Exceptional gardens.Lasting craftsmanship.

Initial online estimates are free and usually turn around within 1–2 working days. We use satellite imagery plus the photos and details you send, so we can give you a realistic first figure without a visit.

For larger or more complex projects we then arrange a site visit to measure accurately and turn that estimate into a fixed quote.

What helps us quote faster: your full address, a few photos of the area, a short description of what you want, any measurements you already have, and a rough budget if you have one.

Get a free online estimate.

We start with a free online estimate. If the project is a good fit, we book a site visit so a project manager can measure up, check levels, drainage and access, and finalise the design.

Some site visits are charged depending on your area and the size of the job. We always confirm this before booking. For straightforward full-garden projects that follow an online estimate, the visit is often used to lock in a fixed price rather than to start from scratch.

Evening visits after 5:30pm can sometimes be arranged — say if that is easier when you enquire.

Free online estimate — send the contact form (or WhatsApp / email). We reply within 1 working day and send an initial estimate, usually within 1–2 working days.

Site visit — if you like the direction, we measure on site and refine the design.

Design and proposal — for full landscaping we produce 3D visualisations and a written specification with fixed pricing and a timescale. You approve this before any work starts.

Booking — a 25% deposit secures your slot. We confirm start dates in writing.

Installation — our team complete the work to a written specification, then hand over with any guarantees.

Please check your spam folder after you enquire. Replies come from contact@acorn-gardening.co.uk and sometimes land in junk.

Get a free online estimate.

We are usually booked 2–3 months ahead. Lead times move with the season and the type of work — drainage and smaller winter jobs can sometimes start sooner than a full redesign.

If you are planning for next year (many customers are), send the enquiry now. We can design and quote this year and hold a slot for 2027 without rushing the decision.

Yes. A 25% deposit secures your booking and is due within 7 days of accepting. The remaining balance is invoiced as the work progresses or on completion, as set out in your booking documents.

We take payment by bank transfer. Invoice emails include our account details. We do not use card payment links on standard invoices.

If a booking confirmation arrives but the transfer details do not, check spam and then message us — we will resend the same day.

We are based in Walton-le-Dale and primarily serve Preston, Leyland, Penwortham and the surrounding Lancashire towns and villages — including Longridge, Chorley, Buckshaw, Lostock Hall, Fulwood, Cottam, New Longton, Warton and similar.

Further afield in the North West (for example parts of Blackburn or Southport) we will still look at the job. Distance, access and job size affect whether a visit is charged and whether we can take it on at that time.

Our bread-and-butter work is mid-sized to full garden landscaping — patios, drainage, driveways, redesigns after extensions, and complete rebuilds, typically from a few thousand pounds upwards.

We also quote paving, fencing, decking, pergolas, sleeper walls, hedge replacement and similar standalone work when it is a proper construction job rather than a one-hour odd job. Very small commodity work is sometimes declined when the diary is full, because a site visit has a real cost.

If you are unsure, send photos and the address. We will tell you quickly whether it is a good fit.

Yes. A large share of our enquiries are exactly this: new-build turf that needs a real garden, or a rear garden left unfinished after an extension or conservatory.

Typical scope includes a patio or path around the new build, levels and drainage (new-build lawns are often boggy), borders or raised planters, fencing, a shed or pergola base, and a usable lawn. We can design from a blank turf rectangle or work around what is already there.

Get a free online estimate.

Yes. Drainage is one of the jobs we are asked about most, especially on clay soils and plots that back onto low-lying or flood-plain ground.

Typical solutions include French drains, channel drains, soakaways, connecting into an existing surface-water drain, and re-levelling so water runs the right way. New-build lawns that stay wet after rain are very common locally.

A photo of the wet area after rain, plus whether the ground slopes towards or away from the house, is enough for an initial estimate. We then visit to confirm the right system before giving a fixed price. Drainage is often designed into a wider patio or lawn job rather than treated as an afterthought.

Get a free online estimate.

Yes. We install permeable resin bound gravel driveways.

