Consultancy Sequence
INITIAL CONTACT
Phone contact is usually the first point of discussion of your current garden space and what the most obvious difficulties are about it that don't meet your current needs.
A day and time is made for an On Site Meeting that are calculated at $200/hour with a 2 hour minimum + GST payable on the day.
Before the meeting, an e-mail is sent to you with an attached Sample Design Brief description & images with similarities to your own garden space, so you have an understanding of what to expect from the Design Brief that will come from the On Site Meeting.
ON SITE DISCUSSION, SITE PHOTO'S & RECORDING
Information is gathered by way of a site recording and photography to show as "befores" in the Design Brief, in close Consultation with you as the owners. These are taken back to the Studio and used to inform a written description of how the old garden will be changed, with related plant and non-plant images in a garden setting.
DESIGN BRIEF
Will comprise new planting, non-planted utility inclusions like car-space, new fencing, clothes drying space/bins/pet space/compost and privacy screen /grow cables.
Change of function for specific locations like winter sun dining, shading device for summer seating and ornament suggestions will all be included in the Design Brief.
The new planting will be inserted within this description shown as IMG (image) numbers. This makes suggested planting come alive for the owner/s, for example –
"Repeat planting of stemless, non-transparent evergreen shrub to around 3m at maturity (see IMG's 13 – 16) for the southern boundary to tolerate dim winter aspect and limited soil depth in dry shade with dark, fine textured formal appeal."
The Design Brief also has a rough "ballpark" budget that serves as a guide only for any Contract of Works raised from the Design Brief and is e-mailed to you as an attachment with plant images. Conversion of the On Site recording and "before" pix including selection of planting and all non-planted inclusion images is charged out at $85/hour
GARDEN DESIGN
If the scope of works is more complex than the Design Brief will support by description & images only, then a Garden Design might be necessary to show diagrammatically the spatial relationship of all inclusions to each other and how they will integrate with the planting, and prominent sight lines around which the design is united.
ON SITE CONTRACTORS MEETING
Once the Design Brief or Garden Design is agreed between owners and designer, the information can then be converted into a Contract of Works after an On Site Contractor's Meeting arranged by the Project Managing Garden Designer. The Project Managing Garden Designer is paid 25% of the agreed Total Contract Amount for Project Management up to $15K.
Half of this is paid upon acceptance and balance within a week of completion of all contracted works. Where completion of all works is delayed for more than 1 month, a proportional sum equal to current Contract progress will be calculated and is required to be paid upon receipt.
For Contract amounts greater than $15K Project Management is calculated according to the following scale -
| $15K - $40K | Contract Value attracts 20% Project Management |
| $40K - $100K | 15% |
| $100K and more | 10% |
| $200K and more are negotiable above | 5% |
In the interests of efficient and clear communication, a daily or near daily Project Management Note as required is e-mailed to you as the Owner/s and to all Contractors showing current progress to completion.
Garden Maintenance – after an establishment period of between 3 and 10 months, to maintain the young garden can be arranged and is usually handed to a trained and experience Horticulturist at around $50 - $60 / hour on a 3 to 6 week rotation according to the time of year if required by the you as the owner/s.
This service is highly recommended so that your new garden is guided as a living process toward its original design intention while still new, for the first few years. This way you are assured the great pleasure a Paradisus Garden can bring into your life –
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