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March 28, 2017

How to Get Free Plants for Your Garden

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Last Updated on January 30, 2023

Buying plants for your garden can add up quickly. Here are some easy ways to get free plants and get your garden going on the cheap!

Don’t spend a fortune on your garden — you can get lots of plants for free using the strategies below.

pin with photo of plant you can get for free, chives, and title text overlay

How to Get Free Plants

If you haven’t done much gardening, you might not know that gardeners often divide their plants to give them more room to grow. These divisions can be planted to make new, free plants.

What does this mean for the frugal or beginning gardener?

Two things: 

1) Gardeners in your area have starter plants you can have for free, and 2) You can divide what you already have and make more free plants.

Choosing Free Plants for Your Garden

Just to clarify for novice gardeners: We’re talking about perennials here, plants that return year after year. If you’re on a budget or strapped for time, perennials are the way to go.

Annual plants have to be purchased (or grown from seed) each season. More time-consuming and expensive, so not for me!

I have a mainly perennial garden, largely populated by plants I got for free. And if you really want to save money (and help the planet), I recommend focusing on edibles so the free plants in your yard produce bountiful free food for your family!

(Most of what’s in my yard is edible. Find out how I grow plentiful food on 1/10 acre using permaculture principles in my post about ways to get more food from your yard.)

My yard is filled with plants given to me by other gardeners that I’ve slowly divided over the years. A couple rhubarb divisions got me started on my obsession with rhubarb, and now 5 hardy plants give us more than we need for delicious homemade fruit leather, crisps, and more.

I’ve spread creeping thyme everywhere I can to create a living groundcover that saves on mulch, smells amazing, and attracts pollinators. It’s among the 35 herbs that grow in shade that thrive in less sunny yards like mine.

Lemon balm and mint make tasty additions to teas, while chives and oregano add flavor and healthy antioxidants to our cooking. My first raspberry plants and numerous daylilies, flax plants, echinacea, bee balm, yarrow, and other flowers also came from area gardeners thinning their beds.

There are lots more medicinal plants you can get free for your garden. Here’s more information on starting a medicinal herb garden if you want to cultivate more homegrown remedies.

If you’re interested in growing more food with less work, you might find some perennial vegetables you can get as divisions as well.

And now I spread the love, inviting other gardeners to take divisions or plants growing where I don’t want them. Better believe those other gardeners are thrilled to get plants for free also. 

–>Want to learn to grow some of your own food, even if you know absolutely nothing about gardening? Grab my quickstart guide for newbie gardeners here.

Where to Find Free Plants

[2021 update: Since finding jumping worms in my garden, I’ve done a great deal of research on how to avoid spreading them. Plant exchanges are a potential source of jumping worms, so be cautious when bringing plant material, including mulch, compost, and nursery plants, into your garden. Sticking with bare-root plants is the safest bet. If you can remove soil from plants you get from others, you’ll lessen the chance of bringing in worms. Solarizing soil and mulch can help kill cocoons. Read the post on Asian jumping worms to find out more.]

There are so many sources for free plants! Here are my favorites:

1) Get Free Plants in Your Own Yard!

Start by shopping your own yard and thinking about what you’d be happy to have more of. What perennials are already growing in your yard? Take stock of what’s already growing that you could divide.

Flowers, perennial herbs, and foliage plants can all be split after a season or two to get established and used to start new plants elsewhere in your yard. Sometimes plants will plant themselves places you don’t want (called “volunteers”), and you can dig them up and replant them where they can be more useful.

Also remember that some plants you might consider weeds can be useful, even attractive. Clover, for instance, not only adds nitrogen to your soil and attracts pollinators, but is also an excellent medicinal plant. Dandelions are extremely nutritious and provide food for pollinators while aerating your yard with their long tap roots. Purslane is a prized as a superfood in much of the world, though unwitting American gardeners waste time eradicating it.

Learn more: What to know about weeds you can eat and remedies from your yard.

2) Get Free Plants from Friends and Neighbors

Have you admired the perennial bed a friend or neighbor has? Just ask if you can have a few divisions the next time they’re thinning their beds. You could also arrange a plant or seed swap with a group of friends.

3) Get Free Plants on Freecycle, Craigslist, Nextdoor, and Other Community Lists

Freecycle and Facebook groups can be a gold mine for gardeners looking for free plants (and seeds, tools and other garden gear). Put out a call for what you’d like, or if you’re not sure, just say you’re looking for some perennials, and does anyone have some they’re dividing or getting rid of?

Freecycle and other community-based lists have been my primary source of free plants, as well as pots, stakes, and other garden tools.

If you belong to other community lists that accept such posts, put out a call for plants there as well.

4) Keep Your Eyes Open for Free Plants Around Town

Some gardeners will leave their unwanted divisions by the curb for frugal gardeners to scavenge. Be on the lookout for road work or other construction projects where plants may be rescued. Also ask when you see someone’s yard being redone by a landscaper. They’ll be tearing out existing plants, which they’ll likely be happy to give to you.

5) Check the Community Drop Site for Free Plants

Our town operates a compost site where residents drop off leaves and pick up free compost to use in their yards. They keep a little pile of dirt by the entrance where gardeners can temporarily plant divisions till another gardener picks them up and gives them a new home.

