I got a bee in my bonnet in early Fall 2019 that we should get rid of the pachysandra that was beginning to dominate our front yard. It’s a very invasive ground cover that was here when we moved in.
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| This is what it looked like. We had tried to stop its spread by mowing it and covering it with paper bags and plastic, but it always seemed to pop back up. |
We had never used landscapers before, but decided it was time to bite the bullet and pay someone else to remove the pachysandra and plant something new. I spent a few weeks making calls, trying to get someone to give me an estimate. My experience:
Round One: Called the top rated landscaper in our area, according to google reviews. They did not call me back, but gave my name to another company, who called me. I thought that was rude, and when I tried to find info on the other company online, it was non-existent. No thanks! I called two other landscapers; neither called me back.
Round Two: Was excited to find an all women landscaping crew with a number to text. Within 5 minutes, I received a phone call and had an appointment for the owner to come out. Yeah! I then proceeded to prematurely gloat to my spouse that that's how women run their businesses! She arrived promptly as scheduled, took photos and told me that she'd come up with a computer designed plan for the area. She then made an appointment to come back the following Monday at 9 am to go over her plan and give me an estimate. I also left messages with two other landscapers, so that I could compare prices. Again, neither returned my call. Then, at 9 pm on Sunday, exactly 12 hours before she was supposed to be here, the owner of the women's company texted me to tell me that the project was too big for them. WTH???? Why did it take a week for her to decide that? I was livid.
Round Three: Of the next three calls I made, I got two bites. One came out, took photos, and told me he'd get back to me with a quote. After a week, I texted him to ask if he had my estimate, and he responded that he'd send it to me the next day. Then, I was ghosted by him. The other company came out, took photos and the following day sent me an email of a computer designed plan with a price. We obviously went with them, as they were the only ones willing to do the job. (My husband thought maybe landscapers didn't want small projects, but is it that hard to just tell a customer that?)
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| We have zero idea if we were ripped off, as I was never able to obtain another estimate, but we were quite pleased with the result. They removed the offending ground cover, planted 4 rows of bushes (boxwood/gold mop cypress alternating at top, lavender, barberry, and juniper). They also brought in some large rocks to break it up a little and then laid fresh mulch. |
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| The following Fall 2020, my husband and I planted 200 daffodil bulbs. This past spring we were treated to this. I'm also pleased to report that the deer have not eaten any of the new shrubbery. |
That sounds like us when we were trying to get estimates for a new deck on our house! Your landscaper did a beautiful job! It looks like it was worth the money and the wait!
ReplyDeleteAnd this was before Covid! It’s tough getting any help these days.
DeleteOMG, as I was reading everything that you went through to FINALLY get someone out there to do the job, I was reminded, once again, the low level of customer service in this world and careless work ethics of some people. I mean, didn't any of these other companies that you contacted need the work? And you would think at a time like this, with the cost of living going up and the economy, people would be more than happy to make the money?!? It blows me away that it took you THREE rounds, and had to make FIVE calls to get someone to finally follow through with an answer.
ReplyDeleteBtw, I just had a very bad customer service experience as well and was so livid that I wrote THREE negative reviews on THREE different review platforms to get the word out how horrible this cell phone company is. I'm telling you, you and I should become secret shoppers and start a business writing reviews and getting paid to do it. LOL!
Anyway, sorry to rant on, but you know how I feel about shitty customer service.
The results look faaaaaaaaaaaaaaabulous! Wow...it looks like a completely different area from the first photo. I LOVE the rocks they added to break it up. Nice touch! The whole area looks so clean and well manicured. And congrats on the daffodils, they look beautiful!
Sorry to hear all that you had to go through to get this job done, but at least the end result was a POSITIVE one!
Have an awesome day, my fellow-customer service friend! X
Can you believe that? And I think I actually contacted 10 people total and only received one quote. It’s mind boggling. I realize it wasn’t a huge project (it took 4 guys a full day and then the next morning) but it wasn’t cheap! I guess they don’t need the work and can afford to be choosy about the jobs they take. But you would think at least a few would return calls, in hopes of getting future business? They just don’t care! And this was pre-Covid. Now, they just don’t have the workers.
DeleteI’m glad to hear you posted three reviews on various platforms. I rely on those reviews quite often. And I’ve found it’s easier to get a business’s attention by posting on Facebook and Twitter than by contacting them directly. It’s nuts! I did always want to be a secret shopper. When I was a manager with May Company, we would secret shop our departments at Lazarus. It was hilarious and fun! Of course, it was way before cell phones, so you had to surreptitiously take notes! LOL!
We are so very happy with the results! We even had some of the daffodils re-bloom last month. Have a terrific Tuesday, Ron!
I enjoy gardening but as we gotten older we have used a landscaper because our interest is no longer in experimenting, but is in getting this property up-to-date before we retire. I feel no shame doing so.
ReplyDeleteYour battle with the pachysandra is one that I admire and salute you for getting your problem solved once and for all. It looks lovely.
I totally understand. We are also updating the inside of our house before retirement so that we can enjoy it. I’m so happy to be rid of that ground cover in front. We have enough of it elsewhere!
