Firstly, it’s important that you decide on exactly what it is that you would like the gardener to do. Something simple like mowing the lawn or raking leaves doesn’t really need much definition or input from yourself however, if you’re looking to landscape your garden, it’s important that you hire the services of a specialist landscape gardener. A general gardener is unlikely to be able to help much, or it will take much longer, if you are looking to totally transform the look of your outdoor space.
When contacting different gardeners in your area, remember that qualifications aren’t always going to be high on someone’s credentials. The RHS Level 2 certificate is a good one to look out for if you do want proof of training, but there are many, many gardeners who are brilliant at what they do but have never had formal training, they are simply passionate about gardening. On the other hand, other people could be brilliant at getting the qualification and pass with flying colours but have little practical knowledge/experience of being in the garden and struggle to identify a plant from a weed. Reviews and experience are better indicators of how good the gardener is. That doesn’t mean that hiring someone just starting out in the business is a no-go and should be avoided but take their experience level into account before hiring them. If you only want your lawn cut then this could be a great way for a novice to start getting experience but you wouldn’t necessarily want to hire them for tasks such as hedge cutting or tree removal.
The decision of whether to go for an individual or a company is completely down to you. No matter who you end up hiring it is important to make sure that they have their own equipment and won’t need to use yours, as well as having public liability insurance in place to safeguard should something go wrong. If they don’t have their own tools and have to use yours, you could find that serious problems occur if something goes wrong and they end up injuring themselves and it could even be that you end up being seen as an employer because you are paying them and they use your equipment, which will lead to you having all the responsibilities associated with employer status.
Before any work is started, make sure that you are fully aware of what you will be charged for, how much each job/hour of work is, when payment is due and the different payment methods accepted by the gardener so that you don’t get caught out.
If you’re in need of honest, reliable gardeners in the Saffron Walden area then get in contact with GWB Horticulture today!
https://www.thebestof.co.uk/local/saffron-walden/business-guide/feature/gwb-horticulture
