Landscaping and gardening seem like they should be almost the same thing. While both involve the care of a garden, the differences between landscaping and gardening couldn’t be bigger. You wouldn’t ask a gardener to level out a hill, and you wouldn’t ask a landscaper to tend to your rose bush. That’s just one example of how both a landscaper and gardener come with different responsibilities.
What is the Difference Between Landscaping and Gardening?
Landscaping and Gardening: They’re Not the Same Thing!
Landscaping and gardening are similar, but not identical.
A landscaper is there to assess and modify the greater landscape. Structural changes to the garden and any major alterations to the garden’s appearance fall under the responsibilities of a landscaper.
Landscaping changes the landscape, whereas gardening does not.
The installation of a water feature or the leveling out of a couple of feet of the garden surface is a landscaper’s job. Landscapers work with large and small surfaces, and usually change the underlying structure of a garden but not the plants.
Everything else you might want to do with your garden, that’s where the art of gardening comes in.
What is Landscaping?
Landscaping is the art of changing the landscape, surface, or the general appearance of your garden and its surface.
If you would like to even out a surface, add a hill or make any small or large structural change to your garden, that’s what a landscaper is for.
Landscaping isn’t always massive, grand, or a huge job. A few feet of a garden that needs to be turned over or made flat is going to fall under the same category as a massive golf course that needs flattening out.
What is Gardening?
Gardening is the art of tending to the garden. Most often gardening involves taking care of all the individual plants that make up a garden. Gardeners can have small or large gardens under their control. You are just as much of a gardener with a few flower pots than you would be if you had several farms filled with rose bushes.
If your job involves watering, planting, or growing plants, that falls under gardening and not landscaping. If you have to trim or transplant anything, that’s gardening and not landscaping.
A gardener’s job is to take care of the garden, whereas a landscaper has a lot more to do with the surface on which the gardener will work.
The Gardener and the Landscaper
A landscaper and gardener should ideally always work together, or else you’ll have two entirely different mindsets in the same garden. Not always do the two ideas make sense.
When a gardener and landscaper cooperate, you’ll see the most beautiful garden as a result. However, when they don’t, it’s impossible to plan a coherent garden that makes sense. This can lead to a patchwork garden.
If you need to hire both a landscaper and a gardener to get the job done, make sure they work together to achieve the best possible results.
Even if you are working on a smaller garden, you will need just as much cooperation from both sides to make the garden work. This is true for amateur gardeners or landscapers as well as professionals.
Professional Gardening or Landscaping Services
Professional garden and landscaping services are sometimes wrapped up in the same company. However, in some cases, you might have to hire two different professionals for the job.
If you do, make sure that each company knows they will be working together with another. Gardeners and landscapers should work together if you want both sides to make sense at the same time (and a great garden as a result of their work).
Additional Reading:
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Arbor Hills Landscaping Company Omaha | Best Landscaping Company in Omaha, NE
Arbor Hills Trees & Landscaping Services can provide you with everything from detailed maintenance programs to unique plant production, and other services in between. That means we build water features, walls, patios, irrigation, walkways, outdoor kitchens, lighting, and anything else you can help us dream up. Our professionally trained staff can build the landscape of your dreams and keep you from breaking any Home Landscaping Rules.
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