Gardening has many rewards, but as we all have to scrimp and pull our belts a bit tighter, it can seem like it's expensive to get started. There are many things we can do to be more thrifty in the garden, though! Over at The Home Gardener, Dave Townsend offers three really great tips: start from seed, propagate your own plants, and participate in plant swaps.

Are there other ways that you've found to save money in the garden? I like to reuse household objects to make garden items, and I recycle my friends' and neighbors' decorative straw bales as mulch each fall. What tips do you suggest?

Living large on less: a guide to saving without sacrifice by Christina Spence — Just about everyone is doing more with less these days, and this book is a great guide to many aspects of balancing one's personal budget and making the most of the dollars we do have. One of the most important steps here is to make a budget that actually works for you. You can use spreadsheets, personal finance software, or an online service like Mint.com to track your spending and make some of the adjustments suggested here. The ideas range from quick fixes to challenges that offer a trial run at a larger change.

The comforts of home : thrifty and chic decorating ideas for making the most of what you have by Caroline Clifton- Mogg — One of the 2010 Librarians' Picks for Non-Fiction, this book offers the philosophy that a comfortable home is an orderly home. With a plan for where things should be, it becomes easy to make it useful and a place in which you want to spend time. There's no time like now for being thrifty as well, and using the tips here you can make your home work for you, using (or at least starting with) what you have. You can also find lots of gently used items locally at Goodwill, the Salvation Army, and through Freecycle.

Simple times by written by Amy Sedaris and Paul Dinello — Fans of Sedaris' I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence will not be disappointed by her latest guide. Now is the time to be thrifty and to embellish your life with your crafty skills while you scrimp and save. No one crafts like Amy Sedaris, but you can try to imitate her by following her instructions. BONUS: the images in this book are simultaneously gorgeous and hilarious, and there are even illustrations by renaissance guy Justin Theroux.