In short
- Build the kit list from the work you sell, and spend most on the tools you use every visit.
- Hire machinery you only need a few times a year rather than owning, storing and servicing it.
- Service in winter, and keep each van's MOT, tax and insurance dates where you will be reminded.
What each type of work needs
A maintenance round, a hedge service and a small landscaping business need different kit. Work backwards from the jobs you'll take on. A strimmer you use at every visit deserves more of the budget than a turf cutter you need twice a year.
For prices, see what it costs to start a landscaping business.
- Maintenance: mower, strimmer, hedge trimmer, blower, hand tools and a way to carry waste.
- Hedge work: long-reach trimmer, tripod ladder or platform, tarpaulins, and a shredder or tip access.
- Clearance: heavier cutting kit, a trailer or tipper, and waste carrier registration.
- Landscaping: hired diggers and cutters, levels, wheelbarrows and more van space.
Battery or petrol, and the kit people forget
Battery kit is quieter on residential streets and starts first time, but you need enough batteries for a full day and somewhere to charge them overnight. Petrol still earns its place for heavy, all-day work on big sites. Most businesses end up with a mix.
Carry eye and ear protection, gloves, boots and proper clothing for strimming and hedge cutting, with spares in the van so one forgotten pair of safety glasses doesn't stop the job.
Racking, secure storage and loading the van in the order of the day's jobs save a few minutes at every stop.
Fieldfare
Know when the van's MOT is due
Servicing over the winter
Winter is the natural time for servicing. Sharpen blades, service engines and replace worn parts before spring, and you'll have fewer breakdowns in the first busy weeks.
Keep a simple spreadsheet of each major tool: what it cost, when you bought it, when it was last serviced. It shows you which machine costs more in repairs than it is worth, so you replace it before it dies mid-job.
Vans and breakdowns
A broken strimmer costs you an afternoon. A van off the road with a lapsed MOT costs you the whole round. Fieldfare flags each van's MOT, tax, insurance and service dates before they run out and records who drives which van, so you hear about the MOT in March and book it for a quiet day.
It doesn't keep a register of individual tools. For hand tools and smaller machines, the spreadsheet above does the job.
When the hedge trimmer packs up at 2pm on a Wednesday, whoever was using it adds a field note to that job on the Fieldfare app. The office sees it that afternoon and books the repair, and Thursday's team doesn't load a dead trimmer.
Equipment questions
What equipment do I need to start a gardening business?
For maintenance work, a mower, strimmer, hedge trimmer, blower, hand tools, PPE and a way to carry waste. Add more as the work you win needs it, and see how to start a gardening business in the UK for the licences that go with it.
Should a new gardening business buy petrol or battery tools?
Battery suits most domestic maintenance and is quieter on residential streets. Petrol still has a place for heavy or all-day work on bigger sites.
How often should garden machinery be serviced?
At least once a year for most kit, following the manufacturer's guidance, with blades and cutting heads checked far more often. Heavily used mowers may need servicing more than once a season.
Is it worth insuring tools separately?
Tool theft from vans is common, so many gardeners add tools cover to their business insurance. Check what the policy covers overnight and when the van is left unattended.