One of the cornerstones of frugal living is gardening. After all, there are few things that help you save money on food better than growing your own. My husband and I enjoy planting a garden. We prefer to plant items that are fairly easy to grow in our area, that we know we will eat a lot of, and that cost a little more at the grocery store. We don’t have a lot of time, and we don’t have a ton of space, so we are creative about our garden, and we are choosy about what we grow.

If you are thinking of starting a garden, there are a few things to keep in mind if you want success. Here are some tips for starting a garden:

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We all enjoy a night out with a fancy, or not, meal in a restaurant. There’s something fun about going out, being served food you didn’t have to cook yourself on plates you won’t have to clean up later. That said, the economy has been rough and everyone is looking for ways to save a little money here or there, perhaps to bolster up their emergency fund, while still enjoying some of the finer things in life.

We tend to go out once or twice a week to some local restaurants we love and it’s a treat for us. A few years ago we would go far more often and it became less of a treat and more of a regular occurrence, which takes a bit of the fun out of it (and gets expensive). So now, we limit it to a few times a week and cook more at home. We’ve discovered that cooking at home can be a lot of fun, offers a bit of variety and adventure, and the dishes aren’t that much of a pain to clean.

For those who do go out more often and are looking to trim the restaurant bill, here are a few ideas:

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The recent recession has encouraged many of us to improve our financial habits — including cutting back on spending. Frugality has allowed many to regain financial footing. However, for some of us, it can become wearing to always be watching costs and pinching pennies.

Indeed, after right around three years of increased budget consciousness, many are feeling what is being dubbed “frugal fatigue.” Instead of closely watching your money, you might be tempted to return to former ways, bending your budget a little and perhaps carrying a balance on your credit card for a couple of months. Frugal fatigue sets in when you begin to feel deprived by your good financial habits. Here’s how to avoid frugal fatigue:

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With global turmoil continuing to threaten higher gas prices — especially with the summer driving season just around the corner — it is little surprise that many people are looking for ways to save money on gas.

Indeed, as gas moves toward the $4.00 per gallon level that many think is inevitable, increasing fuel economy becomes even more important. We want to be able get the most for our gas station dollar. It is tempting to believe that you can do a few simple things and then find yourself raking in the savings. The truth, though, is that some “conventional” wisdom about saving money on gas is outdated. Or even downright false. Here are five gas saving tips that probably won’t do much in terms of saving you money at the pump:

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One of the trends we saw through the end of 2010 — and one that is continuing in 2011 — is food prices inflation. Food prices have been rising. From floods in Pakistan to drought in Russia to rising demand for food in emerging market countries, it seems as though higher food prices are inevitable. The USDA reports that food prices increased 0.8% in 2010, and that they could rise 3% to 4% in 2011. That means you had better be ready for what’s coming.

Among the foods expected to see an increase in 2011 are grains like wheat and corn. Wheat is used a great deal in cereal and other staples. Corn (or corn syrup) is used in a number of food items as well. On top of that, corn is used in livestock feed, and that means the cost of raising different animals for consumption is on the rise. Retail prices for beef rose 10% between February 2010 and February 2011, and pork prices are up as well. While meat prices rose in 2010, they are expected to increase at a faster rate this year. Because of the increased cost of feed, and the fact that a rising middle class in China and India are looking to add more beef, pork and poultry to their meals, meat prices are expected to rise at a fairly rapid pace.

Dairy prices are creeping up as well. CNBC recently reported on month over month inflation, finding that butter, coffee, potatoes and bread are also on the rise. Commodities in general are seeing an increase in price, and recent events can’t be helping, especially in terms of global supply chains. Even produce is starting to catch up. According to some news outlets, lettuce has doubled in the past few weeks, and other produce is rising as well.

What can you do?

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Americans spend more than $41 billion each year on pets. From routine care to pet spa appointments, the pets industry is big business. Increasingly, people consider their pets to be part of the family, and spend accordingly. This can include everything from specially made pet clothes to expensive medical procedures.

Even those most in love with their pets, though, occasionally wonder how they can reduce the costs associated with pet ownership. The economy may be showing signs of recovery, but, for many, the recession is still a reality. And that means that costs need to be cut somewhere. If you are looking for ways to cut back on pet expenses, here are seven ideas:

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“Social shopping” is gaining in popularity right now. Through web sites like Living Social and Groupon, it is possible to get discounts on different products and services in your local area. Social deal web sites send you tips about which deals are available, and then you can go spend money, getting up to half off — or more — on different items.

One of the questions you have to ask yourself as you sign up for Living Social, Groupon or any other social deal site is this: Am I really saving money? Or are you just looking for a reason to spend it?

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We live within walking distance to a dollar, it’s in the same shopping center as our grocery store, and we’ve found many a good gem in there, mostly by accident. When I saw this Kiplinger’s article on the best and worst dollar store buys, I was curious to see what they found to be a good deal and what they found to be a bad one. They force you to go through a quiz but I won’t.

They said that good deals could be found on party supplies, cleaning supplies, greeting cards, seasonal/holiday items, pregnancy tests, gift wrap, and cooking & dining accessories like utensils and flatware/glassware. You should pass on vitamins, basic school supplies, over-the-counter medication, toys, canned food, batteries, and electronics. The winners were winners for reasons you’d expect, they’re simply cheaper. The losers were losers because they were either not cheap enough (you could go to Wal-Mart and pay the same or even less) or their efficacy, in the case of medication and vitamins, were suspect. A lot of dollar stores sell overstock merchandise, it’s possible to find things beyond their expiration date. That’s a good thing for seasonal items but not a good thing for vitamins.

We typically hit the dollar store whenever we’re looking for party supplies. The store is closer than any other store that carries party supplies, which is probably the greatest incentive, and there’s a surprisingly good selection.

What’s your best dollar store find?

(Photo: fireflythegreat)

My good friend Dave recently emailed me something fascinating about how he goes through batteries like crazy. He has a daughter and many of her toys are battery powered, not to mention remotes and a host of other battery powered devices and appliances. The other week he managed to mix up some “good” batteries with fully discharged ones and, rather than recycle the entire bunch, he opted to test them… and discovered something very surprising:

I was thinking of you recently when I discovered a super easy way to be frugal… I have discovered that batteries (AA, AAA, C, D) in devices don’t all discharge at the same rate – I bought a battery tester a couple of weeks ago because I had accidentally mixed a whole bunch of batteries that were both good and “bad”. I thought that I had about 10 bad batteries out of the 20 I tested (10 were completely unused) but in reality, of the 10 that were “bad”, only 2 were fully discharged. The other 8 were still between full and half charged and as long as I removed the “dead” batteries, I could still use all the other batteries I had that I had origially planned on recycling.

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It’s been a busy few weeks in the Middle East. Protests around the region are threatening regimes, and that is leading to possible instability in terms of oil supply. Indeed, violence in Libya has prompted some oil companies to evacuate non-essential personnel and their families. With investors — and others — increasing worried about the supply lines out of the Middle East, it is no surprise that oil prices are on the way up.

Predictions are coming in that we will see $3.50 for gas this summer, and Fortune is reporting that the U.S. government believes that there is a 1-in-10 chance that $4.00 gas is on tap for summer. So, what can you do about this? Gas prices are probably going to affect your personal economy — and soon.

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