Landscaping paperwork, done properly

Landscaping bids split into two businesses with different paperwork: installs, which are projects, and maintenance, which is a recurring agreement. The estimate that causes trouble is the install that promises plants without saying who waters them. State the plant warranty, tie it to a written watering requirement, and price maintenance visits as their own agreement rather than a favor attached to the install.

Pick your document

  • Landscaping estimate

    An estimate is your best professional judgment of what a job will cost, given before the work starts.

  • Landscaping quote

    A quote is a fixed price for a defined scope of work — the number does not move unless the scope does.

  • Landscaping invoice

    An invoice is the request for payment once the work is done — the document that actually gets you paid.

What belongs on landscaper paperwork

  • Plant sizes by container, since a 3-gallon and a 15-gallon shrub are different jobs
  • Plant warranty term and the watering requirement it depends on
  • Soil amendment, drainage and grading — the below-ground work customers cannot see
  • Irrigation zones and controller, if included, and who winterises
  • Access constraints: gate width, machine access, spoil removal
  • For maintenance: visit frequency, what a visit includes, and seasonal extras priced separately

How landscapers price work

Installs price by material plus crew day; maintenance prices per visit or per month with a seasonal schedule. Margin on installs is mostly in material markup and crew efficiency, which is why accurate square footage and access notes matter more here than hourly rate. Maintenance contracts price best annually and billed monthly, so winter months are not a cash trough.

The builder ships with 12 landscaping line items to start from, grouped into 2 sections. Edit the rates once and they save to your own price book.

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Questions

How long should a plant warranty be?
One growing season is the common default, and it should be written as conditional on the customer watering per your instructions. Unconditional plant warranties are how landscapers end up replacing shrubs that died in an August with no irrigation, so state the watering requirement on the estimate rather than mentioning it at handover.
Should landscaping maintenance be a separate agreement?
Yes. Install and maintenance have different scopes, different billing rhythms and different cancellation terms. Bundling them makes the install look expensive and the maintenance look free — price them as two documents and both become easier to sell.
How do I price a job the machine cannot reach?
As its own line. Wheelbarrowing material through a 36-inch gate can double the labor on a bed install. Note the access constraint on the estimate with the added hours priced separately, so the customer understands what their fence is costing them.