How much can I expect to pay a landscape garden designer?

ey143

I'm torn between choosing to pay for a full suite of services from an architect for my house and for a garden design or landscaping my garden at a later date.

Could someone with more knowledge in this area please provide me with an indicative range for a landscape garden designer to design a rear garden for me? The size is approx 42m (120ft) in length and 20m width.

Should qualified architects (who have an unbran design qualification) be used for these purposes or better to use a landscape garden designer?

Thx.

andrewf75

Depends what you want exactly, but I'd have thought if its just landscapeing a garden then its best to get a specialist garden designer, not an architect

ey143

Given that its a design cost I'm referring to, how much can it really depend on? It's not the actual cost of the matials in the garden but drawing a round circle for a pond shouldn't cost more than drawing a smaller circular for a tree or a rectangle for some large planters......I would have thought.

System

a landscape architect would probably be your best shout - don't think an urban designer is the right one to go with!

andrewf75

well, you're surely paying for expertise in how the garden should be best laid out. It depends on the time they will put into considering what should go where...

or do you mean you just want them to draw a plan of it? in which case thats different

ey143

Hi - it's the former.

But ultimately I'm asking is it a £500 jobbie or £3000 job....kind of question.

The architect I am using has various qualifications including urban design and others but he did mention that for £300 he knows someone who can recommend the type of plants and trees I should have in the garden for privacy etc.

andrewf75

I'd have thought the lower end of that range unless you're planning anything too complex.

System

it depends how much "design" there is to do - and what you think they can add to the job.
Some landscape contractors may be able to advise on the type of plants and ideal locations etc etc or even point you in the direction of a designer if needs be.
I would always hold back on the landscaping at the start of a job tbh (unless it will be needed to help with planning issues etc)
because - the first part of any job that gets cuts in budgets will be the landscaping! Although it is good to get everything done at the same time

the £300 doesn't sound too bad, but it really depends on what you'll get for it!

ey143

The £300 is not landscaping design but tree and plant suggestions etc

andrewf75

sounds a lot to me. Obviously depends how much money you have and what level of detail you want to go into, but you should be able to get tree and plant suggestions without paying someone £300.

I_have_spoken

£400 to £500, if you want a decent effort on a plot that size.

Testing soil pH, looking at soil drainage, taking shade into account, working with you on a couple of alternative layouts, maybe a computer mock-up of how it would look in different seasons, planting plan, bill of materials for hard landscaping and estimate for the work.

The cost of a proper landscaping of a garden 42m in length and 20m width would be at least £10,000 IMHO