Gardening and landscaping

Garden design and planting

Designing and planting a garden, borders and beds.

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Whether this needs a licence in Ireland

Ireland

No licence required

Taken from the statute below; not yet reviewed by a lawyer

Irelandwww.cru.ieChecked 14/10/2026

Garden design and planting: what the job involves

Planning a garden as a whole — layout, levels, planting, paths, seating and lighting — and, if you want, building it. A good designer starts with how you will use the space, which way it faces, the soil and the drainage, then draws a plan that can be built in phases.

Also asked for as: garden designer · landscape gardener · garden makeover · garden landscaping · planting scheme

How the job is usually done

A brief and site visit: how you want to use the garden, aspect, soil, drainage, views and budget.
A measured survey of the site, levels and existing features.
A concept plan, then a detailed layout with hard landscaping and planting.
A planting plan suited to the aspect, soil and Irish climate, with plant sizes and numbers.
Agreeing what to build, in what order, and checking permissions for structures and lighting.
Building: groundwork, hard landscaping, then soil preparation and planting.
A handover with a maintenance plan for the first year.

Garden design and planting: what is included

Usually included

A brief, survey and plan
A planting plan with plant list
Supervision of the build, where the designer is also building it

Usually not included — agree it separately

Outdoor electrics (a Registered Electrical Contractor)
Garden rooms beyond the planning exemption
Ongoing maintenance after the first visits, unless agreed
Plants and materials, unless quoted

Materials and who supplies them

Plants, topsoil, compost and mulch — supplied by the designer or nursery, or by you
Hard landscaping materials — specified by the designer

How long it takes

A design takes a few weeks from brief to final plan; building ranges from days to several weeks, and planting waits for the right season.

When to book

Design over winter, build hard landscaping in spring or summer, and plant bare-root trees and hedging from November to March and most shrubs in autumn.

Garden design and planting: the rules in Ireland

What the official sources say, checked against them on the date shown. A summary, not legal advice — follow the link to read the rule itself.

Since 27 July 2026 a shed, garden room or home office behind the house is exempt up to 30 m² in total if it is not in front of the house, is no higher than 4 m with a pitched tiled or slated roof (3 m otherwise), leaves at least 25 m² of garden, and is not lived in.
Applies to: the homeowner
Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 338/2026), amending Class 3 · gov.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
A patio or path behind the house is exempt. A hard surface in the front or side garden is exempt only if it is under 25 m² and under half that garden; anything bigger must be permeable or drain into the ground. Raising or lowering ground by more than 1 metre is not exempt.
Applies to: the homeowner
Planning and Development Regulations 2001 (as amended), Schedule 2, Part 1, Class 6 · assets.gov.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
New outdoor circuits, sockets and lighting supplied from the house are restricted electrical works: only a Registered Electrical Contractor may do them, and they issue a completion certificate.
Applies to: whoever installs garden lighting, pumps or sockets
Commission for Regulation of Utilities; Safe Electric · safeelectric.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
It is an offence to plant, spread or cause to disperse a plant listed in the Third Schedule — Japanese, giant and Bohemian knotweed, Himalayan balsam, giant hogweed and others — which includes moving soil or cuttings from infested ground. Taking all reasonable steps is a defence.
Applies to: the landowner and anybody who digs, cuts or moves the plant or its soil
European Communities (Birds and Natural Habitats) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 477/2011), regulation 49 · irishstatutebook.ie · Checked 9 October 2026

What garden design and planting costs, and why

What jobs on Talqero came to

Not enough comparable jobs yet to publish a range here. Talqero shows a price range only once at least five comparable jobs, agreed prices or offers exist — a range from fewer would describe a handful of jobs, not the market. Post your job and compare the offers you get.

What affects the price

Size of the garden and how much hard landscaping is involved
Design only, or design and build
Plant sizes — mature plants and specimen trees cost more than young ones
Levels, drainage, and access for machinery
Lighting, water features and structures
VAT: hard landscaping is building work, charged at the reduced 13.5% rate by a VAT-registered business unless materials are more than two-thirds of the price — ask whether a quote includes VAT
VAT: building work on a home is charged at the reduced rate of 13.5% by a VAT-registered business — unless the materials come to more than two-thirds of the price, when Revenue’s two-thirds rule applies the goods rate to the whole job. Ask whether a quote includes VAT.

Paperwork to ask for at the end

The design drawings and the planting plan with plant names
An Electrical Completion Certificate for any outdoor circuits
A first-year maintenance note: watering, feeding and pruning

Safety

Ponds and water features are a drowning risk for young children; a grid or a later install is safer.
Some common garden plants are poisonous to children and pets — tell the designer if that matters.
Outdoor sockets and lighting need RCD protection and a registered electrician.

Garden design and planting: before you hire

Questions to ask a tradesperson

Can I see gardens you have designed and built, ideally a few years on?
Is the design fee separate from the build?
Who does the electrics, and will I get a completion certificate?
Does anything in the plan need planning permission?
Do you guarantee the plants for the first season?

What you can do yourself

Many people take a professional design and plant it themselves in phases; hard landscaping and electrics are where professional work pays.

What to put in your task

What do you need?
How big is the garden?
What would you like in it?
Which way does the garden face?
How much time will you spend on the garden?

Photos that help

The whole garden from the back door and from the far end
Any slopes, wet areas or shaded corners
Features you want to keep — trees, walls, sheds

Garden design and planting by county

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Gardening and landscaping

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Questions about garden design and planting

Does garden design and planting need a licence in Ireland?

No licence is required for this work in Ireland (source: www.cru.ie). Ask instead for references and photographs of similar jobs.

Do I need planning permission for a garden room?

Since 27 July 2026, a shed, garden room or home office behind the house is exempt up to 30 m² in total, within height limits and leaving at least 25 m² of garden, and it must not be lived in. Anything larger, in front, or used as a bedroom needs permission.

Can garden design be done in phases?

Yes, and it often should be. A full plan first means the patio, paths and drainage go in once and in the right place, and planting can follow when budget and season allow.

What plants do well in Irish gardens?

Most temperate plants thrive in the mild, wet climate; the challenges are wind, waterlogged clay and salt near the coast. A designer picks for your site — griselinia and escallonia for coastal shelter, ferns and hydrangeas for shade, and native hedging for wildlife.

Often booked with garden design and planting

Gardeners and landscapers