ᐅ Setting Priorities in Landscaping. Should the entire garden be planned at once?
Created on: 1 May 2018 19:20
R
R.Hotzenplotz
Hi!
We are slowly but surely preparing to get in touch with landscape gardeners – they said that once the ground floor shell is complete, it’s worth meeting on-site.
I’ve read that, based on experience, around 18% of the construction costs should be budgeted for exterior works and the garden. For us, that would be in the six-figure range. However, we only have about €50,000 (around $55,000) available to start with. So priorities will have to be set.
From your point of view, what are things that should definitely be considered and implemented from the beginning? What can maybe be planned for mentally but realized at a later stage?
So far, we have only made rough plans and want to ask 2-3 landscape gardeners for proposals.
Here’s what we have in mind so far:
Front garden:
- Driveway and path to the front door with large stone slabs
- Two small trees in the front garden, maybe a maple and another variety
- Lawn
- Possibly two strips of bark mulch to the left and right of the front door path with small mushroom-shaped trees
Garden:
- Terrace
- Mostly lawn, few flower beds
- Possibly a hedge at the sides of the property; a fence maybe later
- Due to the property’s topography, possibly stairs leading from the terrace down into the garden
- A kind of seating area at the far end of the property
- Possibly a spot elsewhere for our loungers with some of those yellowish grasses around them (I think they are called pampas grass)
- We are thinking of a green pergola – but we’re not sure yet if it should be on the terrace or at the seating area
- I dream of a large tree in the garden, but I haven’t researched that properly yet and haven’t found the final solution with just a quick online search; it probably requires professional advice
- In the longer term, a swimming pool or a hot tub could be an option (but we have no technical information on that yet).
I think it’s important to give landscape gardeners clear instructions from the start.
Would it make sense to have the entire final garden planned and then implement it step by step?
I’m looking forward to some tips on how to approach planning and prioritization, and on how to best communicate with the landscape gardener.
Top priority is of course the access path at the front and probably the whole front garden, so that we don’t start many things in different places but end up finishing nothing.
We are slowly but surely preparing to get in touch with landscape gardeners – they said that once the ground floor shell is complete, it’s worth meeting on-site.
I’ve read that, based on experience, around 18% of the construction costs should be budgeted for exterior works and the garden. For us, that would be in the six-figure range. However, we only have about €50,000 (around $55,000) available to start with. So priorities will have to be set.
From your point of view, what are things that should definitely be considered and implemented from the beginning? What can maybe be planned for mentally but realized at a later stage?
So far, we have only made rough plans and want to ask 2-3 landscape gardeners for proposals.
Here’s what we have in mind so far:
Front garden:
- Driveway and path to the front door with large stone slabs
- Two small trees in the front garden, maybe a maple and another variety
- Lawn
- Possibly two strips of bark mulch to the left and right of the front door path with small mushroom-shaped trees
Garden:
- Terrace
- Mostly lawn, few flower beds
- Possibly a hedge at the sides of the property; a fence maybe later
- Due to the property’s topography, possibly stairs leading from the terrace down into the garden
- A kind of seating area at the far end of the property
- Possibly a spot elsewhere for our loungers with some of those yellowish grasses around them (I think they are called pampas grass)
- We are thinking of a green pergola – but we’re not sure yet if it should be on the terrace or at the seating area
- I dream of a large tree in the garden, but I haven’t researched that properly yet and haven’t found the final solution with just a quick online search; it probably requires professional advice
- In the longer term, a swimming pool or a hot tub could be an option (but we have no technical information on that yet).
I think it’s important to give landscape gardeners clear instructions from the start.
Would it make sense to have the entire final garden planned and then implement it step by step?
I’m looking forward to some tips on how to approach planning and prioritization, and on how to best communicate with the landscape gardener.
Top priority is of course the access path at the front and probably the whole front garden, so that we don’t start many things in different places but end up finishing nothing.
I would also wait to install the pool until the children are older. Water is very tempting but dangerous for little ones. I wouldn’t want to deal with that stress for years.
Maybe you could have a hole dug already and cover it with a ground-level trampoline until the pool is built? Even 2-year-olds can enjoy that.
Maybe you could have a hole dug already and cover it with a ground-level trampoline until the pool is built? Even 2-year-olds can enjoy that.
R
R.Hotzenplotz5 Jun 2018 23:53I really like the idea!
I also think the pool probably won’t be part of the initial build. We don’t have enough budget to have it installed properly. Otherwise, we would have to use cheaper materials elsewhere, which is not the goal, since you install these things to last 20 years or more.
We will plan the pool and possibly prepare piping and other groundwork, but most likely we will forego actually building it for now. A pool costing around €30,000 (about $32,000) with acceptable quality and child safety cover, etc., is probably not feasible.
We are now supposed to save our ideas on Pinterest and share them with the landscape designer in this format.
