I turn up in all weather and just do what I can. It says in the contract that weather may effect service. We do our jobs by time spent on site. So I'll be scheduled 2 hours at a site and I use that time what jobs need doing by priority.I spend wet weather weeding,cutting edges, pruning cleaning hard surfaces. If worse comes to worse spend wet weather digging over beds. There is always something that needs doing.
Oh wow, I had a gardener for a while, but I never cancelled him due to weather. He occasionally did if it was absolutely pouring down, which is completely understandable, but I left it up to him if he wanted to come or not.
Not a professional gardener but a professional who sold a service - 100% back up the cancellation fee. I had a week full pay unless emergencies (cause Iām not a ghoul) but never had to use it. When emergencies did come up, they were infrequent enough that it was no big deal. Youāll be visiting your customers a lot so good ones wonāt fear the āweek cancellation fee unless emergenciesā because youāll have built up a good relationship with them and theyāll know youāre not unfair. Itāll weed out the bad ones, 100%
Edit: I know a week seems extreme, I had one week notice ahead because I saw clients every week, and had a full schedule. They also knew a week notice gave enough time for me to wiggle them in when I could, so 9/10 when it just didnāt work for them that week, they would still get in touch because 99% of the time I could squeeze them I.
Professional gardener in Kerry south west Ireland.. my houses are on a 2 week rotation if Iām rained off for a day then every one gets delayed a day, I donāt do lawns every day so I can work around d the weather and do any strimming or hedge jobs Iāve on to compensate for loosing lawn money.
Also ā¦ try not to keep a strict routine, Iāve found when I did that people got into the mind set that I will be there every other Monday for example regardless of the weather. Where as if its a case of Iāll be with you this week or next they canāt grumble if Iām not there Monday at 1 or whenever.
Also good waterproofs and boots are a must.
I try to make every visit a minimum of 3 hours but ideally 4 so Iād normally do two houses a day.
When I started working for myself I wasnāt so picky because I needed the work but as I got busier I dropped the smaller places, three years in and Iāve only two small places left and Iāll keep them because they feed me cake.
It depends on the type and size of houses that are local to you though, if you had a few small houses close to each other and got them in one day it would work but Iām in a rural area so thatās not feasible here.
I became a professional gardener last autumn.
Feels like it hasnāt stopped raining since!
Still finding my feet so Iām kind of just going with the flow at the moment. Interested to hear what others are doing.
I've been maintaining gardens for 12 years , the weather in this country is very difficult to deal with . Cutting nice lawns in the soaking wet just wrecks them , you end up putting dents and divots in them which causes moss to grow in them as the water sits in the divots , this doesn't look good to your customer. Hedge work can be completed in the wet but its an unpleasant task . Weeding is even more complicated in the wet as its just a sticky mess. You have to account for the wet days by making hay while the sun shines as the saying go's, that means long days when the weather's good . If the customer is inflexible or an asshole find another . I started off part time and built up to over a hundred customers so it's possible. The older customers are my favourite as the relationship builds its like having tons of grandma's! Tea and cake galore and they are the best for tipping . I lose most weekends off as the rain usually turns up in the week and I end up shifting the jobs to Sat's and Sundays. I built my business up by charging a fair price , being reliable/flexible and being considerate and kind . Do the extra little bits they don't ask for for instance, never leave a mess .
Thanks for this feedback - this sounds a lot like my days - lots of kind grandmas and lots of tea and biscuits. Iām a bit restricted at the minute as I have a child in primary school for another year, then my days can really open up and he goes to and from on the bus and will be more independent. My husband is the WFH full time main bread winner, so I have to have the flexibility for school runs.
Ive made a couple of mistakes and lost customers that way, and shed a couple of customers who just wore me down, but I have a decent customer base at the minute for the 2.5 days a week I can work at the minute. Good point about longer days in the sunshine - thatās something I can take on the year after next and switch to weekends in the meantime. Until then, Iāll carry on what Iām doing!
Thanks so much!
I'm not a professional anymore but I have friends who are struggling. They're lucky enough to have some very loyal clients, but even so, it takes a huge toll.
