I have decided to get some help in to get my back garden into good
shape, as I don't have the time required at the moment. I feel that
once everything has had a good prune and weeding and the grass is cut
back I will be able to keep on top of things, but cannot find time at
the moment to make the effort to get to that point by myself.

I have had one estimate so far for £150 - for 2 chaps to work for half
a day. Now, the time seems about right to me for the work involved,
(though it would take me a lot longer I'm sure) but I have no idea
what is "the going rate" for such work, so I don't knwo if this is
cheap, reasonable or a bit steep. my initial thoughts were that it
was a bit more than I'd expected, (I'd thought more like £100) but I
may have just been guilty of wishful thinking?

Dose anyone have any experience of paying for gardening work? Can
anyone comment?

Cheers,
Sam

Most workmen like plumbers etc charge £120 a day these days
However clearly you do need to know that these 2 are really gardeners and
not just bodgers


wrote in message
...
I have decided to get some help in to get my back garden into good
shape, as I don't have the time required at the moment. I feel that
once everything has had a good prune and weeding and the grass is cut
back I will be able to keep on top of things, but cannot find time at
the moment to make the effort to get to that point by myself.

I have had one estimate so far for £150 - for 2 chaps to work for half
a day. Now, the time seems about right to me for the work involved,
(though it would take me a lot longer I'm sure) but I have no idea
what is "the going rate" for such work, so I don't knwo if this is
cheap, reasonable or a bit steep. my initial thoughts were that it
was a bit more than I'd expected, (I'd thought more like £100) but I
may have just been guilty of wishful thinking?

Dose anyone have any experience of paying for gardening work? Can
anyone comment?

Cheers,
Sam

In article ,
writes
I have decided to get some help in to get my back garden into good
shape, as I don't have the time required at the moment. I feel that
once everything has had a good prune and weeding and the grass is cut
back I will be able to keep on top of things, but cannot find time at
the moment to make the effort to get to that point by myself.

I have had one estimate so far for £150 - for 2 chaps to work for half
a day. Now, the time seems about right to me for the work involved,
(though it would take me a lot longer I'm sure) but I have no idea
what is "the going rate" for such work, so I don't knwo if this is
cheap, reasonable or a bit steep. my initial thoughts were that it
was a bit more than I'd expected, (I'd thought more like £100) but I
may have just been guilty of wishful thinking?

Dose anyone have any experience of paying for gardening work? Can
anyone comment?

Cheers,
Sam

If you had the time
If you had the skills
If you had the equipment

Would you spend a day doing what you want done for £150.00?

If you have your own business, would you work for £150.00 a day?

I consider it a very good rate. But then I charge, well I 'did' charge
when I was working, £30.00 per hour, £240.00 a day. Now retired and
sending work away:-)

Mike
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forthcoming reunions. H.M.S.Collingwood Association Chatham May 30th - June 2nd
British Pacific Fleet Hayling Island Sept 5th - 8th
Castle Class Corvettes Assn. Isle of Wight. Oct 3rd - 6th.
R.N. Trafalgar Weekend Leamington Spa. Oct 10th - 13th. Plus many more

wrote in message
...
I have decided to get some help in to get my back garden into good
shape, as I don't have the time required at the moment. I feel that
once everything has had a good prune and weeding and the grass is cut
back I will be able to keep on top of things, but cannot find time at
the moment to make the effort to get to that point by myself.

I have had one estimate so far for £150 - for 2 chaps to work for half
a day. Now, the time seems about right to me for the work involved,

They'd better be good at that price. FWIW that's just a bit less than we pay
for good tree surgeons around here.

Rod

wrote in message
...
I have decided to get some help in to get my back garden into good
shape, as I don't have the time required at the moment. I feel that
once everything has had a good prune and weeding and the grass is cut
back I will be able to keep on top of things, but cannot find time at
the moment to make the effort to get to that point by myself.

I have had one estimate so far for £150 - for 2 chaps to work for half
a day. Now, the time seems about right to me for the work involved,
(though it would take me a lot longer I'm sure) but I have no idea
what is "the going rate" for such work, so I don't knwo if this is
cheap, reasonable or a bit steep. my initial thoughts were that it
was a bit more than I'd expected, (I'd thought more like £100) but I
may have just been guilty of wishful thinking?

Dose anyone have any experience of paying for gardening work? Can
anyone comment?


Don't forget, you are not just paying for the hours spent on the job. Form
the point of view of the guy's business, the amount charged has to cover
(inter alia) time spent estimating, Dead time between jobs (ie after half a
day on your garden, what time after travelling will they be able to spend on
the next job), insurance & Public liability insurance (if they are
reputable), tools & equipment etc etc.

£150 a man day for that sort of work is good value.

pk

On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 18:15:25 GMT, wrote:

Dose anyone have any experience of paying for gardening work? Can
anyone comment?

Will you just be paying for their labour or will they be supplying their
own equipment? What about the waste that's left over? Will they pile
it up in one corner of your garden for you to deal with or will they
take it away for you? Are they skilled gardeners or relatively unskilled
labourers (and which do you need?)? These factors make a big difference
to the rate you should expect to pay. There is also likely to be quite
a difference from one area to another.

