Key points.
Start from how you want to use the yard, not from an image found online.
Before digging: a locate request, free, at least three business days before the work.
The municipal permit depends on your city and what you touch: that gets checked, not guessed.
Define what needs to change in your yard
A yard serves a purpose before it looks good. Entertaining, letting children play, parking two cars, storing bikes, less upkeep: name the use first, materials come after.
Then sort what is essential from what can wait a year. Landscaping works very well in two stages; a half-finished yard because the budget ran out works much less well.
Who uses it
Children, pets, someone with reduced mobility, gatherings. Use decides the surfaces.
When
Morning, evening, summer only? Shade and wind change everything.
How much upkeep
What you are willing to do every week. Landscaping is maintained, or it degrades.
Describe the property and its constraints
The land imposes more constraints than taste does. Describe the slope, where water pools after rain, the soil, the trees to keep, and access for machinery. A backyard with no side access changes the price and sometimes the method.
Also check what is already attached to your lot: easements, protection strips, and municipal rules on fences, hedges, tree felling and impervious surfaces.
Clarify the steps before excavation
As soon as there is excavation, even for a fence or a retaining wall, the locate request comes before the shovel. The service is free and available at all times: member network owners come and mark the location of their underground infrastructure.
Build the delay into your schedule, not the night before. Also ask what the locate does not cover: private lines installed on your own land, such as a feed to a shed or a pool, are not part of the members’ networks. Flagging them is on you.
References : Info-Excavation ↗
Compare construction and planned maintenance
A landscaping project contains three mandates that are not paid for the same way: design, execution and upkeep. Have them separated in the quote, even if one company does all three.
On permits, the answer is neither “never” nor “always”: it depends on your municipality and on what you touch. Several cities require a certificate for excavation, tree felling, a fence, a retaining wall, cut or fill, and fees often apply. Check before signing.
- Design
Plan, grades, materials, what gets done this year and what waits.
- Authorizations
Municipal permit or certificate, and the locate request before digging.
- Execution
Work, machinery, restoring the land and the access routes.
- Upkeep
What has to be done in the first year, and by whom.
References : Info-Excavation ↗
Separate the three parts of the project
| What to compare | What to clarify with the professional |
|---|---|
| Design | Plan, grades, materials, what is postponed to next year |
| Execution | Work, machinery, access, restoring the land |
| Upkeep | What has to be done in the first year, and by whom |
| Coordination | Municipal permit, locate request, and who handles them |
Your preparation checklist
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a permit for landscaping?
- It depends on your municipality and on what you touch. Several cities require an authorization certificate for excavation, tree felling, a hedge, a fence, a retaining wall, cut or fill, sometimes with fees based on the value of the work. The only reliable answer comes from your city.
- Do I need a locate request just for a fence?
- Yes, as soon as there is digging, even for posts. The service is free, and you should allow at least three business days before the work. Info-Excavation ↗
- Does the locate cover everything buried on my property?
- No. It covers the infrastructure of member network owners. Private lines on your land, such as a feed to a shed, a pool or an irrigation system, must be flagged by you to the crew. Info-Excavation ↗
- Why are two landscaping quotes so different?
- Because they do not contain the same mandates. One may include design and restoring the land, the other may not. Have design, execution and upkeep separated in both, then compare the same lines.
Sources and references.
Conditions and rules may change; consult the relevant organizations for your project. The questions, tables and examples are preparation tools provided by Projet Maison 360. Source titles and links are in French.
