With a 3,700 sf house, here in the East (suburbs of NYC or Philly or Boston), that's easily a $500,000 house.

What one can expect to pay for landscaping is 15% of the price of the house. Now you tell me?

I'd be more concerned with the type of plants being installed. 6 small trees? Flowering? I'd want oaks to be planted in addition to flowering dogwoods, styrax, redbuds, etc. You most definitely need anchor/shade trees (oaks).

Again, the type of plants being installed is a BIG DEAL to me. If they're going to be planting 'garbage pedestrian crap' that can be grown and brought to market quickly (euyonomous, taxus, etc), I'd find somebody else.

The extent of the garden beds isn't all that much. There's not much labor costs for that as it's purely foundation beds on a wraparound. Sod & irrigation.....that's costly I'd find someone who's going to provide you with a planting scheme that #1) is low maintenance, preferably using natives (which are slow growers, thus precluding from having a landscaping service coming in to lollipop your shrubs because they grow like they're on steroids #2) limit your lawn to "active recreational areas" in the backyard where the kids can play or you can entertain. The front? Why spend for grass when you achieve so much more in the way of beauty and interest by "naturalizing it". It's the wave of the future, but most landscapers are clueless to it.

So, $20K. Surprised how little it gets you? BTW, limit your use of daylillies. They all go off at once and then what are you left with? Have them diversify the perrenial plantings to at least 1/2 dozen different types of flowers (in minimum planting counts of 3 or even 5).

Good luck. Have something installed after KNOWING what you may WANT. If you want something that's cookie cutter with everything else in the tract (if that's where your new home is) ......go for it.

I've always opted fot being a bit different. There's too much vanilla in this life anyway.

I am struck by one of birdsong's comments: "BTW, limit your use of daylillies. They all go off at once and then what are you left with?"

Not true! As birdsong says elsewhere in the posting, the selection of plants is everything. With a good selection of daylilies you can have low-maintenance flowers from June well into September. In my garden, flowers of Stella's and Happy Returns open in June, followed in July by Hypericon and Fairy Tale Pink (among MANY others) and my personal favorites, Final Touch (a Terra Nova plant) blooms from August to mid-September. (Coral pink flowers with yellow throats.) You can have a day-lily garden in bloom all summer.

I'd urge you to spend some time looking at prices at your local nursery and work out what the plants, soil amendments, gravel, drain tiles etc would cost retail. After you add all of that up, ask how long the job will take, and how many people will be working. In my area, typical landscape charges run from 45 to 65 dollars per hour for each person working. And it's not just the time that they'll be on your property...landscapers spend time planning, picking out the plants and supplies, preping the site etc.

If I were you I'd see if there is a consultant in your area who could spend some time planning your landscape with you - the look you want, how much maintenance you want to do or not do, good plants for your area etc. The company who gave you a bid might be good, or they might be going to the nursery the morning that they'll do your job and picking up whatever looks instantly good at the moment. Have a plan, give them some guidence about your favorite plants/desired look/maintenance, and spend the time to price it out.
clfo

Thank you everyone. They are a "naturalistic" type of company, and they have just opened their own nursery. The lot is heavy wooded (the back is even a preservation area with a marsh), so I need some trees closer to the house, otherwise they are already there. Here are some of the perennials/srhubs/trees they will be using:
Armeria bloodstone
daylillies
Crabapple Firebird
Blue Spruce
Cherry Tree
Geramiun Karmina
Boxwood Green Mountain
Juniper Blue arrow
compact cranberry
spirea renaissance
rhododendron PJM
azalea rosey light
ligularia
hydrangea tardivia
astilbe vision
hydrangea anabelle
grass tufted hair
lilac tinkerbelle
russian sage
black eyed susan
sedum
echinace blue sky
and a few others...

They are not symetric placed at all, looks really good in the drawings and I am rather excited about it - they question was just a "gut" check. kandrade

There were a lot of good insights in the responses to the identical thread you posted on the Landscape Design forum, Kandrade. Hope you saw 'em!

My problem with planting so many daylillies is the lack of an interesting composition by having so many planted.

If you want a segment of the garden dedicated to it,...fine. But it seemsed that, from a count standpoint, the daylillies were the most numerous plant specimen.

I've got about a dozen or so different cultivars in my own garden; I love the flowers. In my garden view, there's far more interesting plants from a foliage standpoint which 'hold far more interest' after they've flowered than hemerocallis.

That was the point I was trying to make. Didn't flesh out my comments well enough.

I see it as a lot for what's offered. Re the trees. What are YOUR plans? It's one thing to plant trees that will mature in 'x' number of years perhaps long after you're gone. Most folks want to enjoy their trees in the near future.

