A guide to lawn care.

Routine lawn mowing, edging and garden tidying in the UK typically costs £25–£60 per visit for a standard suburban garden, on a fortnightly cycle through the growing season (April-October). Most gardeners offer fortnightly or monthly packages with discounts for ongoing arrangements vs one-off visits.

This is the bread-and-butter gardener service — what most people mean when they say "I need someone to do the garden". It covers the visible maintenance that keeps a lawn looking sharp without committing to full landscaping.

Typical UK costs

Hourly rate alternative: £25-£45/hour for a single gardener; £45-£75/hour for a 2-person team with their own kit. London adds 20-30% to these figures.

What's typically included in a regular visit

• Mowing — cut the lawn, collect cuttings, dispose of (or leave for compost as agreed).
• Edging — straighten lawn edges along borders and paths with edging shears or a strimmer.
• Light weeding — pull obvious weeds from borders and gravel paths.
• Sweep paths and patios — clear cut grass and debris.
• Tidy specific shrubs — quick pruning of obvious overgrowth (depending on time / agreed scope).

What's typically NOT included

• Hedge trimming (separate job, often booked seasonally)
• Tree work (separate trade — tree surgeon)
• Border replanting or design work
• Scarifying / aerating / feeding the lawn (specialist treatments)
• Patio cleaning or pressure washing
• Heavy weeding of overgrown areas (one-off clearance job)

Mowing frequency through the year

UK growing season pattern:

• March — first cut, lawn just starting to grow. Set blade higher than usual.
• April-May — peak growth. Weekly or fortnightly mowing.
• June-July — drought-aware mowing. In hot dry weather, raise the blade and mow less frequently — short grass in drought stresses the lawn.
• August-September — second peak as autumn rain returns growth.
• October — final cut before winter. Slightly higher than summer cut.
• November-February — dormant period; no mowing usually needed. Some gardeners offer winter packages with leaf clearance.

Edging — the small detail that matters

A clean lawn edge along borders and paths is what separates a "mowed" garden from a "professionally maintained" one. Tools and methods:

• Half-moon edging tool — for re-cutting an over-grown lawn edge once or twice a year.
• Long-handled edging shears — for trimming the vertical face of the edge after each mow.
• Strimmer with edging guide — quicker for long runs, slightly less precise.
• Lawn edging strips — installed once (£15-£40 per metre fitted), give a permanent crisp edge that needs only occasional upkeep.

Things people often miss

• Sharp blades matter — dull mower blades tear grass rather than cutting it, leaving brown tips and stressing the lawn. Reputable gardeners sharpen or replace blades regularly.
• Cut height for the season — 25-35 mm in summer (drought tolerance), 20-30 mm in spring and autumn (vigorous growth). Mowing too short removes the lawn's energy reserves.
• Cuttings disposal — gardeners' cuttings disposal often bundled into the price. If you're doing council green-bin disposal yourself, deduct £5-£15 from the visit price.
• Wet grass — mowing wet grass tears the blades, clumps the cuttings, and risks slipping. Most professional gardeners reschedule for the next dry day.
• Weed-and-feed timing — applied wrong (drought, frost, immediately after mowing), weed-and-feed can scorch the lawn. Treatments are best applied by a specialist, not a general gardener.
• Robotic mowers — increasingly popular replacement for fortnightly visits on lawns up to 1500 m². Capital cost £600-£3,000 but pays back in 2-4 years vs ongoing gardener visits.

Frequently asked questions

Want a local pro to handle this? A regular gardener (fortnightly through the growing season) keeps a lawn looking maintained for less than the cost of buying your own mower kit and doing it yourself. Worth comparing 2-3 quotes; pricing varies considerably by area.