TL;DR — Tree Planting Cost At A Glance
- Most UK households pay £150–£320 to have one standard garden tree supplied and planted in 2026. A bare-root whip in a batch costs pennies; a semi-mature specimen lifted in with a machine runs £800–£2,500.
- The size of the specimen you buy is the whole story. Nurseries grade trees by trunk girth, and the price roughly doubles at every step up the ladder.
- London and the South East run about 20–35% above the rest of the UK on labour, though the tree itself costs the same wherever you buy it.
- Budget for the extras, not just the tree. Pit preparation, a stake and tie, a guard, mulch and the first summer's watering add £40–£150 to a standard tree and far more to a big one.
- Watering is the cost people forget. A newly planted tree needs roughly 10 litres every couple of days in dry spells for its first three years — one London council plans 19 visits a year per street tree over that period.
Add to Preferred Sources How Much Does Tree Planting Cost In 2026?
Two numbers make up any tree planting quote: what the tree costs, and what it costs to get it in the ground. For a small tree the labour dominates. For a big one the tree does — a semi-mature specimen can be worth more than a day of the team planting it.
UK nurseries sell trees on a size ladder, and the vocabulary is worth learning because it is what quotes are written in. A whip is a single slender stem with no side branches, two to four years old. A feathered tree has branches all the way down the stem. A standard has a clear trunk to about 1.75m and is graded by girth — the circumference of the stem measured one metre up. Light standard is 6–8cm girth at 2.0–2.5m tall, standard 8–10cm, select standard 10–12cm, heavy standard 12–14cm, extra heavy standard 14–16cm and advanced heavy standard 16–18cm. Above about 18cm girth you are into semi-mature trees of 4.5–6m with rootballs 80–100cm across, and above 30cm girth mature trees that need a machine and sometimes a crane.
Tree Planting Cost Table
| Unit of sale | Rest of UK | London & South East |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum charge / call-out for a single tree | £80–£150 | £100–£195 |
| Bare-root whip (60–90cm), per tree in a batch of 25+ | £6–£18 | £8–£23 |
| Feathered tree (1.5–2.5m) | £45–£110 | £58–£145 |
| Light standard (6–8cm girth, 2.0–2.5m) | £110–£220 | £145–£285 |
| Standard (8–10cm girth, 2.5–3.0m) | £150–£320 | £195–£415 |
| Heavy standard (12–14cm girth, 3.0–4.0m) | £280–£600 | £360–£780 |
| Extra heavy standard (14–18cm girth, 3.5–4.5m) | £450–£950 | £580–£1,230 |
| Semi-mature (20–30cm girth, 4.5–6.0m), machine-lifted | £800–£2,500 | £1,050–£3,250 |
| Mature (over 30cm girth), crane or HIAB | £2,000–£6,000+ | £2,600–£7,800+ |
| Gardener or landscaper day rate | £150–£300 | £200–£390 |
Tree Planting Cost By Add-On
The tree is rarely the whole invoice. Below are the items that get added, and roughly what each is worth. Note that materials are national retail prices — only the labour carries the London uplift.
Add-On Costs Table
| Add-on | What it covers | Rest of UK | London & South East |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hand-dug planting pit | Hole up to three times the rootball width, sides forked | £20–£50 | £26–£65 |
| Pit in compacted or stony ground | Breaking out, stone and rubble removal | £30–£80 | £40–£105 |
| Mini-digger for large pits | 1.5-tonne machine, per day | £125–£200 | £160–£260 |
| Imported topsoil or soil improver | Per tree | £5–£15 | £7–£20 |
| Single stake and flexible tie | 1.5m stake, driven at 45° | £10–£30 | £13–£39 |
| Double stake or underground guying | Heavy standard and above | £35–£90 (estimate) | £45–£115 (estimate) |
| Spiral guard or tree shelter | Rabbit and strimmer protection | £0.40–£2.10 | £0.40–£2.10 |
| Mesh or weld-mesh tree guard | 60cm to 1.2m, deer and vandal protection | £1.40–£22 | £1.40–£22 |
| Mulch mat and bark mulch | 5–8cm deep, collar left clear of the stem | £5–£20 | £7–£26 |
| Irrigation bag | 55 litre slow-release bag | £19–£30 | £19–£30 |
| Aftercare and watering, per tree per year | Watering visits, tie checks, mulch top-up | £50–£150 | £65–£195 |
| Spoil and turf removal | Arisings from the pit | £40–£100 | £52–£130 |
What Affects The Cost Of Tree Planting?