My initial reaction is that, in Hampshire at least, the rate seems on
the high side, if you are looking for moderately skilled labourers. On
the other hand, it seems petty good if you are getting experienced
gardeners who will provide their own equipment and clear up after
themselves.
--
Serena

Sometimes I sits and thinks ... and sometimes I just sits. (Punch cartoon)

In article , Serena
Blanchflower writes
On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 18:15:25 GMT, wrote:

Dose anyone have any experience of paying for gardening work? Can
anyone comment?

Will you just be paying for their labour or will they be supplying their
own equipment? What about the waste that's left over? Will they pile
it up in one corner of your garden for you to deal with or will they
take it away for you? Are they skilled gardeners or relatively unskilled
labourers (and which do you need?)? These factors make a big difference
to the rate you should expect to pay. There is also likely to be quite
a difference from one area to another.

My initial reaction is that, in Hampshire at least, the rate seems on
the high side, if you are looking for moderately skilled labourers. On
the other hand, it seems petty good if you are getting experienced
gardeners who will provide their own equipment and clear up after
themselves.

I wish more people thought as you do with regards to the self employed.
Sooooooo many only think of the time actually doing the job. 10 minutes
for a skilled plumber who is familiar with the stop cock position etc to
change a tap washer. What about the journey time, going to the
stores/merchants etc. Sick, Holiday, Insurance.

Some people haven't a clue!!

Well done for pointing it out.

Mike

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forthcoming reunions. H.M.S.Collingwood Association Chatham May 30th - June 2nd
British Pacific Fleet Hayling Island Sept 5th - 8th
Castle Class Corvettes Assn. Isle of Wight. Oct 3rd - 6th.
R.N. Trafalgar Weekend Leamington Spa. Oct 10th - 13th. Plus many more

On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 22:00:35 +0100, Mike
wrote:

I wish more people thought as you do with regards to the self employed.
Sooooooo many only think of the time actually doing the job. 10 minutes
for a skilled plumber who is familiar with the stop cock position etc to
change a tap washer. What about the journey time, going to the
stores/merchants etc. Sick, Holiday, Insurance.

Some people haven't a clue!!

Well done for pointing it out.

I am aware of those issues but you and Paul are the ones who pointed it
out in this context! I had only drawn a distinction between the
different varieties of gardeners available. Most of these will be self
employed, although at the top end of the price range, some may be
employed by garden maintenance companies.

--
Serena

Sometimes I sits and thinks ... and sometimes I just sits. (Punch cartoon)

Round here (Coventry) I would have said look at 50 a man day.

my partner's father gardens for about £5 an hour. He is very good but does
it more for a hobby. Maybe you should ask around locally to see if anyone
has a gardener who does it more for love of the job and would do yours for
less?
Hayley

On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 20:03:15 +0100, Serena Blanchflower
wrote:

snip

My initial reaction is that, in Hampshire at least, the rate seems on
the high side, if you are looking for moderately skilled labourers. On
the other hand, it seems petty good if you are getting experienced
gardeners who will provide their own equipment and clear up after
themselves.

I'd agree with that. One of my clients is an experienced jobbing
gardener and goes out for a rate of £15 per hour.
If it's just mowing and weeding I'm pretty sure you could use just
about anyone ( even my kids can do a pretty reasonable job with just
the barest of supervision...from my hammock...with a gin and
tonic.....ahem ).

Regards,



--
Stephen Howard - Woodwind repairs & period restorations
http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk
Emails to: showard{who is at}shwoodwind{dot}co{dot}uk

"hayley" wrote in message
...
my partner's father gardens for about £5 an hour. He is very good but does
it more for a hobby. Maybe you should ask around locally to see if anyone
has a gardener who does it more for love of the job and would do yours for
less?
Hayley


and people wonder why there are so few good and qualified Gardeners around!
No wonder when the market rate is dragged down below poverty levels by the
hobby amateur!

pk

"Stephen Howard" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 26 Apr 2003 20:03:15 +0100, Serena Blanchflower
wrote:

I'd agree with that. One of my clients is an experienced jobbing
gardener and goes out for a rate of £15 per hour.


£15/hr is a fair rate for regular work.

Expect to pay more for a one off as you are buying more time than you pay
for and more expertise.

pk

Paul Kelly wrote:
"hayley" wrote in message
...
my partner's father gardens for about £5 an hour. He is very good
but does it more for a hobby. Maybe you should ask around locally to
see if anyone has a gardener who does it more for love of the job
and would do yours for less?
Hayley


and people wonder why there are so few good and qualified Gardeners
around! No wonder when the market rate is dragged down below poverty
levels by the hobby amateur!


Sadly, this disease seems to infect most trades these days. Even so,
regulation is to be resisted im(ns)ho.


--
William Tasso

In article ,
writes
I have decided to get some help in to get my back garden into good
shape, as I don't have the time required at the moment. I feel that
once everything has had a good prune and weeding and the grass is cut
back I will be able to keep on top of things, but cannot find time at
the moment to make the effort to get to that point by myself.

A well kept garden needs continual attention all months of the year. You
could spend money on having yours tidied up but maybe you should decide
how much time you will wish to devote to it in the long term. Having
somebody else do it regularly could become very expensive.
--
Alan & Joan Gould - North Lincs.