Horticulturally led care for the gardens, country homes and estates of Surrey, from a design-and-build studio based in Dorking.
Garden Maintenance in Surrey
Most garden maintenance services in Surrey treat the garden as a tidy-up. We treat it as a living scheme that should look better every season, from private gardens in Dorking, Woking and Guildford to larger estates across Surrey and Sussex.
Our Service
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Reliable visits
Scheduled fortnightly, monthly or seasonal visits, written into a calendar so the work that needs doing in March is done in March.
Horticulturally trained team
Every visit led by trained horticulturists who know plants, pruning windows and the rhythm of a Surrey garden through the year.
Clear communication
A written maintenance plan, transparent pricing, and a single point of contact who knows your garden.
Why most garden maintenance in Surrey falls short
Hire from a directory and you usually get a contractor with a strimmer and a deadline. Most maintenance work across Surrey ends up rushed:
- Hedges sheared at the wrong time of year
- Perennials cut back before they’ve finished
- Lawns scalped instead of properly mown
- Borders losing their structure season by season
- No seasonal plan, no continuity
- Poor communication and missed visits
The garden you paid to design ends up looking less like the garden you paid for. Mature planting underperforms. The space becomes another thing to manage.
What Wild by Design does differently
We don’t run a tidy-up service. We run a horticultural maintenance service across Surrey and Sussex, led by people who’ve trained in plants, designed gardens, and built estates.
That means:
- Scheduled visits you don’t have to chase
- Pruning and border care done at the right time
- Proactive seasonal work, not reactive tidying
- Plant health protected, not damaged
- A written maintenance plan tailored to your garden
- One point of contact who knows your space
The result is a Surrey garden that looks better, performs better, and is far easier for you to own.
Meet the Surrey-based Horticultural Team
The people responsible for the standard of your garden
Meet Gary, Luisa, Sofia, Steve and Rhys, Wild by Design’s horticultural team, based in Dorking and working across Surrey and Sussex. Together they bring decades of hands-on gardening and land-based experience, with deep practical knowledge of plants, trees and garden care. Whether diagnosing an issue, choosing the right plants or helping new schemes establish successfully, their calm, thoughtful approach and on-site expertise help shape gardens that thrive for years to come.
Gary brings over 35 years of experience in the horticultural sector, along with a specialist skill in dry stone walling. Luisa has worked on some of London’s leading high-end gardens and is a regular at the Chelsea Flower Show, bringing insight from some of the most respected corners of the horticultural world. Steve adds valuable experience from his previous role as a National Trust Ranger, with a strong understanding of landscape management and conservation in practice.
Gary Hillock
Horticultural Manager
Luisa Cameron
Horticultural Maintenance Team Leader
Steve Liszka
Woodland Manager
Sofia Popova
Horticultural Operative
Rhys Williams
Horticultural/Woodland Operative
What’s included in our garden maintenance:
Tailored care for the gardens of Surrey that need a higher standard
Consistent Garden Care
Regular garden upkeep for clients across Surrey and Sussex who want their garden looking its best every visit.
Includes:
- weeding and border care
- pruning and deadheading
- lawn mowing, edging and presentation
- hedge and shrub maintenance
- routine garden upkeep on a weekly, fortnightly or monthly schedule
Seasonal Maintenance Through the Year
The right work, done at the right time, not just general tidying.
Includes:
- Spring refreshes and bed prep
- Summer management and watering
- Autumn cut-backs and clearing
- Winter preparation and protection
- Seasonal planting and bulb work
Planting & Horticultural Support
Specialist plant care for gardens where the planting is the point, and where it needs to perform.
Includes:
- Plant health checks and pest/disease diagnosis
- Replacement and gap planting
- Soil improvement and mulching
- Specialist pruning (roses, fruit, ornamentals)
- Support for new and established planting schemes
Larger Gardens & Estate Maintenance
A structured maintenance plan for the larger Surrey properties, country homes and design-led landscapes that need a proper plan, not a passing visit.
Suitable for:
- Large private gardens
- Country homes and rural properties
- Estate-style properties across Surrey and Sussex
- Multi-area landscapes (kitchen gardens, orchards, formal lawns)
- Scheduled team-based visits on a seasonal contract
Beyond maintenance:
landscaping, tree care and woodland management for Surrey clients who need broader outdoor support
Landscaping
Landscaping services for Surrey clients looking to renovate, extend or reshape their outdoor space.
Suitable for:
- Garden renovations
- Hard and soft landscaping
- New planting schemes
- Garden structures and defined areas
- Enhancement works to existing spaces
Tree Care
Professional tree care across Surrey and Sussex, supporting the health, safety and long-term structure of trees within the landscape.
