advise on landscape pricing

[flxinxj]

HI I am new to this First year. had some one ask how much to add 2 gardens one on each side of there house. about 25ft on each side and out about 3-4ft out from house. this is all grass and will have to be dug out and hauled off. instale 20 plants in thses two areas some a small. add mushroom soil and mulch. I figured about 1 yard mulch $28.00 2 yard mushroom $50 and 12 hr total with 3 guys. total price $560.00 and hes buying the plants. what do u guys think.

[ACutAbovesiny]

Your gonna hear this from others....never let the customer buy the materials.

[flxinxj]

ok. the only reason is he already went and picked out what he wanted and payed for half befor he called me. But thanks

[Landscape25]

The price sounds okay. I think you may need to remove some soil before adding all of that mushroom soil. That will be over 3 additional inches of soil next to the foundation of the house. The soil at the foundation of the house should be kept at the original grade. I am not familiar with the makeup of the mushroom soil or to what degree it breaks down but I would still remove some of the existing soil. You would need to charge more for that of course. It may not be as big an issue up there as in Florida but it probably isn't a good thing.

[flxinxj]

Thanks, Im just trying to get an idea if im on the right track with pricing. The mushroom doesnt really brack down much, its just really good soil.

[Landscape25]

That would be all the more reason to remove existing soil. I think the more organic the soil would be, the more it would break down reducing the height of the grade next to the foundation. When you add plants next to the foundation of a house it is also a good idea to remove some soil if it will change the grade.