Costs of garden landscaping and outdoor facilities at a single-family house on a slope

My relative is a landscaper. He is fully booked for the next 2 years. The company also has to make some profit. So you will hardly find a cheap provider.

There is simply no perfect solution here. We initially also had a landscaping company. In the end, we found an individual man nearby on classified ads who offers small garden jobs. He didn’t have a truly professional overall plan and sometimes seemed a bit disorganized, but he was willing, so we tackled each task with him step by step, always within the scope of what he was capable of. He would occasionally rent an excavator or similar equipment, and gradually it was completed. The advantage was that you could decide and plan anew step by step, which we actually enjoy more. In particular, I find it sensible to let go of the original ideas and rethink everything within the framework of the existing possibilities. As already mentioned here, there are so many gardens and facilities that have become attractive with minimal effort, perhaps precisely because they are kept simple.

No, it definitely doesn't come down to that. You don't gain anything at all by pressuring someone who actually can't or doesn't want to make an offer through nagging.

The one who gave you an offer is willing to do it, the others don't want to. You have to accept that.

You have to be able to operate a mini excavator, especially on a slope. And what good is it if you can't get rid of the excavation or tumble down the slope with the excavator because you have no experience with the machine.

What you write may of course be true. However, it doesn't always have to be that way. I can at least imagine that some landscaping gardeners first check whether they can fill their order books with other (simpler) projects. If that succeeds, they don't get back to you. But if it doesn't succeed, they might be willing at a later time to draw up an offer. We've experienced that at least with other craft companies. Therefore, I think it's not wrong to ask again.

I would like to add that the desire for a completely clean, minimalist garden in such a steep location makes the project additionally expensive – also in long-term maintenance. I would take a look at how, for example, in Norway, minimalist architecture is integrated into the landscape. The contrast is breathtakingly beautiful.

You have to be able to operate a mini excavator, especially on a slope. And what good is it if you then can't get rid of the excavation or you tumble down the slope together with the excavator because you have no experience with the machine

True, you have to acquire the skills, and even then there remains a huge difference compared to a professional. The main difference is then no longer necessarily in the execution, but in the time it takes – including the mistakes you have to correct during the learning curve.
Anyone who handles slope areas skillfully and doesn’t have just a tiny plot doesn’t need to transport away excavation. We moved nearly 1000m3 for house construction and driveway and didn’t transport away a single square meter.

I could at least imagine that some garden landscapers first look to fill their order books with other (simpler) projects.

That’s true – in capacity planning, simple projects with flexibility in effort and time frame are needed here and there. You don’t have an easy project to award. Nothing where you could deploy a large number of helpers or save on machines. The work on your property requires the company’s core competence.

Asking once is completely okay. But if nothing comes after that, let it be. If the gardener wanted your order, he would have made an offer. Maybe one might forget a small offer for a hedge, but certainly not such a big deal.