DeleteHonestly, I have no idea how some companies stay in business with that kind of treatment of potential customers. We've had that with contractors before and they are all the same, but what's worse is my cousin has his own veteran owned contracting company, with an emphasis on veteran owned because I suppose that's supposed to make him sound more trustworthy? IDK. But I texted him once to set up an appointment to come out and give me an estimate on laying our hardwood floors, got a text back saying "for sure!" then never heard back. Ended up laying them myself. When I went to NOLA, Jason wanted to have my office finished as a surprise for me when I got back, left him a message to see if he'd be available that week, and nada. No response. And it's not like we're on bad terms with him. We see him at family functions all the time and he acts like we're all close as can be. And we weren't even looking for a family discount, we would have paid his normal rates. We just needed help. So if you can't trust family, I don't think there's much hope for the rest of humanity that have service skilled jobs.
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question, I usually do my own gardening, but the last two years has been really hard to stay on top of our back garden and I have thought about getting quotes from landscapers on helping me get rid of all of the ivy that spreads like cancer through all of my beds. After your experience, I may just have to buck up and do that myself, too.
Oh, and I love the new look of your landscaping. It has way better curb appeal now. I don't know what you paid, but I think you got your money's worth.
DeleteI will have remodeling stories next year . . . you’re right that it’s all the same. Is it so hard for them to just say thanks, but no thanks? It’s unreal that your cousin didn’t at least text back and say he was too busy or whatever! Meanwhile, I’m certain we are paying premium prices for our only option. I’ve had good luck with plumbers and HVAC, but that’s about it. Good luck with the ivy! The deer ate all that we had at our last house!
DeleteCommon courtesy is definitely lacking these days.
DeleteI may need to have some deer imported into the neighborhood to help with all my ivy LOL!
Wow, you're right... that ground cover really did it's job! LOL Your front yard looks much nicer now, but what an ordeal finding a landscaper. Many years ago we hired a local guy to mow our grass for a while when Ron was working a lot of overtime. We've never had landscaping done though. While we never priced it, I'm sure it would be more than we'd want to spend since we don't enjoy being in the yard all that much. (You probably remember, planes and mosquitos are relentless here! lol) Ron usually plants a small veggie garden, and I had containers of plants on the patio the last couple of years but that's about it.
ReplyDeleteYes, that ground cover grew right into the grass. I don’t know why anyone would plant it along the sidewalk, but that’s what they did. I’d say 50% of people here have landscapers mow their lawns. My husband likes to cut the grass; I hate the noise and the smell and end up sneezing. The front yard is too steep for me to push the mower anyway. Yes, I remember your plane traffic. We have quite a bit here, too.
DeleteWe used a landscaper after moving into this house to completely redo our back garden. They demolished the garage and some slippery decking, rearranged the lawn and planted loads of bushes and two rowan trees. We were very pleased with the result. We got several estimates quite easily and one was about twice what we eventually paid (around £13,000 or $17,300)! Your revamped flowerbed looks great. I've never heard of pachysandra, but there are plenty of weeds trying to colonise our garden!
ReplyDeleteIt’s never cheap, is it? That sounds like a big project and I’m sure you’ve enjoyed the results. Now I need to go look up rowan trees!
DeleteActually I missed out a few things. The landscaper extended the patio, laid out three new paths, put up some new fencing and added a garden shed. So it was quite a big job!
DeleteWow, that's some contact list! I never understood why contractors just ghost instead of letting someone know that they're too busy or that the job is too small. I love the daffodils!!! I've been trying to get my hubby to hire a landscaper for years. We don't have the time to do it ourselves anymore but he just flat out REFUSES.
ReplyDeleteYou know what you need in there? A nice bird feeder! LOL
The ghosting is real!!! We stopped putting out our bird feeders because of the squirrels, chipmunks, opossums, and skunks! We just don’t need to attract anymore problems to our property.
DeleteHere's your unpopular opinion of the day.. I think skunks are cute and their smell doesn't bother me! I'd put out extra feeders to attract them. :)
DeleteYeah, we had some landscaping along with paver project that required some heavy equipment. It was supposed to be done in March, but he ghosted us. When I finish my basement, I may be renting equipment!
ReplyDeleteFunny as that is the topic of my next landscaping post.
DeleteWow, talk about bad customer service. You know I would be writing bad reviews for each and every one of those places that never got back to you or ghosted you. There's just no excuse for that. It looks great though.
ReplyDeleteI should have done that, although the majority of them just didn’t return my call. Rude though!
DeleteThat looks like the plant my parents have in their yard. When I last visited home, it was the first time in 8 years. I remarked to my sister that that plant had really grown and was eating into the grass. She said, "I know and Mom hates it. She's been trying to get rid of it but nothing works." Gotta be the same evil plant! I'm glad you got yours dealt with. Sorry it was so much work! (Who knew!) But the new yard looks amazing! I'm so impressed your daffodils are doing great, too. We've tried planting flowers and it's always hit or miss. Our tulips come up an inch, bloom, then die two days later. I blame the soil. :)
ReplyDeleteThat’s so funny! Do they still live in this area? Pachysandra seems to be very popular here, probably because no animals eat it. Also, because it never dies! Ha! Daffodils are about the only flower I can count on, because again, they must taste bad. That’s strange that your tulips don’t grow well, but maybe they don’t like the nice weather? Lol!
