We all know there's no such thing as a free lunch
in the same way, there's no such thing as a cheap landscape gardener.
You get what you pay for !
But if you are on a tight budget these tips could help
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10% discount on Mobility in the garden landscape gardening work
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The cheapest way to landscape a garden is to do it yourself.
You may pay more for materials like paving slabs, bricks, sand and cement than a established landscape gardener with trade prices set up with builders merchants, but you will save the labour cost.
Sharing by doing some of the work yourself will save money.
Landscape gardening is split into three main parts, Garden design, Labour and Technical stuff
Labouring includes clearing the garden of unwanted plants and trees (including roots), leveling, digging out footings and patios and adding and compacting a level hardcore base. None of this requires to much brain power just strength and stamina.
Depending on the type of soil in your garden (clay is the worst) and the rubble under the surface You will need a pickaxe, good shovel and spade and a strong wheel barrow to wheel the stuff you are taking out to a skip and to wheel barrow the stuff you are bringing in to build your garden, like sand, cement, slabs, bricks etc and a few tons of hardcore.
A skip costs about £180 so if you can use the top and sub soil somewhere around the garden to form a raised bed or fill a low area etc. you wont need a skip and can save the money.
Hiring a Digger and driver will cost between £160 and £200 a day but will take a lot of the back breaking digging work out of job, but you will still have to wheelbarrow the stuff into a skip.
Technical work. This includes building retaining walls, terracing a slope, laying flagstones for a patio, installing a pond or simply erecting a fence. Lots of "how to" information on the net. Some tasks are harder and more important to get right, like retaining walls, garden drainage and making sure patios drain away from the house. Getting these things wrong, can cost a lot more than you are saving, to put them right.
Garden design.
Design it yourself, Designing your own garden layout can save hundreds of £ £ £ s. There are lots of books, CDs and websites that can help. Probably the best way, especially if you are not sure your ideas are practical, is to discuss them on site with a good landscape gardener.
There may be a charge if the changes to the garden involve drainage or leveling but If you hire the landscaper to do the work they will probably waive any charge.
TIP If you do use a professional garden designer, make sure every aspect of the work is covered, including gradients, retaining walls, suitable hard landscaping materials, water table and garden drainage in the plan. Some "airy fairy" garden designers are great at planting plans and arial views but not so good at the practical stuff.
If the design involves moving tons of soil, is their access for a digger?
If the layout includes digging out a pond, will the water table allow excavation?
If paving is planned for low areas of the garden, will the area require drainage to be installed?
These are just some of the problems I have found this year, following plans drawn up by profesional landscape gardening designers.
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Saving on garden landscaping material costs.
Paving stones, soil, building sand, bricks and gravel are a major expense, so if you think you are going to use a ton of say scalpings buy it in bulk bags from a builders merchant like the Builder superstore or even loose from a local aggregates supplier, its much cheaper than buying 25kg bags from Focus,Homebase or B&Q. Same with slabs, bricks and block paving, work out what you will need and get it all delivered in one go.
If you are going to lay your own patio or pathway, or supply the slabs and materials.
The builders mechants listed on my patios page deliver to your home, the quality is good and prices are very competitive and they will help you work out the amounts you will need .On the same page is a simple guide to laying slabs..
Secondhand materials
You should be able to pick up paving slabs secondhand. Anyone renovating their garden will be only to pleased to have them taken up and cleared away, you may break one or two taking them up but will still save money, especially if you are not to fussy about colour. Even If you are having the work done for you and can find a neighbour to remove the old slabs and make it clear to the landscape gardener you are asking to quote, that the area will be cleared, you will save the clearance part of the price.
Buying plants on a budget.
Large garden centers are the most expensive way to buy plants, DIY chain stores like B&Q, Homebase and Focus can be a cheaper than nurseries or garden centers. Roadside stalls where an amateur gardener is selling home grown plants are normally good value and if local, you can be pretty sure the plants will suit your type of soil.The same goes for car boot sellers. Friends and neighbours are the cheapest option and might be pleased to let you have surplus seedlings and cuttings. Perennials are always good value as are bulbs like Daffodils and other varieties of narcissi, snowdrops and crocuses that come up and multiply every year.
Healthy plants
Its important to make sure that wherever you buy your plants, they are healthy and will grow in your type of garden soil, Or any savings are a false economy, the plants will die or introduce disease. Its expensive and impossible in the long term, to try changing your soil type. Grow what will grow, Its cheaper and easier.
Planting plan.
Planting plans for most gardens, sunny areas, shade, slopes, damp and soil types can be found free on the net. To get the most out of your garden and plants, its a good idea to follow one.
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