I also think the pool probably won’t be part of the initial build. We don’t have enough budget to have it installed properly. Otherwise, we would have to use cheaper materials elsewhere, which is not the goal, since you install these things to last 20 years or more.
We will plan the pool and possibly prepare piping and other groundwork, but most likely we will forego actually building it for now. A pool costing around €30,000 (about $32,000) with acceptable quality and child safety cover, etc., is probably not feasible.
We are now supposed to save our ideas on Pinterest and share them with the landscape designer in this format.
I also find the stress really too much. You can’t just leave the children alone in the garden for years, not even for a short moment. Even with a cover, something can always happen without you noticing. If a child falls from a tree and breaks an arm, you will hear the call and can help. In the pool, you simply have no chance unless you happen to see it. Sorry for the scary scenarios, but we have had such a tragic case in our extended family.
I think, for the few warm weeks per year, a nice above-ground pool that can be dismantled after the season is enough. It might be worth paving an area with an access path for it, where later you can place outdoor furniture when the pool is no longer needed. I find the access path important so the children don’t constantly bring grass into the pool. An outdoor garden shower is also nice.
I think, for the few warm weeks per year, a nice above-ground pool that can be dismantled after the season is enough. It might be worth paving an area with an access path for it, where later you can place outdoor furniture when the pool is no longer needed. I find the access path important so the children don’t constantly bring grass into the pool. An outdoor garden shower is also nice.
R
R.Hotzenplotz17 Jun 2018 22:11We have an appointment on June 26th where a preliminary concept will be presented to us. We are really looking forward to it.
Hi,
I read through the entire thread. Hotzenplotz’s percentage guidelines are actually not that far off.
A quick side note on the pool topic: as far as I know, you need a LIFEGUARD starting from a certain depth (1.50 or 1.60 m (5 ft or 5 ft 3 in)).
Overall, we spent just under 60k on the basics for the outdoor area, on a plot size of 510 m² (5,485 ft²).
No
The areas were prepared for planting; we did the planting ourselves. I would estimate materials for plants and mulching at around 10k (so far, still not finished), with several hundred hours of work. I bought the plants as cheaply as possible over in the Netherlands rather than at the local nursery.
If you go 1–2 levels above a standard hardware store quality, it gets expensive. Small pavers laid in segmental arches can’t just be installed by any “I’ll do it on the side” landscape gardener, same with costly large-format natural stone slabs. Originally, 25k was budgeted for the outdoor area (a rough figure from some online forum); that would have allowed for a very basic standard.
I requested several (6) quotes, including some from outside the region, even one from a local guy who would have done it for cash only. The market is currently overheated, landscapers are charging extra for this, and you have to expect months-long waiting times, which also adds to the cost.
I read through the entire thread. Hotzenplotz’s percentage guidelines are actually not that far off.
A quick side note on the pool topic: as far as I know, you need a LIFEGUARD starting from a certain depth (1.50 or 1.60 m (5 ft or 5 ft 3 in)).
Overall, we spent just under 60k on the basics for the outdoor area, on a plot size of 510 m² (5,485 ft²).
- Retaining wall (nothing special, nearly 25 m (82 ft), just under 3k euros, built by the general contractor)
- Fence system (8 m (26 ft) of wooden privacy screen, mid-range quality, about 21 m (69 ft) double wire mesh panels, just under 6k euros)
- Terraces, paths, and driveway made of small basalt pavers, garden bed edging (the small pavers pushed the cost up, since it’s quite different from concrete pavers), earthworks, soil preparation, etc. amounted to nearly 50k euros
No
- Water features
- Pools
- Natural swimming ponds
The areas were prepared for planting; we did the planting ourselves. I would estimate materials for plants and mulching at around 10k (so far, still not finished), with several hundred hours of work. I bought the plants as cheaply as possible over in the Netherlands rather than at the local nursery.
If you go 1–2 levels above a standard hardware store quality, it gets expensive. Small pavers laid in segmental arches can’t just be installed by any “I’ll do it on the side” landscape gardener, same with costly large-format natural stone slabs. Originally, 25k was budgeted for the outdoor area (a rough figure from some online forum); that would have allowed for a very basic standard.
I requested several (6) quotes, including some from outside the region, even one from a local guy who would have done it for cash only. The market is currently overheated, landscapers are charging extra for this, and you have to expect months-long waiting times, which also adds to the cost.
I want to emphasize Müllerins’ statement about the size of the trash bin. For comparison, in my apartment building we have an 80-liter (21 gallons) residual waste bin shared by 3 households with a total of 5 people. It is emptied every 6 weeks. In theory, it could be emptied every 2 weeks. I consider a 120-liter (32 gallons) bin with the option of biweekly collection sufficient, assuming that organic waste is collected separately, even during the phase when disposable diapers are used for small children.
Similar topics