I'm guessing a landscape contractor is going to cost more than just finding someone who does this kind of thing on his/her own. We live in the same area and if you check the Intel under the services offered in the landscaping section you usually can find people who want to do this kind of thing.If you do go with a landscape contractor,check in and let us know how it's going. I'd be interested.

A few months ago, I tried to find someone to help me with the gardening. I contacted the local high school, which is two blocks from my door, and spoke with the guidance counselor. She said they regularly post jobs for the kids.

So I offered $10 and hour and lunch for Saturdays. No takers.

I've been working with a 13 year old, the son of a colleague. He's a very nice boy, but must be watched very carefully, as he tends to be careless. $10 an hour.

I tried to hire a landscape contractor a few years ago to weed the ivy covered slope mulch and mow. No one was interested, because power equipment is impractical. They want fast, standardized jobs that require very little supervision. They won't weed as all.

So, let us know how your efforts work out. My garden collapsed on me this summer too. Not enough weekends combined with a sore back.

I did try hiring a couple of college kids this summer, based on a neighbor's recommendation, but my garden defeated them. They didn't do a very good job of weeding (just ripped off the leaves, didn't pull the roots) and they weren't even that cheap.

I need someone with a professional crew, who can come in and blitz through the work.

Do you do your own lawn? If you do, this is probably the easiest place to start since landscapers love coming in for a regular job/paycheck, just a quick mow and trim and then off to the next job. Topping off mulch is also "easy money" relatively speaking, so I would think you'd find someone for that.
If you want intelligent weeders, good luck. Roundup is usually the tool of choice (not handpulling) so watch your plants for overspray!
Have you considered Preen? Spread some in the early spring and between that and the mulch you should have far fewer weeds..... you'll just miss out on those self sown things like forget me nots and foxgloves.....

We do mow our own lawn, all five acres of it. Although most of that is in pasture and doesn't get mown very often because the animals graze it down. We've got good mowing equipment, so I don't need help with that. Although I'm sure the landscaper will try to sell me on mowing.

I'm hesitant to use Preen because we have chickens that peck and scratch the beds. Selective Roundup application would be okay because I could keep the animals penned for a few days.

Instead of using Roundup; try using vinegar. I buy a gallon for less than two dollars and it does the same OR better than the commercial product for fifth the price.

Well, I got the estimate from the landscaper. $1700 to weed, edge, and mulch all of the beds. It's a big garden, about 3000 square feet of beds, but still.. my heart sank.

I whittled it down to $1000 by having him do only the really tough overgrown beds, and spent the weekend breaking my back to clear and mulch the rest. I've got another solid day of work ahead of me at least. He's going to come with a crew of 4 for a full day, in about two weeks.

I hate to spend this money, but my husband has clients coming to our house, and a potential new client might be visiting in a few weeks. This could result in a ton of new work for him, so our property really has to look professional and spotless.

It was interesting... as posters said, he wasn't interested in doing any "picky" weeding. His guys just want to come through and clear everything out.

How do people afford to have professionals maintain their properties?? I must be poor or something.

At $1,000 for a crew of four, that works out to $31.25 a man/hour. Well, I guess that's not too bad. I've paid up to $25, and they were using mostly my equipment.

Does that figure in the mulch cost, though? He said there'd be $200 worth of mulch. I had worked it out as $200 per man per day, which is $25 an hour for an 8-hour day. Of course, if I really wanted to break it down, I'd have to include equipment costs. I think they'll be using a power edger.

Any way you slice it, I'm paying through the nose. I guess this is a downside to my new job... I used to have time to garden after work during the week. Not any more.

That is a fair price - if he /they know what they are doing.
If one of those non insured kids gets hurt on your property - you will be liable. It can happen.
The pro's and cons can be debated - but in the long run hiring pro's @ $25 (with insurance) is well worth it - esp if you husband gets the contract!

Wow maybe I should do landscaping as a side job! Patty

I was thinking the same thing, until I did some lurking on the GW Professional forum. It sounds like a tough way to make a living.

Hi Carol,
My one neighbor pays $50.00/hr for a two-person team to finely weed and care for her garden areas. She has a nice assortment of specialty plants and the garden looks great when they finish. She said that she won't let a landscape crew attack her plants! There is a landscape crew which maintains the grass.
Two friends of mine (one is married to a landscaper) weed and plant smaller gardens for people. They charge $20.00/hour, to give you an idea. They prune, fertilize, weed, mulch, water, rake, plant...small things. They don't use large power equipment, nor dig shrubs and trees, ie.
Talk about wages...someone posted in the Philly freecycle to hire someone looking to weed a garden. They offered $6.00 an hour plus lunch! People posted back calling the poster a cheapskate...LOL. I had to agree.
Good luck with your landscaping work there :)

Of course, my lovely new mulch is completely snow-covered now, but hopefully it'll be there in the spring, when the snow melts.