Latest / The Side Hustle Career Podcast with Fexingo: Second Income, Freelancing While Employed / How a Landscaper Built a 7000 Monthly Side Hustle in Soil Testing
Transcript
- Lucas: So you mow lawns all summer, you get a few regular clients, you think you know the landscape industry. Then you realise: you've been staring at the most valuable asset on every property — the dirt itself — and never charging for it. Luna: You're talking about soil testing. I've seen a few people offer it as an add-on, but you're saying it can be a standalone side hustle? Lucas: Yeah, and a decent one. Today's guest is Marcus, a landscaper in central Pennsylvania who turned a seasonal frustration — clients complaining about yellow lawns and sad tomato plants — into a $7,000-a-month side business. And he's not a chemist. He's a guy with a truck and a $1,200 lab kit. Luna: How did he even get started? Was there a certification or something? Lucas: Yeah, he took a two-day course through Penn State Extension — that's the university's agricultural outreach program. It cost him about $350. Then he bought a soil testing kit from a company called LaMotte — the same kind used by high school ag programs. He can test pH, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and organic matter. Luna: And he just started knocking on doors? Lucas: Not exactly. He posted on Nextdoor and in a local gardening Facebook group. He offered free pH tests at a farmers' market. Then he'd give people a full report and a recommendation — lime if it's too acidic, sulfur if it's too alkaline, compost ratios. He charged $75 per test. After the first weekend, he had 15 clients. Luna: That sounds like it scales fast. But is there a liability issue? If someone follows his advice and their plants still die, can they come after him? Lucas: He covers that with a simple disclaimer — he's not a licensed agronomist, and he makes it clear his recommendations are based on standard extension guidelines. But to be safe, he also got a small business liability policy for about $400 a year. The bigger challenge is the time commitment. Each test takes about 20 minutes of hands-on work, plus driving. Luna: Twenty minutes per test — so at $75, that's $225 an hour. Even if he does only 10 tests a week, that's $3,000 a month, not $7,000. How does he get to seven? Lucas: He started offering 'soil management plans' — a seasonal calendar of when to add what. That's a $150 add-on. And he packages tests with follow-up visits. A homeowner pays $75 for the initial test, then $50 for a retest after they've amended the soil. Repeat clients are the key. Luna: So he's basically becoming a consultant, not just a tester. That's smart. Lucas: Exactly. And here's the thing — and this ties into why we keep this show ad-free — a couple of dollars a month is genuinely what keeps these conversations going. If you've gotten anything out of the show, buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's that simple. Luna: Yeah, it really helps. And we don't run ads, so listener support is what makes this possible. Lucas: Anyway, back to Marcus. The other thing he did was partner with a local nursery. The nursery sends him clients who buy plants and then wonder why they die. He tests the soil, gives a recommendation, and the nursery sells the amendments. Everyone wins. Luna: That's a great referral loop. How did he approach the nursery? Lucas: He walked in with a sample report and offered a 10% commission on every test he performed for their customers. The owner said yes because it increased their sales of lime and fertilizer. Within a month, Marcus had 25 referrals from that one nursery. Luna: I love that. It's almost like a B2B play within a consumer business. Lucas: Right. And he didn't stop there. He started offering 'soil audits' for community gardens and small farms. A community garden with 20 plots — he tests each plot, gives a group report, and charges $500. That's a full Saturday's work for him. Luna: But does he need any equipment beyond the initial kit? Like, does he have to recalibrate or replace chemicals? Lucas: The refill reagents cost about $200 a year. The glassware breaks occasionally. But his total recurring costs are under $500 annually. The big expense was the kit, and he recouped that in his first month. Luna: So the margins are excellent. What about the seasonality? He's in Pennsylvania — there's snow on the ground for a few months. Lucas: He works indoors during winter. He does 'soil test interpretation' — clients mail him a soil sample, he processes it in his basement, and sends back a report. He does about half the volume in winter, but it's enough to keep cash flow going. And then spring — he's slammed. Luna: Mail-in samples — that's a whole other revenue stream. How does he handle shipping? Lucas: He provides a pre-labeled bag via a flat-rate USPS box. The client pays shipping both ways, but he builds it into his fee. He charges $95 for mail-in instead of $75, and the $20 covers the shipping and his extra handling time. Luna: So what does someone need to get started? Just the kit and a certification? Lucas: Pretty much. The kit is the big purchase. But there's a cheaper entry point: you can rent a soil probe from some extension offices. Or you can start with a simple pH meter for $30 and just offer pH testing. Marcus went all-in, but you could test the market with a $30 tool. Luna: What's the biggest mistake someone might make? Lucas: Overpromising. Marcus says his first mistake was writing reports that sounded too definitive. He learned to say 'based on typical recommendations for this crop type, you might consider...' instead of 'you need to add three pounds of nitrogen.' He's not a scientist, and he frames his advice as suggestions, not prescriptions. Luna: That's solid risk management. How does he find clients beyond the nursery? Lucas: He posts a 'soil tip of the week' on his Facebook page. Things like 'Did you know blueberries need acidic soil? Test before you plant.' That gets shared by local garden clubs. He also offers a $10 discount for referrals. Word of mouth is his biggest channel now. Luna: And he's still landscaping during the day? Lucas: He is. He does soil testing evenings and weekends. His goal is to phase out landscaping entirely within two years and do soil consulting full-time. He's already at $7,000 a month from maybe 15 hours a week. That's more per hour than he makes mowing. Luna: So the side hustle is actually the higher-value work. That's a nice position to be in. Lucas: Exactly. And it's replicable in almost any region. Every community has gardeners, landscapers, and small farms. If you're willing to learn the basics and be transparent about your expertise level, there's a market. Luna: Alright, I'm tempted to buy a pH meter this weekend. Lucas, thanks for the breakdown. Lucas: Thanks, Luna. And if you try it, let us know how it goes. We might check in with you in six months.