My career dream job

1. My career dream job By Andrew Maguire

2. Landscape gardening prices • We asked Which? Local-recommended gardeners and landscape designers to complete a survey about the cost and completion time for 12 standard gardening and landscape designing jobs. • Armed with this information, you'll know what questions to ask, roughly what price you can expect to pay and how long jobs should take when hiring a gardener or landscape designer. • Job Details Typical price quoted Price range Typical time to complete job Survey conducted in July 2012. Mow lawn Mow lawn approx 20m x 10m. Cost of doing job once, but based on a regular weekly job. £30 £20-£35 1 hour Lay a patio Lay a patio approx 4m x 2m of basic, square paving slabs. Assumption that ground is currently laid to lawn and flat. £800 £625-£1,050 1-2 days Remove existing patio and lay to lawn Remove a paved patio of 4m x 2m. Replace with lawn. £475 £350-£661 1-2 days Build a decked area Build a decked area in a garden. 2.5m x 4m. Assume area is flat and currently laid to lawn. £880 £700-£1,050 1-2 days Build a garden shed Build an 8' x 6' shiplap shed. Shed purchased by customer. Working on the assumption that flat base is already in place. £150 £100-£176 0.5–1 day Build a garden fence Construct a garden fence with ten 6' x 5' panels including posts and capping. Includes price of labour plus all materials. £760 £635-£900 1-2 days Create two raised beds (1.5m x 4m) for vegetable patch Assuming that ground is currently laid to lawn. n/a £215-£675 1–2 days Build a small rockery Including rocks and plants. £350 £220-£400 1 day Build a shingle garden path Build a shingle path, approx 1m x 6m. n/a £200-£500 0.5–1 day Build a garden pond Includes digging the hole, lining and filling a pond of approximately 1.5m diameter. £507 £400-£713 1-2 days Bring an overgrown garden back to life Weed, prune and mow an overgrown garden left untended for more than a year. Garden approximately 20m x 10m – assuming it is currently laid to lawn with shrub borders on three sides. Dispose of all waste. £450 £260-£750 (depending on type of shrubs to be removed and amount of waste to dispose of) 1–3 days (depending on type and volume of shrubs) Trim garden hedge Assuming existing hedge is approximately 10m long and 2m high. Needs trimming on top and both sides. £90 £66-£115 2–4 hours

3. How much do you get paid at the start to be a landscape gardener • Landscape gardeners work outside in all kinds of weather conditions and usually start work early in the morning. They normally work 3an average of 38 hours per week from Monday to Friday, but may be required to work weekends. • Landscape gardeners can expect to earn approximately £543.40 per week (full-time and before tax), depending on their experience and employer. Landscape gardeners who are self-employed may earn considerably more. • Landscape gardeners need to be able to use various hand tools relevant to the trade, as well as machinery such as mowers and chain saws. They may also be required to install irrigation systems, so need to be familiar with these systems. • You can work as a landscape gardener without any formal qualifications as you can receive training on the job. However, it is possible to undertake a Landscape Gardener apprenticeship. Entry requirements may vary; however, employers generally require at least Year 10. • As an apprentice you enter into a formal training contract with an employer. You spend most of your time working and learning practical skills on the job and you spend some time undertaking structured training with a registered training provider of your choice. They will assess your skills and when you are competent in all areas, you will be awarded a nationally- recognised qualification. Visit the ApprentiCentre to find out more. The apprenticeship usually takes three years to complete. • If you are still at school you may be able to access an apprenticeship through your school. You generally start your school-based apprenticeship by attending school three days a week, spending one day at a registered training organisation and one day at work.

4. Qualifications you need to be a landscape gardener • To call yourself a landscape architect you need a university degree in Landscape Architecture. (Generally 4 years full time)To be a Garden Designer you don't need any qualifications but they help if you want to be a good one. Could include qualifications in Horticulture, Environmental Science, Architecture, Landscape Construction etc. would all help.

5. Average jobs you do in one day • Landscape gardeners work outside in all kinds of weather conditions and usually start work early in the morning. They normally work 3an average of 38 hours per week from Monday to Friday, but may be required to work weekends.

6. The prospects • Obtaining chartered membership of The Landscape Institute (LI) is the most important landmark, demonstrating that you are a fully qualified landscape architect. Landscape architects with strong commercial awareness may progress to leading consultancy roles. • Experienced practitioners often move into private practice, where they may aim to become partners or set up their own business. To be successful in private practice, you will need a good client and contact base as well as excellent experience, knowledge and skills. • Work in the public sector, particularly local government, will probably provide a more defined promotion structure than is usual in the private sector. Today's organisations tend to have flatter hierarchies with fewer managers and increased responsibility levels for most individual employees. • A change of employer and/or location may be necessary for promotion. You should also note that senior positions may be difficult to achieve in some organisations because of the small numbers employed. Some landscape architects/designers move into urban design. • I got this information from internet

7. The promotions • If you have always wanted stylish Rattan garden furniture for your garden but never got round to buying it, now is definitely the time to think again. We are currently offering amazing prices on the ex display garden furniture we have in the show room at the moment. We need to clear this stock to make room for the arrival of new furniture this month, all furniture must go.

8. Other interesting aspects of the job • Landscape gardeners are the creative and practical workhorses who create functional, beautiful and relaxing gardens for all kinds of clients, from local councils and universities to private companies and individual customers. • Using their talent for design and passion for practical work, landscape gardeners are responsible for designing, crafting, regenerating and maintaining outside spaces. • The creative side of a landscape gardener’s job involves two main stages: briefing and design. First things first, the landscape gardener will meet with their client to discuss their wants and desires for the proposed landscaping project. They will then produce a series of sketches, plans and designs before presenting them to the client. • Once the designs are finalised, the landscape gardener will be responsible for taking care of the business side of things; hiring equipment, recruiting additional labourers where necessary, and procuring all of the required materials, such as wood, cement, wood chippings, pebbles and soil, • When it’s time to get down to business, landscape gardeners are not scared of getting their hands dirty. They’ll be planting trees, bushes, flowers, shrubs and all kinds of other greenery. They’ll also be responsible for treating lawns and soil with nourishing chemicals. • A landscape gardener’s job, however, isn’t simply all about the plants. These guys will also be experts at building fences, erecting gazebos, constructing rockeries, laying decking and positioning patio slabs. They might even be in charge of adorning the garden with lighting, furniture and other finishing touches.