DeleteYep, my parents are still in the area. Out here I don't have deer to worry about, but drought. I don't know if that's the problem: not enough water, or too much sun, not enough sun, or if it's the wrong kind of soil for the poor forlorn tulips (and most of our other plants). We don't enjoy gardening enough to go to the trouble of finding out what each individual plant needs and giving it to them. Consequently, some do well, but most do not. :/
ReplyDeleteGardening is exhausting, to be honest. I don’t mind it in the spring, but by July 1st, I’m over weeding, watering, and babying it all!
DeleteI am glad you finally found someone to do the work for you and it turned out great. We have run into the same problems here trying to find people do small jobs for us. They don't want them because they are too small and instead of telling us that, they give us the runaround or ignore us after initial contact.
ReplyDeleteIt makes it difficult when you don’t have the time or skill to do it yourself. Not sure why they can’t be honest about not wanting the work.
DeleteUgh I WISH we could afford a landscaper but that's not gonna happen. I HEAR you about business owners that won't do what they said they'd do, or even return your call in the first place. My kids and I have had this conversation so many times. We needed some plumbing things done a year ago and although the guy (small business owner) came out, and promised an estimate within 72 hours and said he could do the work within a few weeks, I never heard from him again. I'm no stripe of a feminist but I do believe that women are lots better organized and lots more efficient and -- as has been amply demonstrated in your case -- unafraid to turn down a job if it's "too big" .... which, TBH, sounds ridiculous to me. Just bring in extra help and get it done! But at LEAST she was honest with you and didn't shy away from the awful truth or string you along with empty promises! Your yard looks GREAT! Can't wait to see Part II! xoxo
ReplyDeleteYeah, the final price for our recent and upcoming projects have all been 3X what we would have guessed. And I was grateful that the woman told me the truth, though I don’t understand why it took her a week to realize her crew couldn’t do the job. Strange! I might wait until January for my next landscaping post, but I’ll post about other stuff I’ve been up to before then. XO back at ya!
DeleteSounds like you went through a hard time getting people to come and work. But I love what he did. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much!
DeleteWOW. I love what they did! I learned a long time ago to insist on help; our property is just too big for me alone. It took me a while, but I found a guy who loves work and nothing is too big or too small for him!
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice update for that area. I can't wait to see what else happened when you got a Bee in your bonnet. Heck, I didn't even know you wore bonnets. :)
Two years later, we are still happy with it. Sad that it took me long to blog about it! Glad you enjoyed my gardening idiom!
DeletePhew that was hard work, but it looks lovely now. When we moved to our present house we had a new front drive done, a patio at the back and a new lawn and flower beds all done by the same guy that my daughter knew. I had a similar experience as yours with a plumber though! What is wrong with people who take ages to get back to you, or just don't bother.
ReplyDeleteThat’s a lot of work done. Thank goodness your daughter knew someone. We’ve had good luck finding plumbers, but not much else.
DeleteYikes! I can't believe so many landscapers blew you off like that. Is business really that good?!?
ReplyDeleteThe results look fantastic, but I understand as a consumer that you want a chance to compare prices.
We only had two small gardens at our home--one in the front and one in the back, so we never bothered with landscapers (nor they with us).
I live in an apartment now, but if I ever do get a house, I'm definitely calling in the pros. Hopefully they'll call me back!
Take care.
As we had never used landscapers before, we didn’t even know a ballpark figure on that type of job. I guess I’ll never know if we were ripped off or not. At least we were happy with the results.
DeleteI think removing the roots and all of the old ground cover was the issue for the women. That is why it seems like if I cannot do it myself, it doesn't get done.
ReplyDeleteI think you’re right. I really didn’t know how anyone was going to go about getting rid of it . . .dig by hand, use machinery similar to a backhoe, or spray it with a herbicide. In the end, it was dug up with shovels. I will add, it’s still coming up here and there and I’m trying my best to get the roots out where I can.
DeleteGreat article about planting. Have a nice day
ReplyDeleteNo, we have never hired landscapers, Bijoux, but we did have similar experiences in trying to find house contractors when we lived in VA. We would make calls and never get any responses and soon learned that during fishing or hunting season it was practically impossible to find anyone willing to work. In the end, we did find a reliable contractor and renovations were completed. Your landscaping project looks like it turned out auite nice after all was said and done.
ReplyDeleteIt’s becoming more and more difficult. Sounds like we both eventually got it done!
DeleteI am not surprised at all. I think situation is same here. Especially customer services are so bad here (maybe yours are better than ours). We have never hired landscaper, because many our neighbours had bad memories about them. Bye the way your Daffodil flowers look very cute.
ReplyDeleteCustomer service is abysmal these days. Glad you like the daffodils!
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