A properly specified permeable resin system on a suitable base is generally SuDS-compliant, which means rainwater soaks through rather than running off into the road. In England, a new non-permeable driveway over 5m² that drains onto the highway usually needs planning permission. A permeable resin driveway on a suitable base typically avoids that.

We can overlay some existing tarmac or concrete in the right conditions, or rebuild the base where the old surface will not support a long-lasting finish. The site visit is used to check the sub-base, falls and drainage — that is what decides the price and the lifespan.

Get a free online estimate.

Yes. Patio and paving work is a core service — porcelain, sandstone and other external paving, including small rear yards and paths as well as full garden paving.

Porcelain is a frequent request (light grey is the colour customers ask for most). We prepare a proper sub-base, set falls for drainage, and finish joints so the patio stays level in North West weather.

If you want to match builder-installed flags already on site, send a photo. We can often work with a close match; an exact factory batch match is not always possible months later.

Yes. We install composite decking (and can replace tired timber decking with composite) and we install customer-supplied or specified pergolas, including bases and fixings.

Composite needs far less painting and staining than timber. If you already have a kit in mind, send the product link. We can install the whole structure or just the load-bearing bases if you want to assemble the kit yourself to save cost. Hours are then billed against the work actually done, which we estimate up front.

Yes. Sloping gardens and sleeper retaining walls come up constantly — a double-sleeper wall at the top of a bank, a single row to hold a lawn edge, or a full stepped garden with paving below.

We design the wall for the height and the ground behind it, not just as a row of sleepers on the surface. On a site visit we check the slope, what sits above the wall, and whether drainage is needed behind it so the structure lasts.

Yes. Typical requests are taking out tired hedging and replacing it with laurel (or another evergreen), relocating fence lines, replacing broken posts, and new timber or panel fencing as part of a garden rebuild.

Hedge and fence work is quoted from photos and a length. If the job is only a few posts it may be too small to diary on its own; if it sits with paving or a full redesign we will include it in the same visit.

Often, yes — but not always. If a new patio, drain or border has to go where the plants sit, they have to come out. Some plants move well; others do not recover from being lifted.

Tell us which plants matter and send a photo. We will say which can be replanted on the day, which are better left, and whether you would rather lift them yourself before we start. Tree stumps from old borders can be ground out as part of a clearance.

Yes. Professional 3D visualisations are part of our full garden landscaping service, along with marked-up plans. You see the layout, materials and levels before anything is built, and the same drawings are what the team work from on site.

Smaller standalone jobs (a single drain, a short fence, a small paving patch) are usually quoted from photos and measurements rather than a full 3D pack.

Yes. We give written guarantees on our work and we use materials from reputable suppliers. Resin driveways are specified with the guarantee period that matches the system (commonly 10–15 years on a correctly built installation). Ask us to confirm the guarantee that applies to your particular job when you receive the proposal.

The proposal you approve is a fixed price for the scope written on it. VAT is included in the figures we send unless we say otherwise.

If we uncover something that could not be seen until work started — for example a weak base under an old patio, or extra levelling — we discuss it with you on site before doing anything extra. Additional work is then charged at our hourly rate or as an agreed extra, not buried in the original price.

Estimates based on satellite images are a starting point. New-build plots in particular can be a little off on aerial photos, which is why the site measure comes before the final figure.

Sometimes. If you want to match existing builder flags, or you have already bought a specific pergola kit, tell us at estimate stage. We still need to price labour, base, drainage and waste, and we need the materials on site before the booked start date.

We generally prefer to supply the main construction materials (paving, resin, sub-base, drainage goods) so the specification and guarantee stay in one place. Customer-supplied decorative items, kits and plants are easier to accommodate than the structural materials.

Quote form: acorn-gardening.co.uk/contact-us Email: contact@acorn-gardening.co.uk Phone / WhatsApp: 01772 213019 Hours: Monday to Thursday, 8:00am–4:30pm Base: 42 Coniston Drive, Walton-le-Dale, Preston PR5 4RP

WhatsApp is useful for photos. Email is best for estimates and booking documents. We aim to reply within 1 working day. If you have not seen a reply, check spam.