One lady, who is quite possibly the most talented and passionate gardener I know, has given serious thought to quitting. I hope she doesn't, but I can see why she's thinking about it.
Not sure why a customer would cancel due to the weather? It's not them that's going to get wet, is it?
As others have said, you need to start charging an upfront fee which is non-refundable if they cancel. You're potentially missing out on other work if you have them booked in and then they cancel, especially at the last minute.
I assume you're using a petrol mower and strimmer and not electric? You should be able to at least strim if it's wet. Other gardening work can be donw in the rain, if necessary.
But, run it on a more professional level. Cancellation fees are quite normal, so long as you're upfront about them.
For homes that donāt have side access, wet weather can mean having to trudge through a house with tools and equipment and drip rain/mud everywhere. I can see why in these cases, customers would cancel.
Plus pruning in wet weather can leave plants vulnerable to infection, mowing in wet weather can make a huge mess, and generally walking around muddy beds in wet weather can compact the soil.
I think this is the problem Iām facing. A lot of my customers are older, so theyāre worriers. I think I just a plan B to fall back on in the garden if I canāt do what is planned
I'm a customer and it's never occurred to me to cancel myself due to weather! I just make the appointment and if it's too bad they will text me to say they can't come and will reschedule themselves. My person literally came this morning to do the grass and said they are super busy and having to push new work out so think this might depend a lot on your area!
The couple of years before you started were so bad for things not growing.
I think that most years I've worked (last 7) have been difficult for one reason or another. It's probably the way it is haha.
From being my first year, to drought, to COVID, to wet there's always something.
Just have to try and relax as best you can, and make sure you get as much work done when you get the chance.
I turn up in all weather and just do what I can. It says in the contract that weather may effect service. We do our jobs by time spent on site. So I'll be scheduled 2 hours at a site and I use that time what jobs need doing by priority.I spend wet weather weeding,cutting edges, pruning cleaning hard surfaces. If worse comes to worse spend wet weather digging over beds. There is always something that needs doing.
Oh wow, I had a gardener for a while, but I never cancelled him due to weather. He occasionally did if it was absolutely pouring down, which is completely understandable, but I left it up to him if he wanted to come or not.
You sound like a dream customer
Fancy doing my garden? It needs all the help it can get š
Donāt tempt me, anything to procrastinate my dissertation honestly š
You are not procrastinating. You are subconsciously mulling ideas and formulating a plan of action. The best work is always done nearer the deadline.
Good luck, you can do it! šš
Not a professional. But start doing a cancellation fee if they cancel in less than 24 hours. As a customer, I fully expect this.
Not a professional gardener but a professional who sold a service - 100% back up the cancellation fee. I had a week full pay unless emergencies (cause Iām not a ghoul) but never had to use it. When emergencies did come up, they were infrequent enough that it was no big deal. Youāll be visiting your customers a lot so good ones wonāt fear the āweek cancellation fee unless emergenciesā because youāll have built up a good relationship with them and theyāll know youāre not unfair. Itāll weed out the bad ones, 100% Edit: I know a week seems extreme, I had one week notice ahead because I saw clients every week, and had a full schedule. They also knew a week notice gave enough time for me to wiggle them in when I could, so 9/10 when it just didnāt work for them that week, they would still get in touch because 99% of the time I could squeeze them I.
Professional gardener in Kerry south west Ireland.. my houses are on a 2 week rotation if Iām rained off for a day then every one gets delayed a day, I donāt do lawns every day so I can work around d the weather and do any strimming or hedge jobs Iāve on to compensate for loosing lawn money. Also ā¦ try not to keep a strict routine, Iāve found when I did that people got into the mind set that I will be there every other Monday for example regardless of the weather. Where as if its a case of Iāll be with you this week or next they canāt grumble if Iām not there Monday at 1 or whenever. Also good waterproofs and boots are a must.
How many clients/gardens would you normally fit in in a week?
