John de Lellis Gardens, Inc.

Concord's tree bylaw is among the strictest in Massachusetts — healthy protected trees on private property cannot be removed during construction without Natural Resources Commission review, replacement plantings (often 2:1 or higher caliper-inch replacement), and sometimes mitigation payments. The Conservation Commission enforces the Wetlands Protection Act and Concord's stringent local bylaw across the 100-foot buffer of every mapped wetland, the 200-foot Riverfront Area along the Concord, Sudbury, and Assabet rivers, and Walden Pond watershed restrictions. Historic District Commission review applies in the Concord Historic District for exterior changes including significant landscape work. Pools, retaining walls over four feet, and stormwater work all need permits.

Concord pricing is at the top of the MetroWest range, comparable only to Wellesley, Weston, and Dover. Weekly mow with detail trim runs $65-115, spring cleanup $500-1,100, fall cleanup $550-1,200, and bark mulch $100-140 per yard installed. Irrigation runs $7,500-13,000 for a typical eight-to-twelve-zone system on a one-to-two-acre lot. Bluestone patios run $14-22K; granite work higher. Design-build projects on standard lots run $50-130K; estate-tier projects with pools, masonry walls, formal plantings, lighting, and extensive drainage frequently land in the $200K-600K range or higher. Annual maintenance contracts on the larger estates routinely exceed $20-50K.

Massachusetts requires a written contract and a Home Improvement Contractor registration for most residential landscaping work; ask for the registration number and check it before paying a deposit.

More on permits, costs, rebates and common questions, plus every other landscaping contractor serving the town, on the Landscaping in Concord page.