The daylily thing has me puzled. Why so many?

Myself, if I as offering a similar job it would be 10,000 max. There is little labor involved despite the large numbers of shrubs (seems a lot that will need culling in a couple years). The 'percent' of value for landscaping is a red herring. Meaningless. The same house in one neighborhood can be worth a hundred thousand...in another 1 million. There is no reason the landscaping needs to be different. This is your property so landscape it according to your taste and budget. I'd go with a more modest landscape budget and adjust accordingly after a year or two if you are pleased with the results.

Hi Kandrade -

I suspect from the plant list and zone, you might be in Minnesota - the PJM Rhododendron is a give away. I, too, am a landscape contractor in MN. I specialize in doing a garden plan, buying the plants, and letting the homeowner to the work. The first question I always ask is what's your budget and go from there. Another important factor that I think everyone, including your contractor, has overlooked is the "due to health reasons". Were any thoughts given to maintenance? For the list of shrubs given, some pruning each year is going to be require to keep them at their very best. And even though 50 well-placed daylilies will be spectacular, they stop being so if not divide every three years or so - can you do that?

On the other hand, if this is a MN garden, the plant list is very good - again, if there is an active gardener at home. Alas, if you are looking for low-maintenance landscape, this isn't it. I also question the "heavily wood lot". If your yard is very shady, then many of these plants are not going do very well - I see few shade plants - so I assume they are going in the front yard where there is probably more sun.

As for pricing, I am guessing that there maybe a total of about 350 plants. If you think about how much time it takes to prepare each bed, set the plants, then apply the mulch, I don't think the bid is too out of line. I, however, always present a more cost effect way of doing it to my customers. I give them a 5-year plan and detail what they should do in each to achieve the total plan. Each year is a smaller bite that all at once. I'd put in the beds with landscape fabric and mulch this year along with a few plants, then add plants as the years go by.

Here's what I pay for plants, but I am unclear how exactly many perennials they bid for. See how they compare with your bid:
Perennials (average) $5.25, except for the daylillies ($3.00 each)
The crabapple, juniper, and cherry $40.00
The Spruce $135.00
Shrubs average $20.00 each

Hopes this helps...

I can't see how it can help loodean. Neither the OP nor you offer any information about size of trees, the shrubs are in 5 gallon pots she says. Can you buy a PJM in a 5 gallon pot for $20? Is the $40 unspecified 'cherry'in a pot? is it three feet tall or bigger? What would be a sensible mark up? Same with the perrenials are we talking about 4 inch pots or 1 gallon pots? A Boxwood can cost $30 - $50 (Canadian)at 20 inches diameter but will be 6 times that price at 36 inches (in a 5 gallon pot. Yesterday I planted two crabapples (Rinki in a clump) and they were almost $300 each my cost. My point is that it is misleading to say that a 'crabapple' costs $40 without stated which malus and it's size. As an example: say you mark up trees by 35% these $300 crabapples will come to the client at $461.50. Ten of my trees will be $4615.00 and even if you double the price of yours ($80) that would only come to $800.00. Sorry to labour the arithmetic but I wanted to demonstrate how easy it is to come unstuck unless everyone knows what is being talked about.
Once again, using my ten trees as an example, if they are to be planted at the side of the road and they come off the truck into prepared ground that is one price. But if they are to planted at the back of a new property with a 3 foot wide gate as access then that would be a different price. If you have ever planted anything in a new development you will know to price for the worst case scenario.

Why plant a $100 crabapple if a $50 is just as rewarding for the client? Re the labour costs of planting. If this is a new bed then why all the planting time? There's nothing quicker than planting a clean landscape if you plan it right. Set the plants and apply the mulch? 10 by 50 beds. It's an easy quick task. I'd get more bids and do some shopping at a local garden center to see what trees and shrubs I wanted.

If yours is a reply to my post alpiner I think you missed my point. I am not saying that you should persuade a client to spend more money than they can afford. I am saying if you have a choice between one item at $50 and another at $100 then everyone should be aware that you are comparing apples with apples. If you price out for the more expensive item and plant the cheaper one I wonder what you would call that?

No. I'd want to know why the $100/tree was chosen over the $50 tree. Is it a better tree? I can buy a rose for $5/bush or $50/bush. The former can be every bit as healthy and visibly pleasing.

I don't see an argument alpiner to be honest. If the $5 unspecified rose is exactly the same as the $50 rose then it is a no brainer. If, on the other hand we get to talking about a specific rose at a specific size for a specific purpose I would view the price difference you suggest with suspicion. And this is precisely my point.
If a company specifies "black eyed susan" as shown in the plant list above do they mean one or twelve, Rudbeckia or Thunbergia, big or small if not how can you compare the price?

