Garden Clearance for Pontypridd Houses

Pontypridd gardens get overgrown for all the usual reasons. A house changes hands, a relative can no longer manage the steps up to the top of the plot, or a rented property has been let for a few years with nobody taking charge of the garden. On a steep terrace, brambles and self-seeded trees take over the upper tiers quickly, because that is the part nobody walks up to.

This guide explains how we approach clearances in Pontypridd, from the first visit to the last bag leaving the lane, and what can follow once the ground is clear. For the bigger picture of garden work in the town, see our landscaping in Pontypridd page.

Who asks us to clear a garden in Pontypridd

Most clearance enquiries we get from the town fall into a few groups, and each has slightly different aims.

• New owners who have bought a house with a jungle at the back and want to see what they have before planning anything.
• Landlords with houses let to students and young renters near Treforest, who need the garden reset between tenancies.
• Families clearing a parent’s or relative’s garden before a sale.
• Homeowners getting a garden ready for new landscaping, such as a patio, deck or new lawn.

A new owner usually wants everything cut back so they can judge the space. A landlord wants the garden safe, tidy and easy to keep that way. A family preparing a sale wants it to look cared for in photos and at viewings. We shape the job around what the garden is for next.

Between tenancies near the university

Houses let to students often change hands in a short window, and the garden is easy to forget while the house is being cleaned and repaired. By then it may hold broken garden furniture, bags of rubbish, a summer’s worth of long grass and a hedge that has grown into the path.

Booking the clearance early in that turnover period makes it easier to fit around cleaners and trades. We can cut back, clear, trim and take everything away in one visit in most cases. If the garden needs clearing every year, it may be worth making it simpler to look after, which our guide to garden ideas for Pontypridd student lets and rentals covers. The general guide on clearing a garden before selling or letting is also useful.

Getting it all down the hill

This is the part that shapes a Pontypridd clearance more than anything. Many terraces have no side access, so waste either goes through the house or down a back lane that may be narrow, steep or blocked by parked cars. Some upper gardens can only be reached by a flight of steps.

Before the day we work out where our vehicle can park, which route the waste will take and how it will be bagged or bundled so it can be carried safely. Brambles and branches are cut down to manageable lengths on site. If the only route is through the house, we protect floors and doorways and keep the carrying tidy. Photos of the front, the back and any lane help us plan this before we visit.

It is also worth thinking about the neighbours. On a tight Pontypridd street, a van loading in a lane that others use for bins and parking needs a little care, so we keep the lane clear as we go and sweep up at the end. If your lane is shared, a word with the people either side beforehand helps the day go smoothly.

What we can take and what needs another route

Green waste, soil, old slabs, broken fencing and general garden rubbish can normally go with us. Some things cannot simply be thrown in with the rest.

• Japanese knotweed and other invasive plants should not be cut and mixed with green waste; they need a proper treatment plan.
• Asbestos, which turns up in some old garage roofs and sheds, should be left alone and not broken up; it needs handling and disposing of by people set up to deal with it safely.
• Paints, oils and chemicals left in sheds need taking to the right place.
• Gas bottles and old tyres have their own disposal routes.

If we find anything like this we will point it out and tell you the options. Our guide to what can and cannot go in a garden clearance covers each item in more depth.

What turns up under the brambles

Clearing an overgrown hillside garden often reveals things the owner did not know were there: old stone steps, a buried path, the remains of a rockery, a collapsed retaining wall or a set of terraces that someone built decades ago. Sometimes these are worth keeping and repairing, and they can shape the plan for the garden.

Where a clearance uncovers a wall that is leaning or damaged, we will let you know and stop short of disturbing it further. Our guide on retaining walls in Pontypridd explains the signs to look for. Trees that need more than cutting back are covered in pruning and felling trees in Pontypridd.

Keeping it clear afterwards

A cleared garden on a slope will green over again within a season if the ground is left bare. Once the rubbish has gone, it helps to decide quickly what the garden will become: new turf on a level tier, planting on the bank, gravel or paving where there is foot traffic, or a membrane and bark over areas you do not want to tend.

We can quote for the clearance on its own or as the first stage of a larger job, and doing both together saves a second round of carrying. See our garden clearance page and garden clearance in Pontypridd for more, or send us some photos through the enquiry form for a free quote.

Questions People Ask

More Advice