Anytime you’re getting the ball rolling on a project, there can be periods of “waiting.”
With a landscaping project, that might mean waiting for the landscape consultation (if you’re still hiring a landscaper) or even waiting for the project to get underway (if you have already agreed to a landscaping proposal).
Using this waiting time wisely can help ensure that you maximize your success.
In order to do this, we’ll help you to understand some of the important things that you ought to know and also answer some of your most commonly asked questions about what to consider when waiting on a project.
At the end of the day, we want you to feel prepared for whatever comes next! We believe that an informed consumer is a wise consumer, and we’re here to help.
If you’re still on the fence about hiring a landscaper, we want to share why professional landscape design is worth the investment.
The fact is, every great landscape begins with a great landscape design. If you’re having any mid- to large-sized project completed, you want to make sure it follows a high-quality, professional design.
Some of the benefits of investing in a professional landscape design include:
Are you in the process of hiring a landscaper? You have a project in mind, and now you’re meeting with potential landscapers to decide whether to move forward. If that’s the case, you might be looking for some basic landscape consultation.
In other words, you want to understand what should be included in a landscape consultation.
A landscape consultation is a meeting with a Landscape Designer to discuss your wants, needs, ideas, and budget. We think it’s important that the companies you’re considering take this meeting seriously and respect your time in the process.
They should be able to provide you with a specific date and time for the consultation (not a range of times that leave you sitting around all day).
Many landscape companies charge a small fee for consultations. Kingstowne’s consultation fee guarantees you uninterrupted face time with one of our professional landscape designers for an hour or more to explore your ideas and consider the possibilities for your outdoor spaces.
When you have this meeting, you should gain confidence that your Landscape Designer is experienced and knowledgeable. Unfortunately, some companies might send someone out who won’t actually be involved in the process, which can sometimes happen with free consultations.
You also want to be careful that you’re not just hiring a “yes man,” who is just trying to be agreeable to all of your ideas in order to get your business. The best Landscape Designers take your ideas and combine them with their expertise, as they’ll know what will and won’t actually work.
You want to make sure that you’re getting this high level of expertise.
If you’re still in the process of hiring a landscaper and have one or more consultations set up, we have an entire article on how to prepare for a landscape consultation.
Here’s a quick summary:
Go outside and look at your space. Make sure that you have a clear grasp of your main objectives before having your landscape consultation. Keep in mind that the more information you can provide your Landscape Designer, the better. We like to say that no detail is too small!
Have photos ready. As they say, a picture is worth 1,000 words. Sometimes it can be difficult to describe what you’re looking for (and make sure that you and your Landscape Designer are truly on the same page). But a picture can make that easier. We have photos of finished projects in our portfolio, but you can also find them in magazines, websites, blogs, and more.
Have relevant paperwork and details on hand. There are certain details that can help keep everything moving forward. If your landscape project might include fencing, a deck, or a patio, it is best to prepare for the meeting with a copy of the property’s plot/survey showing the dwelling and the related offsets to the property lines or on-site easements.
Have a budget range in mind. We know people like to keep their budgets close to the vest. People often feel they’ll get ripped off if they’re upfront about their budget. But the truth is, withholding budget details will only hurt you. It will make it nearly impossible for your landscape designer to design your project. It does no good to come back with a design that is well beyond your range. It’s important to have at least some idea of what you’re looking to spend so that your Landscape Designer can remain within those confines.
Be prepared with your questions. Finally, this is a great time to go over any questions that you might have with your Landscape Designer. We’ll dive into some of the questions that you can plan to ask when hiring a landscaper in our next section.
Knowing what to ask at your consultation meeting will also help set you up for success. Every project will be different, so some questions will be highly specific to you.
Here are some general questions that we recommend asking.
What makes your professional landscaping company unique? If you are in the process of hiring a landscaper, and you have several prospective companies in mind, don’t be afraid to ask them what sets them apart from the pack. They should know what differentiates them from other landscaping companies in the area.
Of course, you want transparency and honesty here. You don’t want a company that claims to be the best at everything. That’s like a waiter or waitress telling you every single item on the menu is “their favorite.”
What is your lead time like? This answer is likely going to differ depending on the time of year. In the less-busy season (like January and February), a company might be able to start within two to three weeks. But in peak season, it might be longer.
At Kingstowne Lawn & Landscape, during peak season (like April and May), we usually look at 6 to 8 weeks from breaking ground. It’s a great reason to try and get the ball rolling during less-busy times, but we know this isn’t always how it works out.
What happens if I need to make a change? Sometimes people want to make a change after they’ve already signed a landscape proposal. If nothing has been ordered, that might be a simple task. But it’s all going to be based on your circumstances.
For instance, if you’re having a patio completed and the pavers have already been ordered but we haven’t broken down the pallet or used any of them, they can be returned (for a fee), and we can accommodate a change (for a fee). But if we’ve broken down the pallet and you want to change the paver color, we can still do that, but you’d have to pay for the pavers we couldn’t return.
You can count on a company like ours to be fully transparent and make sure you understand everything that you need to know. We’re not trying to keep any secrets, and we’ll tell it like it is.
What kind of guarantees or warranties do you offer? Understanding what is included in a warranty can be complicated, as it varies widely from company to company. So, this is a great question to ask. Some companies might not even have warranties!
At Kingstowne Lawn & Landscape, our hardscaping and decks are warrantied for one year. In addition, our installed plants are warrantied for 90 days, as that is when any inherent problems with the plant or its installation would become apparent.
What kind of deposit do you require? This is another piece of information that will vary depending on the landscaping proposal. Typically, we ask for 50 percent up front to secure materials and ensure everything is ready to go.
Although every company does things differently, we understand that it’s a little worrisome to have to pay for the entire project upfront. Conversely, companies that don’t ask for any deposit at all might raise a red flag. Are they actually trying to get you on their schedule in a timely manner and getting everything ready to go?
Some landscaping companies are much more detailed in their landscaping agreements than others. At Kingstowne Lawn & Landscape, we do get pretty detailed in our landscaping contracts. We believe that if you’re going to spend your hard-earned money, you should fully understand what you’re getting for your investment.
Here are some of the important items that we believe should be included in a landscaping proposal:
Materials: If you’re spending your hard-earned money on a project, you deserve to have a detailed list of the materials being used. If not, you have no way of knowing whether the company is just using a cheap substitute instead of a higher-quality product. If this is an installation job, it’s good to have a list of explicit details about the plants, including which plants are being used and their final sizes. Without these details, you have no idea what you’re getting.
Scope of work: You also deserve a detailed explanation of the scope of work. A firm contract will list all the labor tasks involved in completing your project. This even includes front-end items, such as utility checks, and back-end items, such as cleanup and debris removal.
Project specifics: Every project is unique, and some specialized details might need to be included. Accessibility is a big one. How will the space be accessed, and what machinery will be needed to do so? This can become especially complicated with townhomes, where the best entry point might not be obvious.
Project warranties: If any aspect of your project is under warranty, those details should also be included in your contract.
Hopefully, this article has given you some insight into what you can do as you begin a landscaping project. Whether you’re waiting for the landscape consultation or you’re waiting to get your project underway, you’re probably both eager and excited.
We’re here to help you in any way that we can.
If you’ve already met with us and there is anything we can do in the meantime while you wait for us to return the landscape design and proposal, we’re always here to help! We are just as excited as you are to get your project underway. After all, there is nothing that we love more than helping our clients see their outdoor dreams come true.
If you’ve come across this article and have not yet talked to us about your landscape project ideas with us, request a consultation, get your customized plan, and get ready for the royal treatment.