Allotments 4 All
General => The Shed => Topic started by: betula on May 21, 2008, 08:35:12
-
Well I finish my NCH next month and have decided to go for a few gardening jobs.I have one job and am off to see a lady about mowing her lawn int he hope of securing job number 2.
She wants someone three hours every two weeks to cut the grass on her ride on mower.She says it takes about three hours.Not sure what to quote for this,what about edging the lawn and what about maintaining the lawn EG scarifying.Very new to this but want to do a proper job as they say.
-
i have been thinking of doing the same thing try to phone a couple of companys in your area and ask for a rough quote to mow three hours so on worked for me when i wanted to find out average prices ( some times it helps to tell little white lies )
-
I think it depends what area you are in to what is charged. My area they charge £12 an hour.
Sinbad
-
..you charge what the market will bear ;D Go for a fixed price you're happy with, and not an hourly rate. Sure thing that if a client says "about" 3 hours it's going to be 'about' more than that. Talk about edging, obviously, before giving the final quote. Talk about scarifying etc ( to show YOU know what you're talking about, even if she perhaps hasn't a clue?) & once she's happy with your work you can come up with a figure as and when. Remember ACE's accident (tho with different equipment I think) and be aware of her insurance liability. It's a different ball-game from you providing your own mower..Daileg has the right idea about finding out the going rate.
Good luck!
-
It depends on the market and what you offer. For `jobbing` gardening-ie weeding,digging,mowing etc we pay £15 an hour(well I have been laid up recently)
But if it were a matter of advice,planning and `creating` a garden then you could expect to be paid a lot more
-
Betula you need to sort out boundaries for your work.
Actually discuss the jobs with the people then work out how long you think it will take and charge according to the jobs difficulty.
That customer who wants 3 hours every 2 weeks, have you discussed what she expects? and have you told her that in between visits her grass will be knee high?
Also look in the local paper and see what UNSKILLED people charge then charge more!
Round here its 50 quid for a day, unskilled.
-
Locally, at least £8.50 for grass. At least £12.50 for intelligent stuff! Plus extra for your own equipment. And watch the price of fuel if you're travelling any distance.
-
At least £12.50 for intelligent stuff!
You have such a way with words Tim. ;D ;D ;D ;D
-
Can I just say CONGRATULATIONS on getting some paid jobs! It's really great that you will be a paid expert! I agree with others, I would phone around and check the market. Also I would say be bold and in charge, it may be scary as you are only just going into it but tell them what you can do and what you service you can offer and then let them decide what they want to have done.
-
Thank you for all your advice.
Yes I got the job and have arranged with my customer to go every week.
You were right ,we did talk about everything that will be needed as she wanted beds maintained as well .I priced what I thought it was worth,held my breath and she agreed.My first customer has got me a bit cheap but at least she has all plantings and no grass. :)
The only thing I am not happy about is this ride on mower.Although she has a lot of grass she has a great many obstacles and I do not feel the machine is appropriate.IT is a huge thing ,goodness knows what she was thinking when she bought it.I feel the job will be better done and safer with the petrol mower.
Got to find a few more jobs now.Wish me luck with my little business :)
-
brilliant! Good luck with finding more business Betula! :)
-
I have been a jobbing gardener now for 3 years and I now charge £15 an hour. I have insurance and all of my own tools. I do travel a bit to a couple of my jobs, but they are fab gardens and not only do I get my wages, I also get lots of plants from them as they are both keen gardeners and are always digging up lumps of this and bits of that for me. I have only recently started cutting grass for people - do figure in the cost of the fuel. There are several companies in our group of villages and I am probably the cheapeast - story of my life - the highest one I have found charges £35 an hour!!
Just to add, I love my job, I am getting paid for my hobby, but I do it 12 months of the year, come rain and snow, it is great and I would never work in an office again, but it is also exhausting as well as satisfying.
-
What is scarifying? I'll never be a miwyonair!
-
I have been a jobbing gardener now for 3 years and I now charge £15 an hour. I have insurance and all of my own tools. I do travel a bit to a couple of my jobs, but they are fab gardens and not only do I get my wages, I also get lots of plants from them as they are both keen gardeners and are always digging up lumps of this and bits of that for me. I have only recently started cutting grass for people - do figure in the cost of the fuel. There are several companies in our group of villages and I am probably the cheapeast - story of my life - the highest one I have found charges £35 an hour!!
