How Much Plants Cost

Landscaping is an investment, and like an investment, how much you put into it will determine what you get out. Cost is an important consideration when deciding on a landscaping project.

Most property owners don't know how much to initially invest, and what that investment will buy. A good rule of thumb is to spend ten or more percent of the price of the house and property on landscaping. For example, the owner of a $100,000 home should consider a $10,000 to $20,000 investment in the combination of hardscape (walls, walks, etc.) and softscape (plants of all kinds).

Design costs vary among landscape professionals based on various factors such as reputation and the complexity of the project being considered.

To the untrained eye, the initial price of a plant may seem expensive, but considering the amount of which goes into growing a tree or shrub, the price is an excellent value. Plant prices must cover seed collection, greenhouse growing time, potting requirements, time spent growing in the nursery field, land values, taxes, soil loss, and harvesting and distribution costs.

Because great care must be taken in growing a healthy plant, I cannot urge buyers enough to be wary of unusual bargains. It could mean that the plant has not received the attention it should have, and could very well die and become a lost asset.

Plant costs differ among species and are based on the plant's size, age and variety. For example, average trees are generally priced at $150 to $200 per inch of the trunk diameter, measured at point six inches above the soil line. This price is constant up to an approximately three-inch diameter trunk, but will vary greatly based on the variety and availability. For trees with trunk diameters greater than three inches, the price increases per inch because the trees are larger and more difficult to handle.

Costs for transporting a tree to a particular site, planting it, and the labor and materials involved are not always included on the retail price tag. Generally, the planting costs are added based upon the number of plants to be installed at one site, and sometimes where the tree will be placed on the lot.

The cost of transporting and planting evergreen shrubs is generally applied to plants in multiples of three or more because it is not cost effective to handle just one small plant. Taxus is a popular evergreen shrub, and is priced based on either or both height and width. The spread is not measured from tip to tip, but from a point half the length of the past year's growth to the same point on the opposite side. Be wary of plant sellers who push bargains based on measurements from tip to tip. This is not a nursery industry standard.

Plant prices are an important consideration in a landscape investment, but spending a lot of money will not necessarily guarantee good results. Only a well conceived, functional design can do that. So, consider the ten percent plus rule as well as pricing standards when selecting plants, but remember that the overall look of the landscape is the most important factor.