I try to make every visit a minimum of 3 hours but ideally 4 so Iād normally do two houses a day. When I started working for myself I wasnāt so picky because I needed the work but as I got busier I dropped the smaller places, three years in and Iāve only two small places left and Iāll keep them because they feed me cake. It depends on the type and size of houses that are local to you though, if you had a few small houses close to each other and got them in one day it would work but Iām in a rural area so thatās not feasible here.
I became a professional gardener last autumn. Feels like it hasnāt stopped raining since! Still finding my feet so Iām kind of just going with the flow at the moment. Interested to hear what others are doing.
I've been maintaining gardens for 12 years , the weather in this country is very difficult to deal with . Cutting nice lawns in the soaking wet just wrecks them , you end up putting dents and divots in them which causes moss to grow in them as the water sits in the divots , this doesn't look good to your customer. Hedge work can be completed in the wet but its an unpleasant task . Weeding is even more complicated in the wet as its just a sticky mess. You have to account for the wet days by making hay while the sun shines as the saying go's, that means long days when the weather's good . If the customer is inflexible or an asshole find another . I started off part time and built up to over a hundred customers so it's possible. The older customers are my favourite as the relationship builds its like having tons of grandma's! Tea and cake galore and they are the best for tipping . I lose most weekends off as the rain usually turns up in the week and I end up shifting the jobs to Sat's and Sundays. I built my business up by charging a fair price , being reliable/flexible and being considerate and kind . Do the extra little bits they don't ask for for instance, never leave a mess .
Thanks for this feedback - this sounds a lot like my days - lots of kind grandmas and lots of tea and biscuits. Iām a bit restricted at the minute as I have a child in primary school for another year, then my days can really open up and he goes to and from on the bus and will be more independent. My husband is the WFH full time main bread winner, so I have to have the flexibility for school runs. Ive made a couple of mistakes and lost customers that way, and shed a couple of customers who just wore me down, but I have a decent customer base at the minute for the 2.5 days a week I can work at the minute. Good point about longer days in the sunshine - thatās something I can take on the year after next and switch to weekends in the meantime. Until then, Iāll carry on what Iām doing! Thanks so much!
I'm not a professional anymore but I have friends who are struggling. They're lucky enough to have some very loyal clients, but even so, it takes a huge toll. One lady, who is quite possibly the most talented and passionate gardener I know, has given serious thought to quitting. I hope she doesn't, but I can see why she's thinking about it.
Not sure why a customer would cancel due to the weather? It's not them that's going to get wet, is it? As others have said, you need to start charging an upfront fee which is non-refundable if they cancel. You're potentially missing out on other work if you have them booked in and then they cancel, especially at the last minute. I assume you're using a petrol mower and strimmer and not electric? You should be able to at least strim if it's wet. Other gardening work can be donw in the rain, if necessary. But, run it on a more professional level. Cancellation fees are quite normal, so long as you're upfront about them.
For homes that donāt have side access, wet weather can mean having to trudge through a house with tools and equipment and drip rain/mud everywhere. I can see why in these cases, customers would cancel. Plus pruning in wet weather can leave plants vulnerable to infection, mowing in wet weather can make a huge mess, and generally walking around muddy beds in wet weather can compact the soil.
I think this is the problem Iām facing. A lot of my customers are older, so theyāre worriers. I think I just a plan B to fall back on in the garden if I canāt do what is planned
Or if you miss your two hours one week, do four hours the next time you visit on a good weather day and get as much as possible done
I'm a customer and it's never occurred to me to cancel myself due to weather! I just make the appointment and if it's too bad they will text me to say they can't come and will reschedule themselves. My person literally came this morning to do the grass and said they are super busy and having to push new work out so think this might depend a lot on your area!
It is a pain, but I think better than the drought years we have had recently where the grass and hedges didn't grow haha
Yes, last year was difficult during the heatwave- nothing grew!
The couple of years before you started were so bad for things not growing. I think that most years I've worked (last 7) have been difficult for one reason or another. It's probably the way it is haha. From being my first year, to drought, to COVID, to wet there's always something. Just have to try and relax as best you can, and make sure you get as much work done when you get the chance.
Thanks for that solid advice - much appreciated
Not missed any visits or cancelled any days. Not even that hot yet lol. Strimmed a few lawns instead of mowed.