Landscaping bookkeeping in Edmonton, for both seasons.

Landscaping bookkeeping in Edmonton has to cover two business years at once. May to September you're flat out with sod, mowing and patios. Then there's a shoulder season, and then the first big snowfall turns you into a different company overnight.

Your books have to handle that rhythm. This guide covers cash flow, prepaid snow contracts, equipment and GST for crews working across Edmonton, St. Albert, Sherwood Park and Beaumont.

1Uneven cash flow is the real challenge

The biggest risk for seasonal businesses isn't a slow month. It's a great month that gets spent as if it'll last. July's deposits have to pay for some of April, when you're buying mulch and fixing equipment before the first invoice goes out.

A simple way to smooth it out

• Pick a holdback percentage for yourself, for example 15 to 20% of every deposit, and move it to a separate savings account.
• Separate tax money too. GST and income tax go in their own account, not your operating one.
• Pay yourself a steady draw rather than taking whatever's left each month.
• Look at profit by month, not just the bank balance, so you can see the true shape of your year.

2Snow removal contracts: earned or just received?

Many snow removal clients pay a seasonal rate, sometimes all up front in October or November. That's great for cash flow, but it's not all income yet. If someone in Glenora pays $900 for the season on November 1, you haven't earned $900 that day. You earn it as winter goes on.

Prepaid contracts also mean a promise. If it's a big snow year and you're out every other day, that $900 has to cover a lot of fuel and labour. Tracking snow costs separately helps you price next season properly.

3Equipment, trucks and write-offs

Landscaping is equipment-heavy: trucks, trailers, mowers, skid steers, plows and blowers. Most of these aren't expensed in one go. They're depreciated using capital cost allowance (CCA), which spreads the cost over several years.

• Small tools under $500 (rakes, hand tools, small trimmers) can generally be written off in full in the year you buy them.
• Trucks and trailers are typically depreciated over several years, and you can only claim the business-use share of a vehicle.
• Mowers, plows and heavier equipment are usually depreciated too. Your accountant will place each item in the right class.
• Repairs and maintenance are usually deductible right away: blades, oil changes, tires.

The bookkeeping job is to record each purchase with its date, cost and GST, and to keep a simple asset list. If you finance a truck, the loan payments themselves aren't the expense. The interest is, along with CCA. A mileage log for any vehicle you also use personally makes the business-use claim much easier to support.

For a wider list of what you can claim, see our guide to self-employed tax deductions in Alberta.

4GST for landscapers and snow crews

Landscaping, lawn care and snow removal are all taxable at 5% GST. Alberta has no PST. Once your sales pass $30,000 over four consecutive calendar quarters, or within one quarter, you must register. For many crews that happens in their first full summer.

Registration has a real upside for an equipment-heavy business: you can claim back the GST you pay on trucks, mowers, plows, fuel, sod and gravel as input tax credits. In a year when you buy a new truck, that can be a meaningful refund.

Our full GST registration guide explains the four-quarter test with an example.

5Hiring seasonal crew

Most landscaping companies grow their crew in spring and shrink it in fall. That rhythm creates a few bookkeeping jobs that are easy to miss:

• Payroll setup. Seasonal workers who work under your direction are usually employees, so you deduct CPP, EI and income tax and remit them to CRA.
• Records of Employment. When a seasonal employee's work ends, you generally need to issue a Record of Employment so they can apply for EI.
• WCB estimates. Update your insurable earnings estimate when the crew grows, so the year-end adjustment isn't a surprise.
• T4s. Every employee you paid during the year gets a T4 by the end of February, even if they only worked June to August.

Some owners pay helpers as contractors to avoid payroll. That only works if they really are independent: their own tools, their own clients, their own schedule. A student mowing lawns on your routes with your equipment is almost certainly an employee in CRA's eyes.

Labour is often your biggest cost, so include its full cost, wages plus CPP, EI and WCB, when you price a mowing route or a snow contract. Pricing from wages alone is one of the most common reasons a busy summer still feels tight.

6A two-season landscaping bookkeeping routine for Edmonton crews

The end-of-season review is the one most owners skip and the one that helps most. Look at what each side earned, what it cost, and whether your prices still make sense. Seasonal crews also need to stay on top of WCB and payroll, so update your WCB estimate whenever your crew size changes.

Plum works with landscapers and snow removal crews across Edmonton, St. Albert, Sherwood Park, Beaumont and Leduc on flat monthly fees, so your bookkeeping cost doesn't spike in your busy season. Book a call and we'll talk through your year.

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This article is general information for Alberta businesses and isn't tax or legal advice. Rules and thresholds change, so confirm your situation with your accountant or CRA.