Gardens are the most crucial aspect of your house’s exterior. A lush garden exudes beauty and class, bringing out the beauty and aesthetics of your house while giving it an aura of peace. We understand what a clean and green garden represents for homeowners and the first impressions it gives off. However, maintaining the standards of your lush gardens requires proper maintenance and clearance, which can be quite back-breaking for individuals, especially homeowners with large garden spaces. This calls for you to budget for it in your annual spending. But what is the cost of garden clearance in 2022?
We have compiled this guide detailing the garden clearance services, including everything from landscaping, trimming, and shaping to waste clearance and disposal. We also interviewed homeowners, and the professionals over at Bark, who provide one-stop services for all your garden needs to gather the best prices and tips for your garden services. Let’s get to it.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
How Much Does It Cost to Clear Garden in 2022?
| Cost provided item | Lowest Price | Highest Price | Average UK Cost |
| Garden clearance (Hourly) | £45 | £65 | £55 |
| Garden clearance (By m3) | £50 | £250 | £150 |
| Local council waste removal (yearly) | £40 | £70 | £55 |
| Skip truck hire | £60 | £400 | £230 |
This table summarises the estimated cost of garden clearance depending upon which service you use.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
Factors that Affect the Cost of Garden Clearance
There are several factors that affect the cost of your garden clearance services. Listed below are a few of the most important ones to consider.
Garden size and condition
This seems like an obvious one. The contractor will charge you according to the size of your garden. For instance, If you have a large backyard, you should expect the price to be higher than a smaller one. Furthermore, the garden’s condition will also determine the cost. If you haven’t pruned your garden in a while, you should be ready to pay more than someone who does so regularly. A regular clearing job will range from £120 to £350, with a complex job costing you around £400 to £600 to clear. The job’s complexity will depend on when your garden has last been cleaned, a few weeks, a few months, or a few years.
Location
Like other services within the UK, garden clearance costs vary depending on location. For instance, garden clearance in London will be more costly than in other areas. Additionally, hiring outside of your location will also increase the cost since the contractor has to travel to your location. On average, garden clearance costs you around £400 in London, £300 in South West, and £220 in Midlands.
Type of waste
The type of waste also determines the cost of this service. Organic waste like leaves, lawn clippings, and broken branches are cheaper to clear, and this is because the contractor doesn’t need any special tools to collect, clean, and dispose of them. In comparison, non-organic waste such as broken glasses is expensive to clear and dispose of since they require additional protective gear and extra care during disposal.
Experience
Always remember that inexperienced workers often lead to sub-par work, more man hours, and an overall dissatisfaction while costing more. We highly recommend employing the services of professionals like Bark which houses hundreds of experienced professionals specializing in tending to your garden needs. You should expect to pay more for an experienced contractor, but on the upside, such a contractor has the tools to work faster and meet your expectations.
Weight and volume
Contractors often use weight to determine the cost of a complex garden clearing job. Clearing soil waste is more challenging compared to leaves, so garden clearance experts clear light waste by volume instead of weight used in soil waste.
Landscaping and other additional services
Depending on your need, you can also hire a landscaper to help you with other work, such as planting flowers, trimming bushes and designing. Availing a total landscaping service will also include garden clearing, but you will pay for these services in the project’s total cost. The price of such a service ranges anywhere from £100 to £500, but that can change depending on miscellaneous factors.
Skip hire and permit
You will need to hire a skip wagon for your garden if you decide to clear the garden by yourself. The price of these skips varies depending on size. The price ranges from £60 to £400 with a medium-sized truck costing you £250. You will be responsible for filling it and arranging how garbage collectors will get it. However, note that you need a permit for this and permit prices, again, depend on your location.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
How Do I Save Money When Clearing My Garden?
Create a compost bin
This is an efficient way of clearing organic garden waste on a budget. You will be collecting the waste and putting it in your makeshift compost. You can use the resulting compost manure in plating your garden or restoring your lawn after clearing the dry leaves.
