

Those are the same reasons that many wholesale nurseries are always looking for great deals on small plants. When they find someone like you, growing in their backyard, they are delighted because they know they can buy what they need for less money from a small backyard grower than they can if they buy from a large nursery.

It only stands to reason, your overhead is almost nothing, you don’t have to raise the price of your plants to pay for buildings, hundreds of acres of land, trucks, tractors, and dozens of employees.

How much money do you need to get started?

Almost none. All you have to do is root some cuttings, and you’re on your way! There are dozens of easy plant propagation techniques that are so easy to learn that young children can do them, and with great success I might add.

This propagation information is available to you free of charge at www.freeplants.com

The size of the area you need to get started is really up to you, but an area about the size of a picnic table is a start. I’m serious. I root my cuttings in flats that are about 12” by 15”, and can get between 100 and 150 cuttings per flat. In an area about the size of a picnic table you should be able to root several thousand cuttings at a time.

And guess what? As soon as they are well rooted, they have a value and can be sold immediately! Isn’t that cool? Typically a rooted cutting is worth about 50 cents. Let’s see now, 1500 cuttings at 50 cents each, that’s $750.!!! Wow!!! The wheels should be turning now.

But you don’t have to sell 50 cent plants. You can grow them until they’re bigger and get more money for them. That’s what I do, I pot them up in small pots and they sell like crazy right from my driveway at $4.97 each.

This spring we sold over $25,000 worth of $4.97 plants right from our driveway. One of the people that bought my Backyard Nursery E-book held a sale this spring and sold $2,800 worth of plants her first weekend. She was ecstatic! Of course we also sold plants for much more than that. I used to grow Japanese Red Maples and we sold those for $45 each, and they sold like hot cakes!

This is one of the most fun and rewarding home businesses you could ever get involved in. My kids have learned work ethics, the value of a dollar, and skills that will last them a lifetime. Any time they needed a little extra money all they had to do was step out the back door and earn the money they needed.

It costs very little to get started, and the rewards can be quite high. It’s certainly not a get rich quick plan (because there is no such thing!), but plenty of people have done very well in the nursery business. All it takes is determination and hard work. You can learn it as you go along. It’s much easier than you think.


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Disgustingly Cheap Wedding Cakes – How To Get Your Cake For Less

Jul 17, 2010 Wedding Cake Bakery

With the oh-so many different expenses that come with planning a wedding, the last thing you want to hear is that you have to spend a small fortune on cake. Luckily, you don’t have to worry too much, as you can easily obtain a great wedding cake at a rock bottom price. How is this possible, you ask? 3 words; cheap wedding cakes.

When it comes to getting an inexpensive cake, you can NOT go straight to a private bakery and pick out a top of the line, expertly designed cake. The cost of doing this will make your head spin out of control. Instead, what you need to do is think of different ways to acquire cheap wedding cakes. Take a moment now and come up with 3 quick &  “realistic” options for getting an inexpensive cake.

Did you come up with 3 ideas? If you did, read below and get 4 MORE ideas to help you find cheap wedding cakes. If you didn’t come up with anything, well, at least you have these 4 ideas to fall back on.

- Hire someone that bakes specialty cakes from home. These individuals aren’t all that difficult to find and they’re pricing is about as low as it can get. Taste their work before committing and be sure to ask about any references.

- Check out the bakery department of local grocery stores. It may be an unlikely place to find a suitable cake for your wedding, but it is an option to consider nonetheless. These places make great tasting cakes and sell them at won’t-break-the-budget prices.

- Haggle for Discounts. If you’re dead set on a professionally made wedding cake from a private bakery, then haggle for a price you can afford. Don’t try and kid yourself, they WANT your business and they’ll work with you to ensure they get it.

- Make cheap wedding cakes yourself. It might seem difficult, but it’s really not all that bad. With the right supplies and an easy-to-use online guide, you can quickly make a wedding cake that not only looks fantastic but tastes fantastic too. Think of it this way; a cake purchased from a bakery costs DOLLARS per slice, while a cake made by you costs PENNIES per slice!

Cheap wedding cakes don’t have to be disgusting nor do they need to be ugly in order for you to save money. With the right ideas & techniques, your cake can be just as beautiful & delicious as those fancy-schmancy thousand dollar wedding cakes.


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A Whirlwind Wedding – Planning Your Wedding in Three Months or Less

May 26, 2010 Wedding Cake Bakery

For many the idea of planning a wedding within three months is just inconceivable.  For them the only option would be to elope, but a short engagement doesn’t mean that you can’t have the wedding of your dreams.  With some careful planning & determination you can pull off a fantastic wedding in just 12 weeks.  Here’s how.

The Wedding Location

Your options for location maybe limited as many places are booked well in advance, but there should still be a good choice of locations available & you may be able to negotiate a discount for booking at a late date.  Save extra time by choosing to have your ceremony & reception at the same location.  Look for inns, hotels or non-traditional venues such as film locations.  If you are having trouble finding a location then look to hiring a wedding planner, they can often find the places that aren’t booked up & will be invaluable in helping you to organize so much in such a short space of time.  Being flexible on date & time will expand your options & possibly help your budget.

Your Wedding Dress & the Bridesmaids’ Dresses

It is usual to order your wedding dress around 6-8 months before the wedding day, with your bridesmaids dresses soon after.  However, many bridal shops can offer a fastrack service if you need your dress sooner & some manufacturers can make dresses in 8-12 weeks.  For other alternatives look out for sample sales, where you can pick up a dress in store straightaway & usually at less than the tag price.  If you pick up a sample dress be prepared to have it cleaned & you may also need to find a seamstress to make an alterations for you.  Also look for the large bridal emporiums that stock a wide range of sizes ready for you to purchase immediately.  For your bridesmaids consider buying occasion dresses from department stores or high street stores.  Another option is to ask them to wear dresses they already have.

Invitations

Ideally you will post your invitations 6 weeks before the wedding day.  If you want posh printed invitations you should look for a local printer who can provide a quick turnaround.  Otherwise print them yourself.  Check out websites which offer DIY printing services or find a software program such as Printing Press to help make quick work of it.   To save more time set up a wedding webpage for your guests to visit & where they can leave an RSVP & keep up to date with all you arrangements.  You can also ask them to RSVP by phone or email.

The Food & Cake

When choosing your location a hotel or restaurant would be a good choice as they are already set up to provide catering.  Look for alternatives to French or Italian restaurants & have some fun at a Mexican restaurant or Tapas Bar.  It is also worthwhile ringing around local catering firms & asking if they can fit you in.  Some of the larger companies may be able to accommodate you.  If your restaurant or caterer can’t provide a cake, check out local bakeries & see what they can provide.  As an alternative to a tiered cake, choose a single cake & provide the kitchen with some plain cutting cakes for your guests.

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