6) Check with local garden clubs and community garden organizations

Your local garden club is a great way to find other gardeners, who in all likelihood have loads of plant divisions they’d love to see find new homes.

7) See if garden centers and nurseries have plants they’re giving away.

Nurseries might have plants that don’t make the cut for selling that they’d otherwise throw away. They only sell perfect-looking specimens, and the ones that look a bit sub-par may get tossed. No harm in asking!

8) Regrow Scraps from Your Kitchen

Lettuce and scallion ends can be replanted to grow more! You just need to soak them in water and plant in the garden. Here’s more on which vegetables work for getting free plants from your scraps.

9) Save your own seeds

Saving seeds from year to year is an easy way to keep a steady supply of plants coming. Not all seeds can be saved and produce a genetically identical offspring, though. You need to stick with open-pollinated plants, like heirloom tomatoes. Here’s more about seed saving from the Minnesota extension service.

Getting Your Free Plants 

Gardeners will know about the preferences of the plants they’re giving you, so take advantage of their knowledge! Be sure to get any information the gardener has about preferred light, soil, and watering.

Different plants have different preferred times for divisions, but the owner of the plant will let you know. Expect early and mid-spring and fall to be high dividing times. (It varies by climate and plant.) The height of summer heat is not ideal for divisions, so send out those requests for plants early and later in the growing season. 

If you’re dividing your own plants, do some reading about the variety and when it’s best to replant. You should water the plant well before and after dividing. Here’s a helpful tipsheet from the University of Minnesota Extension. If you’re in a warmer climate, you might find something similar from your state extension service.

Caring for your free plants after transplanting: Expect your division to look a little droopy till it gets used to its new home. Be sure to keep it well watered and it will recover. After a couple seasons in your yard, you can divide it again if you want to spread it to additional areas.

photo of blackeyed susans

Getting Free Plants for the More Advanced and Adventurous Gardener:

Even if you don’t have something to dig up, you can get free plants by starting new ones from cuttings. It’s a little more finicky, but it’s doable. You can also propagate shrubs this way, like the amazing elderberry. Here’s everything you need to know about propagating and growing elderberry, plus the best elderberry varieties to seek out from friends and neighbors.

Check out this tutorial on propagating plants from Anna at Green Talk for lots more on propagating to get free plants.

And of course, you can grow plants from seeds (also easy to get free from other gardeners or harvest yourself), but that’s a topic for another post. 🙂

Now that you know how to get free plants, start finding some near you and enjoy your free garden plants this season! What plants have you gotten from other gardeners and which are you hoping to get? Share in the comments!

Pin to save this info on how to get free plants for later!

pin with photos of plants you can get for free: mint, echinacea, and a flower garden with title text

Get free plants photo credits: natacha85, Andrea44, SLF, strecosa, stanbalik

Shot with book compressed
Susannah

Susannah is a proud garden geek and energy nerd who loves healthy food and natural remedies. Her work has appeared in Mother Earth Living, Ensia, Northern Gardener, Sierra, and on numerous websites. Her first book, Everything Elderberry, released in September 2020 and has been a #1 new release in holistic medicine, naturopathy, herb gardening, and other categories. Find out more and grab your copy here.

Filed Under: Gardening Tagged With: beginner gardening, frugal, gardening

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Comments

  1. Anna@GreenTalk says

    April 6, 2017 at 7:51 pm

    I actually propagate my annuals like basil so I can have more instead of waiting for seeds to germinate. Thanks for including me in your round up.

    Reply
    • Susannah says

      April 8, 2017 at 2:13 pm

      I’ve read about that — great idea!

      Reply
  2. Deb says

    April 14, 2017 at 5:17 am

    Great inspiration to getting affordable extra garden additives! What fun sharing arrangements your area has set up.

    Reply
    • Susannah says

      April 14, 2017 at 11:37 am

      Thanks! A lot of these ways to get free plants don’t require any pre-existing networks, though there are so many freecycles out there, maybe you have one in your area as well. Happy planting!

      Reply
  3. Pam Floyd says

    June 12, 2018 at 9:16 am

    How can I get free rhubarb
    Plants?

    Reply
    • Susannah says

      June 12, 2018 at 9:52 am

      Just put out a call on Freecycle or local Facebook free groups or ask neighboring gardeners. Someone will certainly have one they’ll be hapy to divide for you in fall.

      Reply
  4. Michelle Hurlbut says

    March 28, 2020 at 3:41 pm

    I refuse to pay the high prices of nursery plants so have found several ways to expand my perennials… When we bought our house, it already had many sturdy perennials like hostas, lilies., and ornamental grasses. Divide, divide, divide! After 5 yrs, I have multiplied the few I started with into yards of neat hosta/lily borders surrounding my house. Hostas allow you to mow right under them, eliminating need for weed whipping. Young man bought old house next door with intent to dig up all plantings by previous owner. It was a lot of work, but I dug up all his lily of valley, day lilies, hostas, bleeding heart, wild roses, and other misc that had been buried in weedy flower beds and transplanted them into my yard. . An empty lot across the street yielded 15+ peony bushes and tulips that were just being mowed over. A friend who was changing her landscaping let me have a myriad of exotic hostas and lilies. Occasionally I buy end of season perennials that go for real cheap because they are barely alive and I nurse them back to health. I have friends who are planning on moving later this year, so I will be able to dig up starts from raspberries, rhubarb, and grapes. They will be much hardier than nursery stock since they are already acclimated to our area. There are tons of free stuff out there if you are willing to do the work and have a good network to find them!!!!!