Do it yourself
The easiest way to clear the garden on a budget is by doing it yourself. You can clear the garden with a rake, fill a bag, and then take it to a local tip. However, note that you will need a waste carrier registration. You can register for a lower-tier waste carrier if you carry organic garden waste. This registration is free and lasts indefinitely. You will need an upper-tier waste carrier registration if the waste consists of construction material. This registration costs £150 and covers you for up to three years; you can get it from the Environment Agency in England.
Take advantage of freemium
Some local authorities in England offer waste removal services for free. Such councils provide a bin where you put the waste. It will be best if you take advantage of it if you want to save on the cost of garden clearing. However, note that you must collect the waste and put it in the bin where the local council can collect it for disposal after a week or two. In areas where these services aren’t free, the council charges a small fee of £150 to £200 a year.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
What’s Involved in Garden Clearance?
We talked about the cost and the various factors affecting the cost of availing a garden cleaning service, but what’s included in one?
Leaf blowing
This is moving debris such as grass cuttings and leaves using a leaf blower, and it’s most effective compared to raking. The UK being seasonal, your hedges and garden trees will always shed leaves, hence, the need for this process.
Rubbish removal
This refers to the removal of unwanted items such as pieces of broken glass or wood from the garden. The process is a straightforward but equally essential part of the garden clearance, and failure to do it exposes you to injuries.
Green waste removal
Green waste removal comes in after other land scrapping work, such as hedge cutting. This process includes disposing of grass cuttings, excess weeds, and hedge clippings. Removing these is important since leaving them will lead to water logging in your garden, damaging it.
Gutter cleaning
Garden clearance also involves gutter cleaning. This process removes leaves from the gutter and downspouts. In doing so, you protect your garden and the exterior of your house. You can do this yourself or hire a professional to check for damages and repair them.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
Type of Garden Waste That Requires Removal
There are two distinct types of garden waste. Each type of waste requires a specific way to take care of them.
Organic
These include cuttings of grass and weeds or foliage. Besides those, they can include windfall fruits and vegetables. These wastes are easiest to handle since they easily decompose. You will first sort out the waste to avoid overfilling the bin or exceeding the weight limit. From there you can wait for the council to collect it. Alternatively, you can use vermicomposting. This is the use of worms to create mulch out of organic waste.
Inorganic
These wastes are quite challenging to handle. These include paving slabs, glasses, construction material, etc. You need to be cautious with these materials as they can injure you. The best way to handle them is to hire professionals to clear and dispose of them. If you opt to do it yourself, it will be best if you put on protective gear such as gloves.
How Do I Find and Hire Someone to Clear My Garden?
Finding a garden clearing expert is straightforward. However, you need to do it right, so you don’t end up disappointed. The following methods are surefire ways to get such a professional.
Search online
Searching online is arguably the best method to find professionals for your garden services. A platform such as Bark connects you with these professionals, and it’s up to you to choose the best one. However, note that using search terms like ‘garden cleaning expert near me’ goes a long way in finding a tradesperson within your locality. This location-based search is essential as it will help you cut costs in the long run.
Referrals
You can also use referrals from friends and family. Chances are that a member has hired a dependable professional in the past. This method is also effective since it saves you from the process of vetting the contractor. You can faithfully rely on the referrer’s words to gauge suitability.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
Process of hiring a garden clearance expert
The above search methods should get you a list of professionals you can work with. However, you shouldn’t rush into picking one. Below listed is the process to help you hire the professional that suits your needs.
Define your garden clearance work
As the project owner, you know what kind of work you need in your garden. Therefore you should clearly define the work and your expectations. Doing so will form the foundation of your hiring, and it will also help the contractors come up with a quotation.
Interview
You should then contact the contractors on your list and conduct a phone interview. Note that this is preliminary and only serves the purpose of weeding out those that are either far away or not experienced enough. Ask questions regarding their references, experience, cost, and method of working to determine their suitability for your needs.