1. The Size Of The Specimen You Buy
This is the dominant driver by a wide margin. Bare-root whips sell at £31–£38 for a bundle of 50 — around 62p to 76p a tree — while a semi-mature specimen from a commercial nursery starts at £240–£350 before delivery or planting. Every step up the girth ladder roughly doubles the price, and above 18cm girth the tree also stops being a two-person lift.
2. Access And Handling
A standard tree comes in a car. A heavy standard with a 50cm rootball is a wheelbarrow job. A semi-mature tree with an 80–100cm rootball weighs several hundred kilos and needs mechanical lifting — the tree has to reach the hole, which means side access wide enough for a machine, or a crane over the house. Restricted access is the single most common reason a semi-mature planting quote doubles.
3. Ground Conditions, Pit Preparation And Spoil Disposal
The RHS recommends a hole no deeper than the roots but up to three times the diameter of the root system, with the sides forked if compacted. On decent garden soil that is £20–£50 of labour. On builders' rubble, heavy clay or a former patio it becomes breaking out and importing soil — £30–£80 plus £5–£15 of topsoil, plus £40–£100 to take the spoil and turf away. If you are clearing ground first, see our garden clearance cost guide.
4. Staking, Guards And Protection
A stake and tie is £10–£30 and stays in place for two to three years. Guards are cheap individually and add up across a batch: spiral guards are 40p–£2.10 each, plastic mesh guards £1.39–£2.09, and a weld-mesh guard for a street or paddock tree £21–£22. On heavy standards and above, double staking or underground guying is £35–£90 and is not optional — a tree that rocks will not root.
5. Aftercare Watering For The First Three Years
Drought stress is the commonest cause of death in newly planted trees, and it happens in years one to three. Richmond Council's street-tree programme allows around 10 litres per tree every two days in the growing season and plans 19 watering visits per tree per year for the first three years. Priced commercially, an aftercare package is £50–£150 per tree per year. A £19–£30 slow-release irrigation bag cuts the number of visits needed, and 5–8cm of mulch over the root zone cuts evaporation.
6. Your Location
London and the South East add roughly 20–35% to labour: a landscaper's day is £200–£390 there against £150–£300 nationally. The tree itself costs the same, but delivery of a large specimen into a congestion-charge zone, and the parking suspension that a crane lift needs, do not.
What's Included — And What's Not
A standard tree planting quote covers:
- Sourcing and delivering the specimen at the agreed grade
- Digging and preparing the pit
- Planting at the correct depth, with the root flare at soil level
- A stake and flexible tie
- Backfilling, firming and an initial watering-in
- Mulching the root zone and clearing up
Charged as extras:
- Guards, shelters and mulch mats — from 40p to £22 a tree depending on type
- Imported topsoil, compost or soil improver — £5–£15 per tree
- Breaking out compacted ground or removing rubble — £30–£80
- Machine hire for large pits or rootballs — £125–£200 a day, plus £10–£30 delivery
- Removing the spoil and turf from the pit — £40–£100
- A slow-release irrigation bag — £19–£30
- An aftercare and watering contract — £50–£150 per tree per year
- Removing an existing tree or stump to make room — see tree felling and removal and tree stump and root removal
Can You Do It Yourself?
Up to a standard tree, yes — comfortably. A bare-root standard from a mail-order nursery is £30–£110, a stake and tie £10–£30, and a spade and a couple of hours does the rest. Plant bare-root or rootballed stock between November and March while the ground is workable, keep the hole no deeper than the roots and three times as wide, drive the stake in at 45 degrees, and water it through its first two summers. Whips are even easier and are how you plant a native copse or a new hedge line for the price of a takeaway.
Where DIY stops working is weight and warranty. A heavy standard rootball is an awkward two-person lift and easy to plant too deep, which is the classic domestic mistake — bury the root flare and the tree sulks for years or dies. Anything semi-mature needs machinery, and most specimen nurseries will only honour an establishment guarantee if the tree was planted to their specification, which usually means by a contractor.
