Landscaping quotes from landscapers in your area

What landscapers do

Landscaping covers two kinds of work, and many companies specialise in one. Soft landscaping is everything living: soil preparation, planting, lawn and mulching. Hard landscaping is the built structure of a garden: paths, steps, retaining walls, raised beds, water features and edging.

If your project is mostly hard landscaping, check that the company does that work itself, rather than subcontracting it. If it's mostly planting, a designer-led company may get you a better result than a team that mainly lays lawn.

Choosing a lawn

Instant lawn (rolled turf) gives you a usable lawn within weeks, rather than the months seed takes. The right grass depends far more on sun, shade and water than on looks.

Water-wise gardens

Much of South Africa faces water restrictions from time to time, and a garden designed around them is cheaper to run and survives dry spells. Water-wise design isn't only about gravel and succulents. It means grouping plants by how much water they need, using mulch to keep moisture in the soil, choosing indigenous plants suited to your region, and keeping lawn to the areas you actually use.

Irrigation helps if it's designed well. Drip irrigation puts water at plant roots with very little lost to evaporation, which suits beds and shrubs. Pop-up sprinklers suit lawn. A system on a timer, watering early in the morning, uses far less water than watering by hand in the afternoon.

Invasive plants: a legal issue, not just a garden one

Some plants still common in South African gardens are listed as invasive under the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act. Owners must control listed Category 1b invaders, and before selling a property, the seller must tell the buyer in writing about any listed invasive species on it.

A knowledgeable landscaper will point out listed plants during a site visit and can remove and replace them as part of a makeover. If you're planning to sell in the next few years, it's worth asking.

Retaining walls and steps

On sloped plots, retaining walls do structural work: they hold back soil that gets heavy when it's wet. Small decorative walls can be built by a landscaper, but walls that retain a significant height of soil need proper design, drainage behind the wall and, depending on their height and your municipality, an engineer and approval. Retaining walls are not covered by the minor building work exemption that applies to low free-standing walls.

Whoever builds it, ask how water behind the wall will drain. Walls without drainage holes or a gravel backfill are the ones that bulge and crack after a wet season.