Arrange a physical meeting
After the phone interview, you can arrange to meet the shortlisted contractors on your list. Meeting them in person will let you know them and find out if you can work together.
Cross-check the details
We recommend always cross-checking the information you have gathered about the contractor at the physical meeting. For instance, you can request the contractor to confirm the project they have worked on and how successful they were. Doing this will enable you to determine if the professional can handle your work.
Request bids
Once satisfied with the physical meeting and explaining your project, you can request bids from the experts. You need to consider your budget at this point. But as much as you avoid overspending, it will be wise to go for a reasonably priced contract. Note that too low can only mean substandard work.
Ask the relevant questions
The bids will help you determine who you will work with, and at this point, you will ask the relevant questions. Some of the questions include the duration of the stated amount of work, tools the contractor will use, the number of on-site subcontractors, and much more. These questions will help you determine the expert’s efficiency during the project.
Draw up the contract
The last part entails drawing up the contract. This document will contain the contractor’s information, payment terms, how to handle disagreements, and a termination clause. Signing the contract sets the ground rules and the consequences of breaking them. The professional should only start working after signing the contract.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
How to Ensure that the Professional is the Right Fit
Licence
These professionals require an operating licence to collect and dispose of garden waste. It is essential to check if they are compliant before engaging them in your garden clearing project. Failure to do so will result in additional cost as fines and delays in the work.
Experience
Like other professions, garden clearing also requires experience. The years of experience will enable this professional to deal with any work-related problem should it arise. In addition, an experienced professional knows how to use most of the tools in this process. As a result, such a tradesperson will get the work done efficiently and on time.
Insurance
Garden clearance experts also need general liability and worker’s compensation insurance cover. This is because this work is prone to injuries, and you can be forced to foot the bills if not insured. In addition, your property can get damaged during processes like gutter clearing, and the expert needs insurance that will cover such unforeseen damage.
Availability
You also need to check the professional’s availability. It will be unfortunate if your garden clearing schedule collides with another client, and such a situation will lead to shoddy work or disappointment due to late service delivery. It would be best if the expert would be available when you need the services.
Quotation
A quotation is essential in this transaction, and customers should always ensure the quotation is in written form. This will make the transaction official and binding. While at it, check if the quote includes the cost of waste disposal and hiring a skip. Doing so will avert future conflict pertaining to an increase in cost.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
Reviews
Professionals vary in service delivery; thanks to technology, there are platforms where clients leave reviews. When hiring a garden clearing expert, it will be best to review the reviews to ensure that you have the right person. Alternatively, you can check testimonials on their official website to determine the capability of handling your work.
Contractor red flags you should look out for
Working with unreliable contractors can cost you dearly. Unfortunately, a good number of them fall in that category. Therefore, it will be best if you look out for the following red flags:
Requests large down payment
Requesting a large down payment is the first signal of an unreliable contractor. A good payment schedule should be per project milestone, enabling you to check the progress.
Vague contract
A project contract should indicate the scope of work, responsibilities, and duration. A contractor tabling anything short of that will most likely bungle your project. You should carefully review the contract during the negotiation and identify any problems before proceeding with the project.
Lack of permits
Permits are essential for any kind of service offered by contractors, and they are the only proof that the person claiming to be an expert is qualified and compliant. A contractor that tries to brush away permits will likely do shoddy work, and the lack of permits might be a lack of relevant qualifications.
Poor communication
Communication is key when it comes to garden clearance projects. This is because chances are that you won’t be present full time during the project. Fortunately, you can tell this at the early negotiation stage. You should be keen on how the contractor communicates; poor communication is a tell-tale sign of a waiting disappointment.
Several name changes
A company that has changed its name several times should raise red flags, as the only possible reason for that is to avoid a bad reputation. Therefore, it will be best if you avoid contractors who have changed the name of their company numerous times in the past. The only exception should be for valid legal reasons.