Just to add, I love my job, I am getting paid for my hobby, but I do it 12 months of the year, come rain and snow, it is great and I would never work in an office again, but it is also exhausting as well as satisfying.
Emma-Jane, can I be rude and ask a couple of questions? Did you train or are you self taught and do you make a decent living at it?? Cheeky question sorry but I often wonder about doing this myself only I'm not trained and I NEED to make enough to pay the mortgage etc!! ;D
-
Whichever, a great Girl!!
And Emma, you ought to be in a very good position to recommend basic equipment for the likes of us?
-
I would of thought with all the folk out there doing this grassing cutting and gardening that there would be an association for people to join if they so wished to give them an idea of what rates to charge :)
-
Betula........you remind me of me. Doing everything I did. The very best of luck in your new venture hunny ;D ;D ;D.
EJ.....It is a great job, I hope everyone doing this for a living enjoys many years of happy work ;D ;D ;D
-
Another thing you may not have thought of Betula.
As the customer has supplied the ride on mower if you hurt yourself because of it you can sue. Sounds awfull and you are probably saying "I wouldnt do that" but just think if you broke your arm because of it who would then pay your wages?
Ps Ladies if your window cleaner asks to use your ladder cos he forgot his, dont do it! If he falls YOU are liable
-
good luck to you in your venture! ;D ;D ;D ;)
-
Thanks Tony and everybody,It is a bit nerve racking working in someone Else's garden.Where as normally I pull the weeds without a second thought yesterday I was inspecting everything three times to make sure It was a weed I was pulling. lady Iwork for knows more about plants than I will ever know.Beautiful garden without a blade of grass in sight. : :)
-
You'll gain a lot from her, then?
-
I did the RHS complete gardening course years back and have been gardening with my grandad since I was about 5, so 30 odd years. I am honest when people ask, and I have more qualifications and experience than 2 other local landscape gardeners who were both city workers who wanted out of the rat race and thought gardening was an easy ride. They are struggling!
I do need to make a good living from it. Mark has changed jobs and has taken a drop in salary, but it has improved his health and outlook on life. However, I only work 6 hours a day and I don't work school holidays unless mum is over to babysit. I have a great band of customers who know the score, the kids come first, and we all work around that perfectly. During August, I do pop around at about 6.30pm to some and cut the grass or do a spot of weeding.
Tools, I use the same ones day in and day out Tim, I have my faves and they work for me. I have a pile of different gadgets and tools in the garage that I never use!
The great thing is for me, the chance to take seeds, cuttings and frequently, lumps of plants. My front and back garden are packed now and I am thinking of taking on one of the unworkable allotments on our site just to plant up with spares!!
-
Now before you all go self employed as jobbing gardeners, just remember you have to be fit and healthy, looking at some of your avatars, 'dainty' ain't a word that springs to mind. You cannot give up because it is too hard, if you take on a contract you should have the stamina to see it through.
Today I have had to move by barrow,spread and level 14 tons of gravel. Even though I had minor surgery on tuesday, I contracted to do the job so I had to do it. Mind you I am £900 richer so I did have an incentive.
If you are lucky enough to get by with a few hours here and there it still pays to do the job on time and at a rate that reflects the effort you are able put in.
It ain't all sit on mowers and gentle weeding, It's bloody hard graft.
-
Dear ACE,Lets see a picture of you then you miserable old g*t.Bet your not loves young dream.I do gardening and I would not tender for jobs that involve spreading 14 tons of gravel,only people not as highly qualified as me would have to do that,so if you need some work give me a call,I might consider taking you on,then again ,perhaps not.Love as alwaysxxx
-
£900 for moving 14 tons of gravel?...........not bad for a labourer.
Must have been a big barrow!! ;D
-
I took £4 .40 today-now where should I take my next holiday???
-
Dear ACE,Lets see a picture of you then you miserable old g*t.Bet your not loves young dream.I do gardening and I would not tender for jobs that involve spreading 14 tons of gravel,only people not as highly qualified as me would have to do that,so if you need some work give me a call,I might consider taking you on,then again ,perhaps not.Love as alwaysxxx
Did I mention any names! Go on did I? Did I? No I didn't. ;)I took £4 .40 today-now where should I take my next holiday???
'Bout right for a bottle of cheap red. Go on spoil yourself.
