ᐅ Affordable landscaping for a new build – what is the best approach?
Created on: 9 Apr 2022 11:16
M
MarkoW.
Good morning everyone,
As some of you may have heard, we are building a semi-detached house as a prefabricated home. As is common with most suppliers, the exterior landscaping is not included in the price. So, we have to take care of that ourselves.
I have read up extensively on the topic but unfortunately keep finding very conflicting prices and cost estimates.
Just a few days ago, there was a thread where someone wanted to spend six figures on their garden—I nearly fell off my chair.
So, about our garden: The area behind the house is roughly 230 square meters (2,476 square feet), a bit over 10 meters (33 feet) wide and just over 20 meters (66 feet) long. We plan to build a simple paved terrace, which will probably be slightly higher than the rest of the garden later on. The house (being timber frame construction) has to be elevated 30cm (12 inches) above ground level. Since we want level access to the terrace from the house, it will be built flush with the door, and the lawn will then be slightly lower. We will also need to install drainage between the terrace and the house to prevent water from running into the building. That shouldn’t be a problem because the rainwater downpipes’ drainage also runs in that area. According to online sources, paving the terrace costs around 100 euros per square meter (approximately $100 per 10.8 square feet).
Regarding the fence, we will of course coordinate with our future neighbors. We’re considering separating the terrace from the neighbor with gabion walls (about 4 meters / 13 feet long). The rest of the garden will be enclosed with a welded wire fence (please no debate about the fence type—the development plan requires hedges, chain-link fencing, or welded wire fencing). On various websites, I calculated prices for this. About 50 meters (164 feet) of fencing (1.8 meters / 6 feet high and 2 meters / 6.5 feet wide per panel), including posts, costs around 4,000 euros. Privacy screening strips might be added, but they can be easily installed by ourselves, so I am leaving those out for now (around 700 euros).
We also want a lawn. I think rolled turf looks best, though I’ve also read about very different prices here. When searching for prices, about 10 euros per square meter (approximately $10 per 10.8 square feet) is displayed. Alternatively, we could sow grass seed ourselves, but then there is the risk that birds will eat it.
No flowers, trees, or shrubs are initially planned. To the right of the house, we want a garage (we have quotes starting at 15,000 euros for an 8 x 3 meter (26 x 10 feet) prefabricated garage with electricity, foundation, and installation).
The driveway / front garden can only be done once the construction access road is removed.
So what makes the garden so expensive? I’ve estimated my calculated costs:
Terrace: 40 sqm x 100 euros = 4,000 euros (possibly a bit more if more base material is needed)
Rolled turf: 200 sqm x 10 euros = 2,000 euros
Fence: 4,000 euros
That brings the total to about 10,000 euros (with the terrace costs including labor).
Then there is additional labor for the fence and lawn installation (unfortunately, I don’t feel confident doing this myself, and none of my acquaintances can either). Is labor really the main factor driving the cost so high? What labor costs would you estimate for these jobs?
Also, does it make sense to install the garage only after completing the garden work? Otherwise, it would be difficult to bring in excavators and other machinery.
What other tips would you have for keeping the garden as affordable as possible?
By the way, the plot used to be farmland, so it’s flat and the soil should be good for this kind of work.
As some of you may have heard, we are building a semi-detached house as a prefabricated home. As is common with most suppliers, the exterior landscaping is not included in the price. So, we have to take care of that ourselves.
I have read up extensively on the topic but unfortunately keep finding very conflicting prices and cost estimates.
Just a few days ago, there was a thread where someone wanted to spend six figures on their garden—I nearly fell off my chair.