Negative reviews
The internet is awash with platforms where you can get reviews of garden clearance contractors. We highly recommend customers to check the contractor’s ratings and reviews before engaging them. As much as you can’t miss a negative review or low rating, the number should be much lower than the positive reviews.
No references
A contractor might claim to have experience handling a project similar to yours. However, references will be the only proof, no matter how convincing. You should insist on seeing for yourself the type of work they have done. A contractor without such is probably not experienced enough or hiding past project failures.
High-pressure tactics
You can easily miss this red flag if you aren’t keen. Such contractors use pushy sales tactics to lure you into a deal without having all the details you need. The professional will most likely paint a picture of a highly-sought after expert to hoodwink you. It would be best to walk out of any deal that doesn’t feel right.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
Final Checklist
Hiring services for garden clearing is a time-consuming process but doesn’t necessarily need to be a tedious one. This checklist summarises everything you need for efficient garden clearing in 2022.
- Don’t hire before ensuring suitability.
- The cost of these services keeps fluctuating, so we would recommend discussing and agreeing upon a price beforehand.
- Consider doing it yourself if you want to cut costs.
- Register with the relevant authorities if you will transport the waste from your garden.
- Inorganic waste is dangerous; treat them with caution.
FAQs About Garden Clearance
Q1. Is hiring for garden clearing worth it?
Garden clearance is worth it because it prevents the growth of wild insects apart from the obvious benefit of beautification. Decomposing organic matter in your garden can harbour disease-causing microorganisms. Therefore, you must clear your garden as regularly as possible.
Q2.What is the best time to clear my garden?
Spring is the best time to clear your garden in the UK. This is because the weather is warm and many pollinators that overwinter within dead plant materials emerge. However, this only applies to leaves and twigs. Some types of waste, like glasses, wood, and builders, require immediate removal to prevent injuries.
Q3.Can I clear the garden myself?
Yes, it’s possible to clear the garden on your own. However, this task is tedious and tiring since you sometimes have to trim the hedge, unclog the drainage, and do other technical work. Such work may leave your garden damaged if you fail to handle it in a well and timely manner. Therefore, it will be best to hire a professional from platforms like Bark to handle the work. Doing so will ensure better results as you concentrate on other aspects of your life.
Q4.How long does garden clearance take?
There isn’t a specific duration garden clearance will take because it depends on different factors such as volume. To be safe, it will help if you hire a professional with the right tools to work faster if the cost is per hour. In addition, you can hire more than one professional with specific qualifications if the work requires other inputs like hedge cutting.
Q5.Do I have to use a specific garden clearance company?
No, you can use any garden clearance company provided you are certain of its service. However, you need a background check to ensure you are dealing with reputable companies or professionals; checking their online reviews is the best way to go about it. Alternatively, you can use referrals from your circle to get reliable professionals.
Q6.Do I need to be home during garden clearance?
No, garden clearance can go on without your presence, so you need to hire trustworthy professionals who won’t damage your property while you are away. Bark provides tradespeople who have clean records and uphold professionalism.
Q7. What will I do if access to the garden is through the house?
This might happen in some cases. Should it be in yours, the best approach is to talk to your neighbour so that the workers use their property to get the waste from yours. Alternatively, you can let the contractors go through the house. But if so, they should provide waterproof protective coverings to avoid soiling your house.
Q8.Who is responsible for the garden clearance of a rented property?
Either you or the landlord can take responsibility for garden clearance. However, the landlord should write it in the lease to avoid conflict later. If not, it’s the responsibility of your landlord to cater for garden clearance where it would be unreasonable for you to look after.
Q9. Can I share a skip with a neighbor?
Yes, you can. If you both have small gardens, you can make an informal arrangement to share a skip bin. However, the bin will only be registered to one of you, and that person will pay for it. But note that this arrangement can limit you if you are doing a garden makeover. Until then, you can share to save on garden waste disposal. You might also like tarmac driveway cost & construction.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Upto 33%:
