What you charge depends upon a few factors: what your particular market will bear, your level of expertise and experience, the type of client, the type of project, and what the client receives as an end product.

For example, when I was in the consulting business in the Hilton Head area about 10 years ago, I had different categories of customers. Private homeowners, landscape companies, garden centers, landscape departments on resort developments, and golf courses.

The homeowner biz (my least favorite) was usually priced by the hour, with a two hour minimum. For the fee of $125 per hour, I'd do a tour of the grounds with the property owners with them taking notes and asking whatever they needed to ask. I'd bring a soil test box and use my probe to take samples during the walkabout. A few days later, they would receive a detailed plant inventory, a discussion of problems and solutions, a to-do list, and a summary. Those jobs usually took about an hour on site and another hour to complete their finished report.

I also included a list of professional contractors whom I had worked with and felt confidant about in case they needed landscaping work, a certified arborist, etc.

I tried to plan all homeowner days once a week and could usually fit 4 or 5 people in, depending upon their locations and how early/late I could talk them into meeting me for an appointment.

Landscape design work was entirely different and priced according to the size and complexity of the job.

This was all ten or so years ago, remember. I have no idea what the market is like in that location now.

Email me if you'd like to discuss further.

How interesting that you were getting that rate 10 years ago.

How interesting in what way, bboy?