Garden designer reveals the best investment for transforming an outdoor space

When you're a tight budget, it can be really hard to know where to spend and where to save on your garden. A garden designer from the BBC's Your Garden Made Perfect has revealed that one of the best investments you can make for transforming your garden on a budget is in your skillset.

Tayshan Hayden-Smith believes the absolute best thing to invest in to bring your favorite garden design ideas to life is honing your gardening and DIY skills. 

The gardener and low-cost builds expert knows a thing or two about gardening on a budget. He set up non-profit organization Grow2Know, which aims to inspire and empower people through horticulture, reconnecting them to their surroundings through gardening.

Tayshan Hayden-Smith's budget gardening tip

We asked Tayshan for his best budget gardening ideas. Luckily, there loads of ways to make a backyard look great without breaking the bank.

As far as Tayshan's concerned, the secret is simply getting hands-on and teaching yourself. 'Invest in your skillset,' says Tayshan. 

'Look online for creative solutions and try to learn how to build, implement and grow.' The garden designer points out that labor is 'often very costly on garden builds.'

So if you can get some of that work done yourself, he says you'll be able to save a lot of money. Although it will potentially mean hours watching tutorials, researching, reading, and gathering inspiration, he makes the point that investing your time in your outdoor space will ultimately be more rewarding.

Rather than hiring a professional or spending lots of money on pre-made garden structures, investing in your skills will result in a unique and joyful garden. 'There is something very prideful about the process of building something and watching it evolve in your garden,' comments Tayshan. 

'Plus, it will be an extension of you and your character. Nothing else in the world exists like it!'

You may not have the time to dedicate to DIYing your entire garden, but perhaps his tip will inspire you to look at things you can do yourself. There are online how-tos for anything and everything, from how to build a garden wall to how to bring pallet ideas for gardens to life.

Your Garden Made Perfect airs on February 4th at 8pm on BBC Two and iPlayer