-
I have to say, I agree with Ace, it is bloody hard work and just because you are qualified and have lots of certificates doesn't mean to say you won't have to barrow piles of bark, gravel or horse sh*t around for clients. I guess if it is more of a hobby job, then you can pick and choose, but when it is your living, you do the work. As I said, I work come rain, wind and shine, and pretty much, in sickness and in health. Remember I had a very bad hernia this time last year and even though the surgeon told me to lay off the work until my op, I worked up until the day before the surgery, and as soon as I could, I was back out working again.
Back onto the subject - clothing! Bet Ace will agree when I say, get yourself a really really good, sturdy pair of working boots, if you don't already have them. I have a pair of steel toe caps for when I am shifting stuff, and when I just have a day of pottering and pruning, I have a pair of heavy duty walking boots. Both sets are waterproof and comfy. I also have thick walking socks to cushion my tootsies. Thermals for the winter, looser cotton in the summer. And sunblock! I don't do hats, but I do put plenty of sun cream on my face - don't wanna look like a rhino when I am 50! Also gloves, I get through masses of gloves and spend lots or little and have thick and thin. I hate wearing them, but have been caught out and ended up with my hand in a neat pile of cat poop, or cut to ribbons when grabbing a bramble or nettle.
Good luck Betula, it is very rewarding when you look back over a garden that was once a wilderness.
-
I was being tongue in cheek with ACE EJ so take no notice of that. ;D
-
Can I just poke my nose in here and point out that it is not so much really hard work BUT, when you work for pay you are expected to put heart and soul into it and work hard and fast and is no comparison to toddling around the allotment at your leisure.
I do gardening for a living you may be surprised to know and rarely charge by the hour. No money in that. Steam in with best quality tools and be ruthlessly efficient for fixed monthly fees plus extras. When it all gets too much to take, pick up the tools, drive off to the plot and relax with a bit of digging.
Don't forget that while it is maybe easy money in June, an overcast day in November will be 'bad light stop play' at 3.30pm. That's assuming it is not raining. Will you still earn enough money to live on if you work only 5 hrs a day 2-3 days a week or are you prepared to get soaked to the skin and stay that way from dawn to dusk.
-
I bless my digi camera and laptop PC when I'm doing really neglected gardens..... slide-show pics of the before/during & ta-da! AFTER are a big hit (and, incidentally) another money earner. Didn't plan it that way, honest :o ;D but a print out album has been requested a few times - and I'm there to oblige ;) I use Kodak atm....
I keep good records of expenditures associated. If you're using your own tools, and however you maintain them, get a price from your local tool-sharpening place & according to the workload you have, calculate the amount you can claim per quarter. Gloves are quite a major expenditure...work boots, overalls etc. are all work-related for tax allowance purposes as are, of course, your tools of your trade.....
-
try to plan a full maintenance schedule for each garden,i.e. number of cuts to lawn, weeding program, pruning program, division of H.P's planting of bulbs, etc. just like the contractors do when pricing a contract to local authorities Check out the latest prices in the spons book, BINGO!!
good luck, rgds, Tony ;)
-
Yes Spons is brilliant,only used :)it at college,bit expensive but I think I will get a copy
-
I charge 15 pounds an hour, thats with 25 years experience and parks department training. If you've only just qualified I don't think you should ask more than 10 but that's just my opinion. There's some good information at http://www.thegardenersguild.co.uk
-
Thanks Simon :)
-
HI betula, well let me start by saying I was made redundant from an office job 14 months ago and needed to start earning immediately, Ive always enjoyed pottering around the garden, being outside and of course on my allotment so thought i would put an ad in a half a dozen shop windows saying i did gardening, within 6 weeks i was fully booked for approx 40 hours a week, then getting on for 50 hours a few weeks later and then i was turning people down soon after that. Now that must sound great, and it was, only, working 8 to 10 hours a day gardening is VERY VERY hard work, day in day out. I started off charging £12 per hour but found that most people just wanted weeding done and believe me you really dont want to be doing weeding all day every day......i found that after a while my knees were knackered and worse than that i was waking in the morning with my fingers of my right hand literally locked tight with all the continuous weeding. So what Ive done this year is to drop some of those jobs and taken to lawnmowing more instead and this way i can also charge by the job rather than by the hour. I can make more money and also dont end up like a cripple.
