What happens after the garden is built and planted and everyone leaves you to enjoy your garden? Well, you get to enjoy the fruits of our design skills and the contractors hard work and attention to detail, the suppliers great landscape materials and the nurseries lovingly grown and nurtured plant stock!

BUT, in order to protect your garden investment, it will require maintenance. This applies to both the hard AND soft landscape, but this Blog will focus on the after-care (as some call it) of the plants.

Why Consider a Gardener?

When I carry out an initial consultation with a new client (before we even start the garden design) I have a section where we discuss after-care. I ask the client if they have a gardener, if they want one, and how often (weekly - monthly- seasonally). More often than not they will answer “I may get one to do the large bits a couple of times a year”. I am finding myself increasingly extolling the virtues of having someone more often than that. Why so?

Well, while some clients of mine are keen gardeners and they enthusiastically and proudly mow, trim, deadhead and lift and divide, others are so busy that they quickly find the garden is growing faster than they can keep up.

This is nothing to be ashamed of. Many of us are busy – children, grandchildren, work, caring for family members, illness of our own, other responsibilities and commitments. These can all fill up any potential free time, leaving us with only the energy to boil the kettle or pour out a large wine and sink into a garden chair with no will left in the world to start gardening. Days turn to weeks, and weeks turn to 3ft long lawns and bindweed festooned roses!

Some clients are just overwhelmed and a little bit scared of what they have and put off getting the secateurs out. With some help and guidance from a gardener you can gain confidence and while they are getting on with other gardening duties for you, you can chop that climber down to ground level, prune that rose back to two healthy buds and clip that flowering shrub in the right month, and feel assured you have done the right thing!

Many of us have help in the home – to paint, put up shelves, and clean (I love my cleaner!)… so why not extend this help into the garden? Remember that gardeners are skilled professionals.

A gardener can save your garden!

So where do you get a good gardener from?

Well, if you are client of mine then I can recommend someone to you; alternatively, I have access to a pool of people who can recommend gardeners in your area. Recommendation from friends is also a good place to start, especially if they have a beautiful well-kept garden. The Gardener’s Guild also has a list of gardeners with at least one nationally registered horticultural qualification. Also, you can find garden maintenance listed in the Association of Professional Landscapers Directory.

I have had clients who say “my gardener has no clue about plants but he mows the lawn and cuts the hedges”. This is fine – it frees you up to do the rest. But, if you are time limited or lacking a little in confidence, it may be an idea to find a trained horticulturalist to help tend to the beds. This way they will be guaranteed to look amazing year round.

A good gardener gives your garden life

How much would you expect to pay a gardener?

Anywhere between £20-40/hr for gardening, and most likely a fixed fee for mowing and hedge cutting dependent on your size of garden. Prices reflect qualifications, experience, insurance, tool maintenance and replacement, vehicles, time for travel to and from jobs etc.

Generally horticulturists are undervalued individuals. Some people think £20/hr is “way too much’, but I always look at it according to how much my hourly rate is, or how valuable my time with my children is, and so how much is it worth to me to have someone do my garden? I look at it this way with all services. I ask myself -

1. How long will it take?

2. Can I do it?

3. Do I want to do it?

4. How much is it worth to me?

Gardener retention is also tied up in hourly rates - If you pay a fair rate, you will get a good job done. You will more likely retain your gardener too, as they will be less likely to abandon you for a client who pays better. After all, we all have mortgages to pay, food to put on the table. And hey, maybe even afford a holiday.

A beautiful garden relies on a happy gardener

What do you need to consider when employing a gardener?

Make sure they have insurances. These will be Public Liability and possibly Employers Liability. Some may have Professional Indemnity. Check their qualifications, although not all gardeners will be qualified, but instead can be HUGELY knowledgable and experienced. Ask for a couple of references if you feel this would help..

How long will you need them for? This is a harder one as it will depend on how large your garden is, what access it like, how many plants you have and what they are, how large is your lawn, how high are your hedges etc. Best thing is to invite a gardener to quote and ask them to advise you on how long they will need to achieve specific tasks and with a few options so you can choose your best fit. Include time for planning meetings in their time allocation.

After all, good planning a garden makes.

What do you need to do when employing a gardener?

Consider welfare of your gardener. Have they got access to shelter, electricity for making refreshments, and access to toilets. A van and a thermos can at the very least deal with the first two (although its much nicer for the person if they can have somewhere more comfortable), but everyone needs access to hand washing and toilet facilities for sanitation and health & safety reasons. Some may be fine without, but who wants to pee in a bucket if an emergency arises!

Allow for some maintenance budget for your gardener. While some plants can be lifted and divided, some new plants may be required - plants are living things after all and some do have a tendency to die. Mulching is also important to help make weeding easier and to improve soil structure. Wire may be required for climbers, bean poles for annuals such as sweet pea, etc!

Check regularly to make sure they are happy and keep communications up. Is there a plan they are working to, and are they happy that the plan is achievable? Do you need to amend the plan? Have they got suggestions that would benefit the garden? Plan, plan, plan and both plan together. Make sure tasks are clear and understandable, and make sure you have time to listen to feedback.

A lot more can be achieved in less time with the right focus.

Gardens are long-term assets; your gardener should be too. Find the right one and keep them close. Remember, a large slice of soft sweet cake and a hot, nicely brewed tea will lift the spirits of any gardener facing a day out in inclement weather.

Acquiring a Good Gardener