A garden maintenance checklist for a regular visit usually covers four things: mowing and edging the lawn, keeping hedges and shrubs tidy, weeding beds and paths, and clearing the clippings and debris afterwards. What gets added on top of that depends on the size of the garden, the season, and what you agree in advance with whoever is doing the work.
What a standard visit covers
Most regular visits are built around the lawn, the edges and the borders. That means mowing at a sensible height for the season, trimming the edges where the lawn meets a path or bed, pulling or spraying weeds in beds and between paving, and a general tidy of paths, steps and the area around bins. If the garden has hedges or shrubs, light shaping is often included too, though hard cutting back usually needs its own slot because of timing rules covered below. Planting, treating moss on a lawn, or clearing moss from paving are often separate jobs rather than part of the standard round. If you are not sure what a particular gardener includes as standard, our guide on how to find a gardener in Ireland covers the questions worth asking before you book.
Lawn care: mowing height and frequency
Lawn advice for Ireland generally points to a cutting height of around two to five centimetres, with rougher or heavily used lawns kept at the higher end and finer lawns kept lower. The first cut of spring should be a light trim with the blades set high, then lowered gradually over the following weeks rather than scalped back in one go. Mowing needs to happen more often once growth picks up in late spring, sometimes twice a week, and less often in early spring or during a dry summer. A regular visit should adjust the height and frequency to match what the grass is actually doing rather than following a fixed schedule all year.
Hedges, shrubs and the legal cutting dates
Hard hedge cutting has a legal window in Ireland. Section 40 of the Wildlife Act 1976, as amended, bans cutting, grubbing or burning vegetation on uncultivated land between 1 March and 31 August, to protect nesting birds. The exemptions are narrow and mostly cover public safety, such as clearing a hedge that blocks a road sightline, and the restriction applies to householders, local authorities and contractors alike. A gardener working to a sensible schedule will plan any hard cutback for the autumn or winter, or very early spring before nesting starts, and stick to light shaping only during the closed period.
Weeding, beds and garden waste
Weeding beds, borders and the joints between paving stones is one of the more time-consuming parts of a regular visit, and it is worth agreeing whether a chemical weed killer is acceptable or whether you want hand weeding only. Most garden waste from a routine visit, such as grass clippings, hedge trimmings and weeds, can go on a compost heap or in a green bin, though it is worth checking what your local council collects. One exception matters: Japanese knotweed and some other listed invasive plants come with extra legal controls on handling and disposal in Ireland, and mowing or strimming knotweed can spread fragments rather than control it. If you spot a plant you do not recognise spreading aggressively, flag it before anyone cuts or disturbs it.
A simple garden maintenance checklist for a regular visit
Use this as a quick reference for what to expect, or to compare against what a gardener has quoted for.
- Mow and edge the lawn, adjusting the cutting height for the season.
- Check hedges and shrubs for shape, and keep any hard cutback outside 1 March to 31 August.
- Weed beds, borders and the gaps between paving.
- Clear clippings, leaves and fallen debris from the lawn and paths.
- Sweep or blow cuttings off patios, decking and driveways rather than leaving them to rot on the surface.
- Bag or compost waste correctly, and set aside anything unusual, such as a suspected invasive weed, instead of cutting it.
- Note any dead plants, pest damage or drainage issues for the next visit.
- Confirm what is included in the agreed price and what would count as extra work.
Outdoor surfaces often need attention alongside the planting. If decking, patios or a driveway are looking tired, our guides on cleaning timber and composite decking and when to pressure wash a driveway cover how those jobs usually fit alongside regular garden upkeep.
Questions to ask before booking a regular visit
Before agreeing a regular arrangement, ask exactly what is covered at each visit, how often the gardener comes (fortnightly and monthly are both common), whether hedge cutting is included and how it is timed around the closed season, who takes the green waste away and where it goes, and whether they bring their own mower and tools or expect you to provide them. Getting these details settled upfront avoids disagreements later about what counts as part of the regular visit and what is billed separately.