Bookkeeping for a profitable gardening and landscaping business

In this article, we discuss;

Record all your purchases
Claim all your allowable expenses
Prioritise credit control
Organise all your financial documents
Invest in bookkeeping software
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Estelle Hardwick

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In this article:

Picture of About Estelle Hardwick

About Estelle Hardwick

Estelle is the Director of AMR, overseeing the Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells and Chatham branches. She makes sure that AMR provides exceptional support to each and every client.

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A beautiful garden holds a very special place in the UK’s hearts, heightened by the Covid pandemic when people appreciated even more the benefits of getting outside and closer to nature. The desire to make the best of your outside space, and the demands of busy working lives or issues of getting older and less agile, mean that businesses providing gardening and landscaping services are increasingly in demand.

The top of a flowerpot with banknotes and coins growing out of the soil

There are a wide range of services which come under these headings, from regular maintenance like lawnmowing and hedge cutting, trimming, weeding and pest control, to more specialist work such as planning and constructing outdoor spaces, garden design, expert planting and irrigation.

However, the owner of a gardening business will still need to balance the books and take time out from creating the perfect herbaceous border to look at budgeting, cash flow and credit control.

We’ve come up with five tips to help with this:

1. Record all your purchases

You need a complete record of everything you spend money on for your business, such as plant hire (of the heavy machinery variety), plant purchase (of the flowering variety) and all operating expenses. This is important because you’ll need it for claiming allowable expenses – read on  . . .

2. Claim all your allowable expenses

You can claim allowable expenses – costs essential for running your business – for some equipment such as spades and forks, secateurs and trowels, and you can also claim for replacing the tools if they wear out or you need to repair them if they break. Business insurance policies, for example for your tools or van, are also allowable expenses, as are work clothing and safety wear such as ear defenders for use with noisy machinery, or heavy duty gardening gloves. However, clothing which could double up as your out of work wardrobe won’t be covered. Larger equipment such as a tractor mower or digger would probably have to come under capital allowances, which cover investment in long-term assets.

3. Prioritise credit control

It’s never easy chasing payment, but if you let it slip it can have major consequences. Ensure your clients adhere to a payment time limit to keep your cash flow healthy.

4. Organise all your financial documents

You need to keep track of all documents related to your business, such as receipts, purchase orders, invoices and bank statements, and file them so everything is to hand for your self-assessment tax return or any queries from HMRC. This isn’t always easy when you’re dashing from one garden to the next, so have a look at the next point . . .

5. Invest in bookkeeping software

Automating your bookkeeping is a must these days and saves so much time; business owners who try it soon wonder how they managed without it. Packages such as Xero can computerise your invoicing and reporting, assist in preparing your tax return, instantly show you your cash flow position, allow expenses to be submitted from employees, collate payroll information and connect with your bank. The amount of time you save by using it means more available time to spend with clients.

Ensuring you’re ahead with all these things is quite a commitment, and you probably don’t feel at all like poring over your finances after a hard day’s hedge cutting or laying paving slabs. If this is the case, outsourcing your bookkeeping to an expert is an easy decision.

At AMR Bookkeeping Solutions we work with landscaping and gardening businesses ranging from large companies to sole traders, and we know all the issues involved. If you want to concentrate on making green spaces beautiful and not have to worry about liaising with HMRC or managing credit control, why not call our friendly and knowledgeable team for a chat? Contact us on 01892 559480 or check out our website.

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Why choose AMR Bookkeeping Solutions?

Professionalism

We combine the highest level of professionalism with a friendly, clear approach for all of our clients.

Trust

Our approach is tailored to the needs of each individual client, and we build personal relationships to make sure that our clients can have complete trust in what we do.

AAT Qualified

All of our services are provided by our team of Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) qualified bookkeepers, highly experienced bookkeeping experts and certified accountants.

CPD Trained

Each member of the team undergoes Continuing Professional Development (CPD) which keeps them right up to date with changing tax legislation.

Accredited Experts

All our bookkeepers are accredited in leading accountancy software Sage, Xero and QuickBooks.

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Xero Gold Partner
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Intuit Quickbooks ProAdvisor Gold
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Get in touch for a free, no obligation consultation

Find out how AMR Bookkeeping Solutions can provide the right support for your business, send us your details and one of our experts will get in touch with you without delay.

Alternatively, you are welcome to contact us by phone on 01892 559480

You can also pop into our offices in Tonbridge.