So, about our garden: The area behind the house is roughly 230 square meters (2,476 square feet), a bit over 10 meters (33 feet) wide and just over 20 meters (66 feet) long. We plan to build a simple paved terrace, which will probably be slightly higher than the rest of the garden later on. The house (being timber frame construction) has to be elevated 30cm (12 inches) above ground level. Since we want level access to the terrace from the house, it will be built flush with the door, and the lawn will then be slightly lower. We will also need to install drainage between the terrace and the house to prevent water from running into the building. That shouldn’t be a problem because the rainwater downpipes’ drainage also runs in that area. According to online sources, paving the terrace costs around 100 euros per square meter (approximately $100 per 10.8 square feet).
Regarding the fence, we will of course coordinate with our future neighbors. We’re considering separating the terrace from the neighbor with gabion walls (about 4 meters / 13 feet long). The rest of the garden will be enclosed with a welded wire fence (please no debate about the fence type—the development plan requires hedges, chain-link fencing, or welded wire fencing). On various websites, I calculated prices for this. About 50 meters (164 feet) of fencing (1.8 meters / 6 feet high and 2 meters / 6.5 feet wide per panel), including posts, costs around 4,000 euros. Privacy screening strips might be added, but they can be easily installed by ourselves, so I am leaving those out for now (around 700 euros).
We also want a lawn. I think rolled turf looks best, though I’ve also read about very different prices here. When searching for prices, about 10 euros per square meter (approximately $10 per 10.8 square feet) is displayed. Alternatively, we could sow grass seed ourselves, but then there is the risk that birds will eat it.
No flowers, trees, or shrubs are initially planned. To the right of the house, we want a garage (we have quotes starting at 15,000 euros for an 8 x 3 meter (26 x 10 feet) prefabricated garage with electricity, foundation, and installation).
The driveway / front garden can only be done once the construction access road is removed.
So what makes the garden so expensive? I’ve estimated my calculated costs:
Terrace: 40 sqm x 100 euros = 4,000 euros (possibly a bit more if more base material is needed)
Rolled turf: 200 sqm x 10 euros = 2,000 euros
Fence: 4,000 euros
That brings the total to about 10,000 euros (with the terrace costs including labor).
Then there is additional labor for the fence and lawn installation (unfortunately, I don’t feel confident doing this myself, and none of my acquaintances can either). Is labor really the main factor driving the cost so high? What labor costs would you estimate for these jobs?
Also, does it make sense to install the garage only after completing the garden work? Otherwise, it would be difficult to bring in excavators and other machinery.
What other tips would you have for keeping the garden as affordable as possible?
By the way, the plot used to be farmland, so it’s flat and the soil should be good for this kind of work.
askforafriend10 Apr 2022 13:19Katja, you can’t wash away your guilty conscience or put yourself on a moral high ground if you don’t immediately start living environmentally friendly—without a laptop with a lithium-ion battery, which you use to write these somewhat meaningless posts. But you’ve already made a negative impression in the inheritance thread and have made some friends there. Well, everyone has to decide for themselves what to make of your posts. Putting yourself on a moral pedestal and throwing out statements like that is always popular. But hey, on the internet, people are anonymous after all.
MarkoW. schrieb:
You seem to have a green thumb 🙂 Not necessarily, but I do make an effort because I’m interested and motivated, for example, to eat healthily and to contribute my part to solidarity, as far as it’s feasible.
I also believe that anyone who has the opportunity, at the latest since "the day before yesterday," should contribute to protecting the environment. Anyone with a garden or some farmland can give back something to nature that they took when building their house. Ultimately, your children benefit from this. If I had absolutely no interest in bees and greenery, I probably wouldn’t have bought a plot at all, and I would be more likely to think like this:
chand1986 schrieb:
I want to raise a point: why have a garden plot at all if you don’t want to use it? A very large terrace, maybe a penthouse apartment, would have been a better choice? ......
MarkoW. schrieb:
But currently, 80 - 90% of gardens / outdoor areas in new developments look like this. That’s just the "modern" trend at the moment. That’s a catch-22: wanting to be a homeowner with land, but not wanting to do anything with it. There’s nothing modern about that. I see it more as a sign of the current mindset: not wanting to take care of anything.
