Guides
Hiring a gardener, explained
What the trade actually does, what things should cost, what a quote ought to contain, and how to check a business's registrations and certificates.
All 19 guides
How to find a good gardener
Four checks help you choose a gardener with confidence: a written scope, a waste carrier number you can look up, current insurance, and two clients of a year or more.
Gardener hourly rate in the UK: what to expect to pay
£25 to £45 an hour and £150 to £300 a day covers most UK gardeners in 2026, with London running 20 to 30 per cent above the national figure.
Waste carrier registration for gardeners
Moving garden waste for business requires waste carrier registration. Lower tier is free and covers a gardener's own cuttings and prunings; upper tier costs £191.02.
Hard and soft landscaping explained
Hard landscaping is the built structure: paving, decking, walls, fences. Soft landscaping is everything living. Budgets usually split about 60/40 between them.
Questions to ask a gardener
Twenty questions covering scope, money, waste, insurance and continuity. Ask them at the site visit, before a price is agreed, and write down the answers.
What a landscaping quote should include
A quote fixes the price; an estimate does not. Both need a total inclusive of tax, an address, a scope and, for work agreed at home, a 14 day cancellation notice.
How long garden jobs take
A medium lawn takes one to two hours, a 20 square metre patio two to three days, and a full design and build two to six weeks on site across months of elapsed time.
When can you cut hedges? Nesting birds, trees and the law
No calendar ban stops garden hedge cutting. Active nests, preservation orders, conservation areas and the high hedges rules are the four things that apply.
Gardener qualifications in the UK
No licence exists to work as a gardener. Pesticide certificates are a legal requirement, chainsaw certificates are what the Health and Safety Executive expects, and the rest is voluntary.
When to prune roses: timing and cuts for each type of rose
Most roses are pruned in late winter as growth restarts: mid-February in the south of England, March further north. Ramblers and roses that flower only once are the exception, and are pruned in late summer straight after flowering.
When to prune apple trees, and where to make the cuts
Prune free standing apple and pear trees in winter while they are dormant, between November and early March, removing no more than 10 to 20 per cent of the canopy. Trained cordons, espaliers and fans get a second, summer prune in July or August.
When to prune hydrangeas, and the other shrubs in a border
Prune mophead and lacecap hydrangeas in early spring, cutting each faded flowerhead back to the first strong pair of buds. Paniculata and Annabelle types can be cut much harder in spring, and climbing hydrangea is pruned straight after it flowers.
Do I need planning permission for a shed? The size rules
Usually not, in England. A shed is permitted development if it is single storey, sits behind the front of the house, stays at 2.5m or under within 2 metres of a boundary, and with other buildings covers no more than half the garden.
How to get rid of moss in a lawn, and stop it coming back
Rake or scarify the moss out in early autumn, then fix whatever let it in: shade, compacted or wet soil, acid soil or mowing too short. Moss killer alone only clears it until the same conditions bring it back.
Garden jobs by month: what to do in March and all year
March is for the first mow on a dry day with the blades high, dividing tired perennials, planting summer bulbs and guarding new shoots from slugs. Every other month has its own short list below.
When to lay turf in the UK: the months that work
Mid-autumn is the ideal time to lay turf in the UK, and it can go down any time from then until early spring if the ground is not frozen or waterlogged. Turf laid from mid-spring to early autumn struggles in the heat and needs watering every few days.
Why is my lawn turning yellow? The causes and the fixes
Most yellow lawns are drought, dog urine, too much fertiliser or grubs eating the roots. The pattern tells you which: irregular patches in dry weather, round patches with a dark green rim, stripes after feeding, or turf that lifts like a carpet.
When to scarify a lawn, and when to aerate it
Scarify and aerate in September or October, when the soil is still warm and moist and the grass can recover before winter, never in drought, frost or waterlogged ground. Most lawns need spiking every two or three years, not every year.
Do I have to declare Japanese knotweed? The law explained
Yes, when selling in England and Wales: the standard TA6 property form asks whether knotweed is on the property or within three metres of its boundary, and a misleading answer can lead to a compensation claim. Having it is not an offence; letting it spread is.