Setting a garden landscaping budget

Working out a realistic budget for garden landscaping can be a complicated business. The nature of the landscape design can vary greatly, as can the types of materials you wish to use.

There are a few simple rules to keep in mind when planning to landscape your garden. Landscape designer Michael Hicks, of Michael Hicks Landscape Design, says that it's important to set your budget to reflect the overall value of your property.

"You need to start off from the most basic principle of working out the capital value of your property and then not spending more than 15 or 20 per cent of that on landscaping," he says.

How much will a garden design cost?

The Landscape Industries Association of Victoria website has a basic guide to working out how much a professional garden landscaping job should cost in terms of construction and garden materials.

It is based on a formula of 60 per cent for soft works (as in planting, soil works and mulching) and 40 per cent for hard landscaping (paving, walls, decks, etc.). This does not include the cost of design or maintenance, and it can vary according to things like site size, topography and materials used.

Michael says that doing the job yourself might reduce these sorts of costs by about 50 per cent, but you should always be cautious of escalating costs in DIY projects because of landscape design inexperience. Even professional jobs can run over the budget, so it's important to have a well-written contract in place to prevent expensive and unexpected additions.

Which landscape gardener should I use?

Other simple tips to keep costs down include comparing the prices of garden landscape designers before committing to any one of them, along with a bit of research to check out the wholesale or retail prices of different materials.

Michael advises consulting a garden landscape designer to ascertain how much the construction process will cost, and also to ensure the job is done right.

How much are consultations?

Many designers don't charge for an initial half-hour consultation, during which time you can get a fair idea of what to expect in price and the finished product.

Michael points out that a properly landscaped garden will greatly increase the value of your home, so the money is well spent.

"You get the benefit of the designer's experience and skills to produce a professionally designed garden landscape," he says. "It will look good, be functional, suit the architecture of your house and you won't have to redo it in a few years time."

Contact a landscape designer and find out how to keep on budget with your garden design: