How much would a Gardener cost?

candoitwell

most people who say manual gardening workers earn too much are people who never did the job themselves, its brutally draining and badly paid and the reason people moan about paying instead of doing it themselves is because they think its a horribly painful task best dumped on someone else

Ben256

Hi all,
I just thought i would add my opinion to this debate. Im a professional gardener in the Manchester area with 10 years experience. Some of the hourly rates mentioned here of £10 are frankly ridiculous. As said by some other professionals, that kind of rate is totally unworkable for a person such as myself, who has many petrol machines to buy/maintain, a van to keep on the road, 3 lots of insurance, fuel,etc., as well as no money being earned due to bad weather which we get a lot of in the UK and only earning the lions share of wages during the short growing season in this country, im lucky to cover costs in the winter months.

If you can get a gardener to maintain your garden for a low rate, good for you, but you must bear in mind that they are not likely to have the well maintained and good quality tools professionals use or much experience, therefore the finish wont be in the same league.

Also, if it is a retired person, they may well not always be up to turning out every 2 weeks like clockwork as a professional would. Time and again i have heard horror stories from customers about when they used "a friend of a friend" to care for their garden, and as he wasnt qualified, made a hash of it, for which i was called in to put right.

I would therefore recommend contacting as many gardeners in your area as possible, meeting them to discuss your needs, seeing their references and making your decision then. If after they have done the job your not happy with anything, tell them to sort it out before you pay.Simple.

Is it not better to pay a little more for peace of mind than pay a cowboy pennies for a hatchet job?

P.S. to any neigh sayers who will undoubtably say im protecting my own interests by writing all this, my work diary is fully booked, i dont need to lie on internet forums to gain work, im just being honest.

Ben256

aardvaak wrote: »

I charge a local business £7 per hour - am I too cheap?

Are you doing the job professionally or for a "cash favour"? Do you take all your own tools to the job or use the companies own?

joanne109

blueeye wrote: »

I need to get a gardener to come in once a week as I have just simply run out of time to keep it in order, not that its a fantastic garden but someone to do the mowing and weeding and cutting back etc.

How much do should I pay someone to do this?

Depends where you live!
Here in St Albans I would say anything between £15-£30 er hour depending upon how far into the black economy you wish to venture.
My own opinion is that the black economy should be kept at arms length - largely based on personal and professional experience than any idea of paying tax and propping up the system.
You get what you pay for - peanuts and monkeys anyone?

Aahh the myth of the old timer doing it for love!

If they lived round here and loved gardening they would cash in their equity and buy a property/garden in SW England 3 times the size for half the price.
Myself? I would pay a gardener to teach me how to garden and essentially put himself out of work.

BTW No disrespect to those with disability and mobility problems - I suggest you contact your local CVS for advice and a registered list.


Joanne

vassa

Depends if you want someone who actually knows what they're doing. Qualified horticulturalists who actually properly know what they're doing in regards to soil, conditions, weeds, pests etc are severly undervaluing themselves at £12 per hour.

Bog standard gardener is fine but if you want anything more than basic you should pay the extra for a trained hort.

HRTMAN

For a professional gardener you should be looking for £20 per hour in Cheshire.

Towser

For a professional gardener you should be looking for £20 per hour in Cheshire.

What's the going rate for the South East

lolly5648

In north London it is £30 for one hour or £50 for two, although none of the ones I rang for a quote wanted to do only one hour.