Recommendation Please
Can anyone recommend a genuine qualified horticulturist to help me with planting out my garden in NW London?
Someone who has great vision, a lover of colour, variety of plants and smell. An in depth knowledge of soil and drainage is critical.
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What's your budget?
Ask your neighbours perhaps? Then you might get someone who knows local soil conditions.
Meaningful budget to get the job well done.
If you want to pay a trained horticulturalist with RHS qualifications to do a proper design and planting job-it will cost big time
On the other hand you could get a knowledgeable seasoned gardener with an for plants etc who hasn't done all the courses etc and could do just- if not better a job- based on experience
But you need to put a figure on it-a meaningful budget means nothing -what size garden is this and who is to maintain it?
A "gardener" will do all the follow up- a designer may not bit like an architect and a builder
On the other hand there are a lot of gardening cowboys
There are trade associations out there and sites like checkatrade where customers give recommendations-have you looked at those?
And has been said- asked neighbours?
Is this the sort of budget you're prepared for? http://www.gilliansandhamgardendesign.co.uk/fees.htm (just an example - I do not know the designer or her work) or as you're in London, if money really is no object and you want the best there's always http://www.clevewest.com/portfolio.asp# .
If your pocket is less capacious then why not ask Kew if they can recommend any of their former trainees who are just starting out on their own? http://www.kew.org/learn/specialist-training/courses-a-z/kew-traineeship-botanical-horticulture/index.htm
Thank you sotongeoff and Dovefromabove.
Good links Dovefromabove, much appreciated.
You can also ask at Capel Manor (they have a college in the middle of Regent's Park as well as Edmonton). They have students who are doing design courses who are always looking for new work opportunities. You could even turn it into a competition..
http://www.capel.ac.uk/regents-park-centre.html
020 7486 7930
Excellent idea Lucelastic. Thank you
I just want someone to adcise me a bit,I want to design and choose plants,but am v inexperienced,any ideas /IN sHEFFIELD
Louise-give us a bit more info-perhaps post a pictures well?-what you like don't like? aspect size of garden etc