For a normal sized garden, lets say front garden 20 feet by 20 and a back garden 50 feet by 20 id charge around £15 and have never had anyone moan. over time you can sort of gauge pretty well how long a certain sized garden will take you.......BUT BEWARE....if they ask you to do edging, at first you might thing, oh well that wont take long but in lots of gardens that can take just as long as the actual mowing once you have walked slowly round with your edging sheers and then gone round again picking up every bit of grass in the borders, just a point that cost me at first but Worth remembering.
Then theres the ever increasing cost of fuel for the mower although to be honest a mower doesn't use much and it probably only cost me a max of £10 per week and that includes what i use in my hedgecutter and strimmer as well.
Anyway betula i hope that helps somewhat and would love to know how you get on.......oh and bye the way Ive already got a great tan already from those few warm weeks we have had so far this year, lots of people have asked me if Ive been abroad, hehe......no, just Sevenoaks i say.
all the best, Mark.
-
Thanks Mark,glad you are busy and enjoying it.All that info is very useful.I will let you know how I get on. :)
-
Isn't it wonderful - the tappable experience that we have?
-
I think it depends on 2 main factors. Firstly the work involved, ie amount of skill required, time it will take, equipment needed, other overheads (travelling, waste disposal etc). So for simple maintainance charge a lower rate than for say clearing an overgrown garden which might need specialist equipment as well as waste disposal. The second factor is the client themselves and what they can afford. A wealthy client could afford £10 per hour plus wheras for a pensioner this level of charge world seem excessive and put them off hiring you. In other words, although it may seem harsh you should tailor the charge (to a certain extent) to the client.
I speak from experience here. I normally charge around £10 per hour. However recently I have been doing some work for a retired couple who are keen gardeners but have been having health problems and could not keep up with the garden. Due to these circumstances i lowered my hourly rate to £6 per hour. This I am quite happy to do since they live within walking distance of my home (no travel costs) and being gardeners the clients have all the tools I need to do the work.
I hope this helps
-
I actually think it depends on whether it is a hobby job Richard, or your full time employment. I would not be able to afford to charge £6 per hour because of my overheads, ie insurance, tool depreciation, fuel expenses etc. I work for an elderly couple a few doors away and I charge them just £12 an hour as I don't have to drive, but I still have to be insured and my tools still take a bashing. You do have to be careful, people will happily plead poverty to get the job done cheaper, everyone wants something for nothing.
Regarding insurance, I'm sure a lot of hobby gardeners don't have it and work away in other peoples gardens, but if you break a window, one of their tools, cut through a power line or damage an expensive plant, you will be expected to pay for the repairs, also, if you injure yourself at work and cannot work, you will be loosing income. It might never happen to you, but it probably will.
-
Well I`m off to live in the South of France.
I`m doing my accounts and `Smiling Cat Herbs` made a profit of £174 last year.
Good job it`s just a full time hobby to pay for my addiction to offering a wide range of tomato plants cheaply.
-
Just look out of the window, monsoon! How much is it worth to go out in that lot?
lorry load of bark chippings being delivered today, they have to be moved as it will block the drive. Also the garden has to look nice for a wedding next weekend. I could let the girls move it and say I've something else to do. But that ain't my style.
-
My hero , Sighhhhhhhhhhh. :D
-
I actually think it depends on whether it is a hobby job Richard, or your full time employment. I would not be able to afford to charge £6 per hour because of my overheads, ie insurance, tool depreciation, fuel expenses etc. I work for an elderly couple a few doors away and I charge them just £12 an hour as I don't have to drive, but I still have to be insured and my tools still take a bashing. You do have to be careful, people will happily plead poverty to get the job done cheaper, everyone wants something for nothing.
Regarding insurance, I'm sure a lot of hobby gardeners don't have it and work away in other peoples gardens, but if you break a window, one of their tools, cut through a power line or damage an expensive plant, you will be expected to pay for the repairs, also, if you injure yourself at work and cannot work, you will be loosing income. It might never happen to you, but it probably will.
Oh i wouldn't normaly go that low, I only did it as a favour really. Felt guilty about charging much more TBH. As a result though i restrict visits to one or two mornings a week and made my excuses not to attend a planned visit yesterday when it was pouring with rain!
I have become consious of mishaps and not being covered for them. Today for example i slipped up on wet grass and luckily only suffered a bruised ego! it could have been worse though and then where would I have been. Trouble is I am not yet established enough or earning enough to consider or afford insurance.
-
Richard, a bruised ego maybe, but your heart's still in the right place 8) 8) 8)
Insurance,,,whether a 'hobby' gardener or no...imagine the scenario (and this is real..) person cut grass & strimmed (!!! eugh! served him right!) the edges...there was gravel between the edge of the lawn and the paving...small stone flew off & went straight through the client's conservatory window....operative tried to blag the client to claim on her house insurance.....client (rightly) said "NO!!". Operative forced to pay for replacement glass (and it was a large window :))...
EJ, to help GA and others, ....who do you use, please, and how much?
-
Axa Insurance and it is in the region of £70 per year, which to me is a very very small price to pay. Your scenario Lish is sooooo close to the truth that it is uncanny. Also, greenhouses come into the firing line.
Fuel is a swine both for tools and the car getting from a to b. I try to keep jobs local, but needs must and I have 3 which are a small trek out. My profit will never buy me a sports car, but it pays the bills which makes life easier. Back to work on Monday once the kids go back and my first 3 hours stint is weeding an overgrown island bed, packed full of ground elder, then heavily mulching with bark, the next stint, weather permitting, is grass cutting, edging then weeding and tidying a bulb garden and weeding again. This time of year, plenty of weeding.
-
Just an update...........sorted my price out and happy with it,slow start and suddenly got lots of offers of work.
I had my first wet and windy day today,and booked for all day.Plodded on and got through it.Very bracing,glad of it really as the soil was like concrete.Every time the fork went in I was hitting a brick,weeding the hard way.Glad of the wind to cool me down as I was getting rather hot. LOL
Two things I had not expected,two huge gardens.Offered lots of hours in these but what about my smaller gardens.Been advised to stick with the bigger customers but not sure really.
Number one big garden is OK as well laid out and just upkeep really but a job I accepted sunday is giving me concerns,Lots of separate areas and lots of new plantings needed plus so much grass.Arrrrrrr.Have I bitten off more than I can chew.Keep looking over my shoulder for the expert.........help it is me.
I think I was expecting several little elderly person type gardens not an acre of garden.Thought they would not want me as I have decided I will not do ride on mowers but both big gardens offered to do the big areas themselves.
Have taken on board all your advice.
I suppose Iam a bit excited and a bit scared of this latest job.Everything I have learnt at college to be put into practise I.e pond needs sorting out big time,New plants for the rockery,Plants for woody shady area,plant new hedge in shaded area,the list goes on.Wish me luck. :)
-
Here's wishing you lots of luck. I love to see people having a go.
-
It all sounds great Betula, maybe a bit daunting at first but you'll surprise yourself in no time I'm sure!!
-
Yeah! Good luck from me, too. Thing to think about B, given that you, like me, don't have to work to pay the mortgage/bills/boring stuff like that ;) is that 'work' must be FUN 8) Do what you're happy doing, for peeps you enjoy working for, in gardens you like and like to be in. Life doesn't get better than this!
I reckon that you've already found that there's work a-plenty around and this year for you is the year you're testing the water?...ps...yesterday was bracing?? Yesterday was b. orrible here! & there was NOTHING that I was going to get wet/dry/v.wet/damp/dry again for, for 5 hours, so called it a day after 3, came home with a freebie gift of a bottle of Merlot anorl, but was back at 8.30 this morning to start finishing the planting. Great few hours + some goodies, courtesy of client's R&R trip to Morries (pack of back bacon, frozen lasagne to keep me strength up + a bunch of flowers) as a thank-you for going back on my day off.....I repeat, life doesn't get much better than this.... ;D
-
I bless my digi camera and laptop PC when I'm doing really neglected gardens..... slide-show pics of the before/during & ta-da! AFTER are a big hit (and, incidentally) another money earner. Didn't plan it that way, honest :o ;D but a print out album has been requested a few times - and I'm there to oblige ;) I use Kodak atm....
Just an aside re printing from digital pictures.
I've found Photobox pretty reliable and have also created some books using their Photobooks - not too hard to set up and being hardback look pretty good at the end.
http://www.photobox.co.uk/shop/photo-books/classic-a4-photobook (http://www.photobox.co.uk/shop/photo-books/classic-a4-photobook)
-
Many thanks, Owl..I'll check that out 8)
B, I've been reminded....DO take before/during/after pix, particularly if you're working in a large garden & the client is leaving you to it...real bonus & a blessing - and a constant permanent reminder that You're Worth It when it comes to submitting the bill ;D