Includes:
- Formative and seasonal pruning
- Crown maintenance
- Tree health assessment
- Clearance and management works
- Advice on long-term tree care
Woodland Management
Sensitive, informed management for woodland areas, boundaries and larger natural landscapes across Surrey.
Suitable for:
- Private woodland areas
- Managed estates
- Boundary and edge maintenance
- Selective clearance and habitat management
- Long-term stewardship of natural spaces
Garden Maintenance Across Surrey
We carry out garden maintenance across Surrey from our base in Dorking, working regularly in:
Garden maintenance Woking: town gardens and family homes
Garden maintenance Guildford: established gardens and rural properties
Garden maintenance Dorking: our home patch, across the Mole Valley
Garden maintenance Guildford: established gardens and rural properties
Garden maintenance Dorking: our home patch, across the Mole Valley
Garden maintenance Reigate: family gardens and larger plots
Garden maintenance Cobham: heritage and contemporary properties
Garden maintenance Weybridge: Thames-side gardens and lawns
Garden maintenance Cobham: heritage and contemporary properties
Garden maintenance Weybridge: Thames-side gardens and lawns
We also cover Leatherhead, Claygate, Ashtead, Esher, Epsom, Farnham, Godalming and the Surrey Hills, and reach into Sussex for clients in Horsham, Crawley and the surrounding villages.
How Much Does Garden Maintenance Cost in Surrey?
Most garden maintenance in Surrey is priced per hour. The trade-platform average sits around £25–£35 per hour, which is roughly what you’ll pay for a one-person, one-van service from a directory listing.
Our rate is higher, typically £45–£65 per gardener per hour for regular maintenance, and the reason is straightforward. We send a horticulturally trained team. We work to a written maintenance plan, not a stopwatch. We come back when your garden needs us, not when our diary needs filling. And we make decisions on the day that protect your planting and your investment.
For larger gardens and estates we work to a quoted seasonal or annual contract rather than an hourly rate. Either way, you get a clear quote after a site visit, no hidden charges, no surprise add-ons.
Who this service is for
Our garden maintenance service is ideal for:
- Surrey homeowners who want their garden handled properly, not patched up
- Clients who care about long-term quality, not just a tidy lawn
- Properties with established or design-led planting that needs knowledgeable care
- Homeowners tired of unreliable gardeners and missed visits
- Larger gardens, country homes and estates that need a proper plan
How it works
Frequently Asked Questions
What does garden maintenance include?
Our regular garden maintenance covers everything that keeps a designed garden looking its best: weeding, border care, pruning, deadheading, lawn mowing and edging, hedge and shrub maintenance, and seasonal work like spring refreshes, summer management, autumn cut-backs and winter preparation. Specialist work like soil improvement, replacement planting and tree care is included where the garden needs it.
What is the difference between a gardener and a garden maintenance service?
A jobbing gardener typically arrives with a mower and a strimmer and works through a tidy-up list. A garden maintenance service like ours works to a plan: we know your planting, we know what each part of the garden needs through the year, and we make decisions about pruning, cutting back and planting that protect the long-term shape of the space. The day-to-day work can look similar; the result over a year is very different.
How much does garden maintenance cost in Surrey?
Most general garden maintenance in Surrey works out between £25 and £35 per hour for a one-person service. Our horticultural team works at £45–£65 per gardener per hour for regular maintenance, with larger gardens and estates moving to a fixed seasonal or annual quote after a site visit. Every client receives a written quote so there are no surprises.
How often should my garden be maintained?
Most private gardens in Surrey benefit from a fortnightly or monthly visit through the growing season (March to October), with lighter visits over winter. Larger gardens and estates often need weekly visits in spring and summer. We’ll recommend the right rhythm for your garden after the site visit.
Do you maintain larger gardens and estates?
Yes. We run a dedicated estate maintenance service for larger Surrey properties, country homes and design-led landscapes. Visits are scheduled with a small team and written into a seasonal calendar so the work that needs doing in March is done in March, not in May.
Which areas of Surrey do you cover?
We work across Surrey from our base in Dorking, including Woking, Guildford, Reigate, Cobham, Weybridge, Leatherhead, Esher, Epsom, Ashtead and Farnham, and into Sussex for clients in Horsham, Crawley and the surrounding villages.
Book a Garden Maintenance Site Visit
Based in Dorking, Surrey
Service areas: Dorking, Woking, Guildford, Reigate, Cobham, Weybridge, Horsham, Crawley and across Surrey & Sussex
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