    Reply
    • Susannah says

      March 28, 2020 at 4:08 pm

      It sounds like you are an extremely enterprising gardener (and rescuer of plants), Michelle! Your garden must be a delight!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Lemon Balm ~ An Herb Worth Knowing and Growing - HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    April 6, 2017 at 3:00 pm

    […] can get your first lemon balm plant as a division from a fellow gardener or buy one at a nursery, and eventually you’ll have as much as you […]

    Reply
  2. 9 Ways to Get More Food From Your Yard - HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    April 11, 2017 at 1:30 pm

    […] These delicate pink raspberries grow off to the side of my front yard, but the plants are pretty invasive, and a little rangy for a front-yard garden. I’m moving them to a more contained out-of-the-way location by our back door.  I underplant this area with strawberries, thyme, and borage, an odd-looking self-seeder with edible flowers and leaves that lend a melon-cucumber flavor to water and have some impressive medicinal properties. amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "healthycom0f-20"; amzn_assoc_ad_mode = "manual"; amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; amzn_assoc_marketplace = "amazon"; amzn_assoc_region = "US"; amzn_assoc_title = "Plants to consider for your edible landscape"; amzn_assoc_linkid = "abfb5814c00adb548db6204684dc43e9"; amzn_assoc_asins = "B013TCKV5E,B01MZ4PJZX,B013TA5YV2,B002ZYRDCM"; My all-time favorite herb, lemon balm, joined the party as a single plant. In the years since, I’ve let it spread and have more than a dozen plants in different parts of the yard. (Read more about what’s so wonderful about lemon balm and how I get most of my plants for free.) […]

    Reply
  3. How to Put Your Yard to Work for the Planet ~ Eco Friendly Landscaping - HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    April 20, 2017 at 7:00 am

    […] maintenance, Ask for native plants at your local nursery, or get divisions from a friend for free. (Here’s how to get free plants for your next eco-savvy gardening […]

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  4. 28 Gardening Resources for Beginners - Pursue Simple Joy says:
    February 20, 2018 at 6:00 am

    […] Get Plants for Free […]

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  5. Gardening 101: How to Plant a Garden for Beginners   - HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    May 18, 2018 at 11:30 am

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  6. Rhubarb ~ 10 Great Reasons to Know and Grow this Amazing Vegetable - HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    May 28, 2018 at 10:30 am

    […] You can buy rhubarb at farmers’ markets and grocery stores, but it’s so easy to grow, I can’t imagine paying for it. It’s a readily divided perennial, so you might find a friend with one they’ll share with you so you don’t even need to buy the plant. Read more on how to get plants free in this post. […]

    Reply
  7. How to Make Homemade Fruit Leather from Rhubarb | HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    June 10, 2018 at 4:00 pm

    […] how to get free plants, including your very own rhubarb if you want to save big on the next additions to your […]

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  8. Natural Remedies in Your Own Yard | HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    January 14, 2019 at 10:30 pm

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  9. How to plan a medicinal herb garden - Homestead Lady says:
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    […] Additionally, I encourage you to read this post on Get Free Plants for Your GardenGet Free Plants for Your Garden by Healthy Green Savvy – there are probably some ideas here you have yet to […]

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  10. Use Newspaper to Block Weeds Naturally in the Garden - Get Green Be Well says:
    March 2, 2019 at 10:53 pm

    […] These four carefree, colorful plants are perfect for a stress-free garden. And here’s some great ways to get free plants for your garden. […]

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  11. 8 Ways We Saved Money on our Homestead Last Year - Project Zenstead says:
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    […] Here are some other great ideas to help you save money by getting free plants for your garden! […]

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  12. Grass Alternatives ~ Why and How to Replace Your Lawn | HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    March 5, 2019 at 1:31 pm

    […] have to cost you a fortune. Perennials like these are easy to get for free. Find out how in this article on how to get free plants. amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; amzn_assoc_tracking_id = […]

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  13. How to Grow Rhubarb (& Why You'd Want To) | HealthyGreenSavvy says:
    March 15, 2019 at 8:00 am

    […] will be more than happy to dig some up for you. Here’s what to know about getting free plants for your […]

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  14. Why and How to Plan and Plant a Medicinal Herb Garden – World Top Business Systems says:
    October 1, 2019 at 10:12 pm

    […] Please be sure to do this responsibly.  Additionally, I encourage you to read this post on Get Free Plants for Your Garden by Healthy Green Savvy – there are probably some ideas here you have yet to […]

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  15. 8 Ways We Saved Money on our Homestead Last Year - Rooted Revival aka. Project Zenstead says:
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