Garden maintenance cost blew my mind.

[Boleynforsoup]

I had a gardener round to quote for trimming some hedges back from my back gate that overhang from the property behind, weeding the patio and jet washing it. Taking all garden waste with them He’s said half a days work for a couple of them max. He’s just emailed me the quote: £750!!! My flabber is truly gasted…. Is this really the going rate?! 5 years ago without the jet washing I paid someone £45!!!

@Boleynforsoup Use a throwaway screen name and ask for gardener recommendations in your area, then compare the quotes?

I paid that last year. I guess it depends where you live. Kent & Wales won't be the same cost.

Sorry, no, pretty much the opposite end of the country! But for reference DP's full day rate is £220 and he reckons he would do that work in half a day on his own.

It's bird nesting season. Make sure whoever does it is very careful not to disturb nesting birds.

do not pay that

People are quoting crazy prices for things atm. I was quoted £470 to clean my windows and jet wash my patio.

I’m in London with a full mature garden which hadn’t been looked after in a few years (probate house). My gardener charges £30 an hour. He leaves the brown waste with me though.

Just find an odd job man. I think he charges about £200-250 for a day's work. So it should be about that and a bit extra to take the stuff away.

@Justmadesourkraut you can cut the link just before the /ref part, so this link below works.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cordless-Electric-Batteries-Telescopic-Extendable/dp/B07BS5HCTW

I would definitely shop around. We have a local magazine with lots of businesses advertising. I would post on your local facebook group or ask for a recommendation.

The quote is ridiculous. Definitely check that you have no nesting birds in that hedge. You can cut a hedge, it is the intentional destruction of a nest that falls foul of the legislation. If you can leave it until the end of summer I would. Patio cleaning wise, Wet and Forget is good, I used MMC Pro Hard Surface Cleaner (Amazon) because we had a hosepipe ban and the effect was visible and I think quicker than Wet and Forget.

If not a patio attachment for a Karcher or similar is a lot of fun and very satisfying.

We've just moved into what appeared to be a junkyard of shite/forest of weeds. I've just paid 1700 for a complete strip out of both front and back, heavy weed treatment, new turf for both, 8 ton of topsoil to fill beds and for the turf, 1 ton of bark, removal of part of a concrete path, cut back of three trees, and collecting and relaying slabs. And the bloke took it upon himself to fix a bit of the fence as it was annoying him 😂

I would've felt better if I did it myself but it would've taken ages due to disability so it's money well spent.

I’ve just paid £1600 to have 8 huge conifers entirely removed, including stumps dug out, and the waste all chipped and taken away. Yours seems steep!

That is a stupid price. A qualified gardener is £25-30 an hour. That’s someone who has done courses on plants

Wow, these prices!! Might send my farming son out hedging at weekends based on these rates!!

Gardener DH said that would be about £300

He’s just priced it as a job he doesn’t want. It’s coming into peak season, so he can pick and choose his work.

If it’s not urgent, wait until October and get 3 quotes. They’ll probably be around the £200 mark.

This

I paid £250 to have quite a high bush and hedges cut and trimmed and all the rubbish taken away. It was a morning's work. Your quote does sound expensive

I can't believe jet washing costs so much. We got a quote for hundreds of pounds. It was cheaper to buy our own jet wash, and it took us 2 hours (and it was actually incredibly relaxing, I love doing it now!)

That seems like a lot to me. I had my hedge trimmed, a tree removed and ivy cut back considerably for £150. The guy was just starting out on his own but did a great job.

@Boleynforsoup I feel grateful for my gardener now, £60 for 3 and a half hours, does everything, I see it as his garden now.

Also there’s a tool library near me which hires out a jet washer for £1 a day 😊

Most gardeners charge £25/hour which includes cost of equipment etc. So assuming 4 hours for 2 people that would be £200 plus any disposal costs.

We have a weekly gardener do lawns, weeding, trim hedges etc and he is £20ph. This doesnt include waste disposal and the garden is well kept so is easier work.

I pay £20 an hour in Kent

I asked a handyman for a price to put my new garden sofa together...instructions said it would take an hour for one person...he told me it would cost £100 so i declined and my son did it for me (son is academic but not practical) handyman then dropped his price to £30 so was clearly chancing his arm.
My son did a great job and so glad i didnt pay £100 to get it done.