7 Inexpensive Ways to Transform Your Backyard Into an Earthly Paradise

During the winter season, we start thinking about spring, and with that, comes gardening and planting. We flip through the latest garden magazines hoping that our backyards could be half as beautiful as the gardens in those glossy photos.

The truth is, having a beautiful green backyard doesn't have to be costly.
Read on for some inexpensive ways to transform your blab looking wintry backyard into your own little earthly paradise and watch as you plant amazing memories for months to come.

Plant Lemon Grass.

Mosquitoes love to hang out in the spring and summer. What better way to fight those bites than planting an attractive lemon grass plant which requires little to no maintenance and grows easily. Lemon Grass is well-known for its citronella fighting powers which repels bugs especially mosquitoes. You can also make tea from this whole plant.

Plant Willows for Privacy

Aside from being just plain graceful, the willow tree families offer shade and privacy. At four to five feet, their long slender weeping branches and lance-shaped leaves are also great near ponds or streams.

Paint Garden Rocks

Rock painting ideas can turn stones into works of art that accent any garden area. These are fun kid friendly projects that can be done at any time of the year. Garden markers will help you remember which row are tomatoes and which row is the basil. Turn stones into flowers, insects, animals or a cute little house. Just about anything can be painted on a rock.

Plant beautiful ground covers

Ground covers are plants that can be grown over any area in your garden. They can grow in the hot full sun or in the shade and don't need special soil requirements. As revealed in this article, a ground cover is a creative solution to small backyards. They protect the area from erosion and drought. Drought tolerant ground covers such as Sedums can thrive in dry conditions.

Create an elegant garden area

Balmy summer evenings can be spent having a delicious summer meal. Create this ambiance by installing first a couple of landscape lights at the bases of various trees aimed into various tree canopies as the lights bathe the twisty branches in its soft light. Position candles and lanterns for night lighting. Complement candles and glasses in various styles and shades of green and other earth tone colors for an even stronger effect.

Enliven a tired lawn with a budget patchwork patio

Potted succulents cactus and a palm can create a finished patio look in a garden. Use stained concrete pavers or brick inlays which suit a variety of styles and budgets, to create a unique looking patchwork to resemble a "carpet" like theme.

It's cabana time!

Why not transform your outdoor area into an instant retreat for just hanging out, relaxing and casual entertainment? This perfect spot can be used seasonally or all year round. Do-it-yourself cabanas can be at low as $300 as revealed here.

There are many ways to spice up your drabby backyard so entertainment and lounging can be a fun experience not just in the spring and summer, but all year round. These seven ways to transforming a background are just a start to the possibilities. Let your imagination soar!

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.