How To Save Money On Tree Planting
- Buy a smaller grade and wait. A light standard at £110–£220 catches up with a heavy standard at £280–£600 within five or six years, and establishes faster because the root-to-crown ratio is better.
- Plant bare-root, in season. Bare-root stock is far cheaper than container-grown and is available November to March. Container-grown trees planted in summer need much more aftercare.
- Order whips by the bundle. At £31–£38 per 50 you can plant a whole boundary of native trees for less than one standard, at three to four plants per metre for a hedge line.
- Plant several trees in one visit. The call-out and set-up are the fixed cost, so a single tree is the worst value job on the list.
- Do the watering yourself. An aftercare contract is £50–£150 a tree a year. Two watering cans every couple of days in dry weather, plus a £19–£30 irrigation bag, does the same thing for nothing.
- Bundle with other garden work. If planting is part of a bigger scheme, price it inside a landscaping or garden renovation package — the team, the machine and the disposal are already on site.
How To Hire A Good Tree Planting Contractor
Check the trade body. For planting as part of a landscape scheme, look for BALI or APL membership; for arboricultural work, the Arboricultural Association's ARB Approved Contractor scheme. Ask for public liability insurance either way.
A proper quote names the species and grade, states whether the tree is bare-root, rootballed or container-grown, specifies the pit size and any imported soil, lists the stake, tie, guard and mulch, says who removes the spoil, and sets out an establishment guarantee — typically one growing season, conditional on the watering regime being followed.
Red flags: no species or grade on the quote; planting container stock in high summer without an aftercare plan; a stake tied tight against the trunk; and any quote that treats watering as your problem without saying so up front.
Book Your Tree Planting Today!
The right tree in the right place is the cheapest improvement a garden ever gets — shade, screening, birdsong and value, for the price of a weekend's work. Fantastic Services can source, plant, stake and mulch your tree, and keep it watered through the years that decide whether it lives.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Much Does It Cost To Plant One Tree In The UK?
For a standard garden tree, £150–£320 supplied and planted outside London and £195–£415 in London and the South East. UK average is around £300 and its range £150–£450. A bare-root whip in a batch costs £6–£18 a tree; a semi-mature specimen with machine access is £800–£2,500.
What Size Tree Should I Buy?
For most gardens, a standard at 8–10cm girth and 2.5–3.0m tall. It is big enough to read as a tree immediately, light enough for two people to plant, and cheap enough at £150–£320 to replace if it fails. Larger grades look instant but establish more slowly and need double staking and years of watering.
When Is The Best Time To Plant A Tree?
Between November and March. The RHS advises planting from autumn to spring as long as the ground is not frozen or waterlogged, and bare-root and rootballed trees are only lifted and sold in that window. Container-grown trees can go in at other times but need much more watering to establish.
How Much Does It Cost To Plant A Semi-Mature Tree?
£800–£2,500 outside London and £1,050–£3,250 in London for a specimen of 20–30cm girth and 4.5–6.0m tall, machine-lifted. Supply alone from a specimen nursery is £240–£1,425 depending on species and form. Access is the swing factor — if a machine cannot reach the hole, a crane lift can add thousands.
How Often Should You Water A Newly Planted Tree?
Roughly 10 litres every two days through the growing season, for the first three years. Richmond Council's tree contractor plans 19 visits per tree per year over that period. Water deeply and less often rather than a little every day, and use a slow-release irrigation bag at £19–£30 if you cannot visit that regularly.
Do I Need Permission To Plant A Tree?
Not in your own garden, in almost every case. Exceptions are worth checking: some estates and new-build developments carry planting covenants, planning conditions on a recent development may specify species and locations, and if a TPO consent required you to replace a felled tree, the council will specify size and position. Planting near a boundary, drain or foundation is your liability, so choose the species for the space.
Is It Cheaper To Plant Trees Yourself?
Yes, substantially, up to standard size. A bare-root standard is £30–£110 from a nursery against £150–£320 supplied and planted, so you are saving £100–£200 for two hours' work. Above heavy standard the saving disappears, because the tree needs machinery to place and most establishment guarantees require professional planting.
Tree Planting Prices
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