In the UK
Gardeners and garden maintenance rounds, landscapers, grounds maintenance contractors, tree surgeons and arborists, lawn treatment, fencing and paving firms, including winter hedge, tree and gritting work, in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
- Pricing a crew hour and a year of maintenance visits so the rain days are paid forBuild your rate from what a productive hour really costs once holidays, weather and the van are counted, then price maintenance contracts from measured visit times.Read the lesson
- Getting through December to February when the grass stops and the tax bill landsLandscaping cash is lowest in the winter, just as Self Assessment falls due on 31 January, so size the gap and smooth your income before the season ends.Read the lesson
- Going over the VAT threshold, a developer's zero-rating and a builder's CIS: what goes on my invoice?Most landscaping is simply standard-rated, but a strong summer can take you over the VAT threshold, and work for builders and developers brings in zero-rating on new homes and the Construction Industry Scheme.Read the lesson
- Spraying weeds, carrying green waste, running red diesel and towing a digger: am I legal?Spraying, green waste, red diesel and towing each need a certificate, a registration or a check, most leave a record you are expected to keep, and fences, front drives and digging near a neighbour carry planning and notice rules.Read the lesson
- Quotes agreed in the client's garden, plant guarantees and long contracts: the terms that cost landscapers moneyA quote agreed at the client's home, an open-ended plant guarantee and a long contract priced flat can each cost you the profit on a job, and each has a fix.Read the lesson
- Taking on summer labourers without a holiday pay bill or a right-to-work fine laterSeasonal crews bring three traps: holiday for irregular hours, right-to-work checks that now reach individual subcontractors, and visa routes that do not cover landscaping.Read the lesson
- Winning more domestic rounds and council grounds contracts, and pricing the staff who come with a re-tenderDomestic rounds grow street by street on honest reviews, public and housing grounds work is won on paperwork as much as price, and a re-tender can hand you the outgoing contractor's staff.Read the lesson
- I've found a nest, knotweed or a protected tree halfway through the job: what now?Some discoveries turn a garden job into an offence the moment you carry on, and the law binds the contractor as well as the client; two safety stops apply to every tree and verge crew too.Read the lesson
In the US
Landscapers and lawn care routes, grounds maintenance contractors, tree services and arborists, irrigation, hardscape and fencing installers, and landscape firms that sell snow and ice work, in any US state.
- Pricing a crew hour and a mowing stop so the drive time is paid forBuild your rate from a burdened, billable crew hour, then price each stop by the minutes on site plus the minutes driving to it, because route density is where the margin is.Read the lesson
- Making it through the winter when the mowing stops and payroll does notLate-winter payroll, equipment and materials come before the first spring payments, so smooth your income, take lawful deposits and line up credit in the fall.Read the lesson
- Do I charge sales tax on mowing, and who needs a 1099 from me this year?Whether landscaping is taxable depends on the state and on whether the job is maintenance or an improvement, and the 1099 threshold changed for 2026.Read the lesson
- Can my crew spray the weeds, build the patio and dig the irrigation line without a license?Pesticides, installs, irrigation and digging each have their own state or local license or notice rule, and in California an unlicensed contractor cannot sue to collect.Read the lesson
- Snow contracts, plant warranties and lien waivers: the clauses that leave you holding the billSnow and ice work brings slip-and-fall suits that name both the owner and the contractor, where the contract, the trigger and the log decide who pays, and installs carry four clauses of their own to fix.Read the lesson
- Paying crews a day rate and bringing in H-2B workers without owing back wagesLandscaping is not agriculture, so crews are owed overtime even on a day rate, and H-2B adds wage, hours and travel duties of its own.Read the lesson
- Winning HOA and commercial maintenance bids, and keeping the account at renewalCommercial and HOA work is won on the paperwork that comes with the price: certificates, endorsements, a site plan, and terms that survive renewal.Read the lesson
- A trench, a power line or a crew member down in the heat: what to do on the dayTrenches, overhead lines, heat and mowers on slopes each have strict rules, and so does reporting when someone is hurt.Read the lesson
What Greymill knows about landscaping and gardening · Every Academy lesson