There is more to this job than buying plants, marking them up, and sticking them in the ground. The planting might be $4,000 and the rest of the work $16,000, or vice versa.

I have a 40 year old two bedroom cape on a 12,000 SF lot. Original heating and plumbing. It has a nice orange and avacado patterned linoleum floor in the kitchen, a nice harvest gold rug in the living room, and a beautiful 30" wide asphalt walkway. Sweeeeeeeeet. Do you think it is worth $285,000?

kandrade. Did you have to pay any price for the bid/plan?

One of the landscape architect designers my son had last month wanted $16,000 just for the overall plan and to another one he paid $150 just for the visit.
Millie

What is your point millie? isn't it the same as mine? or is it that "There is more to this job than buying plants, marking them up, and sticking them in the ground."?

inkognito. I am just asking kandrade if she paid anything for the bid/plan, not questioning the $20,000 amount at all.

Hope that clears it up for you. I know in my son's case it will be into hundreds of thousand dollars, so $20k is peanuts.
Millie

Hi. I am in the Minneapolis area (close to lake Minnetonka). Just to clarify a few points:

- We designed the plan together and did many revisions until I was happy with the plants and layout.
- I did not pay for the plan, however, if we did not proceed with it it would cost $500.
- I request all "mature" plants because due to jobs we never stay in a house long enough to see them grow - we always build new house and when is time to relocate we start all over, hence why I am always interested in "instant effect".
- I cannot do this myself due to a temporary health condition, so going forward next year maintenance shouldn't be a problem although we both work about 12 hrs/day.
- The company has a garden center and I personally saw the plants & size selection.
- Please note that on a new construction the soil is everything but good soil, mainly concrete, sand, paint, nails. They will be ammending all these as well.
- Forgot to mention that they will be doing an area with marble chips and stepping stones outside the basement.
- Don't forget that they will be moving 9 gutter downspots, replacing them with drain tile and diverting away from the house, some places as far as 30ft.

Talking to my builder (landscape firm completely separated from him) he said that houses this size in this area for a landscape project like mine he usually pays around 30K and has paid as much as 100K.

All of a sudden 20K does not sound so bad... I've moved from Arkansas where labor is incredibly CHEAPER and hence why I posted the question.

Just as a comparison, I charge between $275 to $400 for a plan, usually on the lower end. The $500 is not out of line, particularly if there were several revisions and several meetings. And I still think the $20k is in the right ball park. The more important questions now are: do you feel comfortable with the contractor? What's their guarantee and waranties like?

On a side note, my son & his wife just bought a house in Minnetonka on a very overgrown, shady lot complete with buckthorn. Did your bid include any buckthorn removal? It is now next to impossible to buy any wooded lots in the Twin Cities without running into buckthorn. If it isn't removed now, it just gets harder down the road. So it's a consideration you might want to ask about.

Hello loodean.

Yes, I do feel very confortable with them - saw some of their work and heard nothing but good things. Also, the sod and sprinkler contractors spoke very very hightly of them, before they knew about the contractors selection. They warrant all the plants for a whole year, except if we over/under water, etc.

Regarding the buckthorn, we actually built the house (move in in Feb.06) in Minnetonka - the previous house was completely leveled, so in the process they got rid of all the non-desirable plants, as we marked the trees that were to remain. So, the lot is pretty weed free, and underneath the big trees on the preservation area in our lot they have done a clean-up, and they were careful to add erosion control methods, as the city inspectors demanded. I am very excited that is being quite sunny and the contractors will start next week - first the builder is going to grade the main lot, as this has not been done yet due to restrictions that were lifted recently.

We do jobs between $10,000 and $125,000. Make sure that if you shop around, that the bids are comparable bids. Not all plants are created equally. Mature plants cost more -simply put.

Be sure to find out how many yards or inches of soil and amendments are added, mulch, etc.. This could easily be thousands of dollars difference (installed).

Having done designs myself, I know how much time, thought, effort, heart, and expertise goes into them. (Not to mention that I only use plants that I've had experience with personally and have passed the test). If you have an extensive plan, its not completely outrageous to have to pay $500 for one.

Plain and simple answer, no 20,000 for a whole landscape is not unreasonable if you like what you are buying and it sounds like you do. To check on comparatives, you need to call around and ask questions about the value of plants. Not only do I have a formula for mark up, I from time to time check the retail outlets to make sure I'm not reaching to high, "Malus 'Firebird' 1.5"cal B&B sells for what?" or 7 gal or 3-4' or whatever. I know I will always be higher than franchises for their buying power and forget pricing at box stores, they are not nurseries and plants are not commodities