And as I’ve mentioned several times, the lawn is the most work of all. I think it’s a real shame that many people just don’t inform themselves beforehand. And not just about costs, but they could also ask: "I now have a garden but no skills—what can I realistically manage?"
MarkoW. schrieb:
That’s just what’s "modern" at the moment. Just like driving SUVs, which isn’t exactly the best for the environment either. However, I don’t drive an SUV if I can’t handle or park it properly.
askforafriend schrieb:
But hey, you’re anonymous on the internet after all. Hmm, Katja has shared so much about herself here in the forum that with just a little detective work, you could contact her.
To your question, @MarkoW.:
Take a moment to reflect on whether you really believe you can’t manage it. Many people learn and grow through gardening and get enthusiastic when they see how productive it can be.
G
Georgian201910 Apr 2022 14:13Benutzer200 schrieb:
Yep, works very well.
But yews are usually planted in cemeteries, not in the garden 😉We are in a conservation area, and yews are the typical plant in this English-style landscape garden. We realized that we have planted very few evergreens, so the garden looks quite bare and gray during winter. Our garden is designed to be very insect-friendly, so adding a few solitary plants like yew, boxwood, and cherry laurel doesn’t have a negative impact.I also think a columnar yew adds a slightly Mediterranean touch.
C
chand198610 Apr 2022 14:48K a t j a schrieb:
I see it quite differently. From an environmental protection perspective, land is used best when surfaces are not sealed. Cities complain about overheating and welcome every green leaf. In my opinion, your argument contradicts reality. ?
You see it differently—that single-family houses are not, by definition, an efficient use of land when it comes to creating living space? What’s there to see differently? It’s a no-brainer.
The most natural open space remains when people live stacked vertically. The remaining nature does not care about the quality of life for people.
Single-family homeowners preaching a moral duty for certain single-family house gardens with a raised finger—there’s something to that. Just reduce that category. There are many good reasons for a garden that provides habitat for more than just the residents. That doesn’t require morality. The world of our children and grandchildren will not be saved in single-family house gardens.
Georgian2019 schrieb:
We are working in a listed building area, and yews are the typical garden and courtyard plants in this English landscape garden. We realized that we hardly planted anything evergreen, so in winter the garden always looks very bare and gray. Our garden is planted in a very insect-friendly way, so a few solitary plants like yew, boxwood, and cherry laurel don’t have a negative impact.
I think a columnar yew also gives a slightly Mediterranean touch. I’m not really a fan of conifer graveyard plants either, but a bit of structure always does a bed some good. The yew fits very nicely with your place and breaks up the corner of the house. In front of it, you can see a rose and some perennials. Maybe add something rounder and smaller next to the yew? 😉
Be careful with plants from eBay and neighbors or friends: it's easy to introduce weeds into your garden. It happened to me with ground elder 🙁
The cheap roses from the discount market have become reluctant to bloom after a few years and all develop this false vigorous shoot (I can’t remember the name) 🙁
ypg schrieb:
Regarding your question @MarkoW.
Take a moment to reflect on whether you really don’t feel confident. Many people grow into gardening and develop enthusiasm once they see how productive it can be. You wouldn’t be the first to catch the gardening bug. I have a brown thumb indoors—I even manage to kill artificial plants. Outside, almost everything grows well.
240 sqm (2,583 sq ft) is not much. A rigid, tall privacy screen (check how high it’s allowed to be) quickly creates a feeling of confinement or a backyard courtyard. We had the same consideration years ago. But rather natural vertical gardening is preferable.
If you want to fit a play area and the obligatory three strawberry plants next to the terrace, there won’t be much space left.
Also, check if there are actually no restrictions on planting. Many building plans feel like they only allow you to choose the color of the tulips.
By the way, bulb flowers are a good example of how little work plants can require. You bury them once, and the rest takes care of itself.
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