Landscaping is a lucrative industry in which to start a freelance career; demand amongst households with gardens is high, predominantly due to an increased appetite for domestic gardening in the UK. Landscapers can carry out the larger, more ‘hands-on’ task, helping to bring a garden back to its best self – and enabling their owners to enjoy gardening once again. But some tools can make your job far easier and would benefit from significant investment to ensure the best results.
Pruning Saw
The pruning saw is the unsung hero of any landscaping operation. Traditional pruning saws are handheld saws that enable the precision cutting of branches and saplings – whether to target diseased limbs or to shape trees and hedgerows. Every landscaper will have one or two in their possession, but powered pruning saws give access to more power and mobility.
There are several different kinds of pruning saw to choose from; a battery-powered pruning saw is particularly useful for hand-cutting thick deciduous trees, while pole saws can be used to reach high-up and hard-to-reach branches. Otherwise, there are smaller differences that can be found in blade size and tooth density, for specific applications with other wood types and branch sizes.
Lawnmower
Lawnmowers are the bread-and-butter apparatus of the landscaper, being a vital tool for the vast majority of jobs. They are the workhorse tool, cutting lawn grass to a uniform size and providing the finishing touch to any garden make-over.
Many landscapers use petrol-powered lawnmowers for their reliability and ease of repair – but new advancements in electric technology mean that cordless, battery-powered mowers are now strong contenders for professional landscaping work. Though expensive upfront, investment in a good cordless electric mower can ensure high-quality results and a lower environmental impact, both in terms of local emissions and noise pollution.
Tiller
Tillers are crucial for preparing flowerbeds and soil patches for growth, making them vitally important tools for larger landscaping projects. With a tiller, you can break up and turn over soil with great speed and efficiency, ready for the planting of flowers or fruit and veg depending on the project.
Powered tillers are a must for any professional landscaping outfit, in order to cut down the time spent preparing flowerbeds. Early investment in a proper tiller can ensure you work more efficiently overall, bringing projects in with less effort and at a higher value per hour.
Lawn Edger
Lastly, lawn edgers are the kind of tool that will set you apart from the competition when it comes to landscaping. Casual gardeners will use traditional edging tools to ‘heel’ lawn grass into neat edges. As a landscaper, though, you can use heavier-duty tools to achieve sharper results in much less time.
Power edgers are not to be confused with strimmers, which enable the precision cutting of grass in awkward places. They have a vertical action, cutting edge grass and ‘tucking’ turf soil into a neat end-line, creating a neat finish to lawn spaces.