Frequently Asked Landscaping Questions

Every landscape, like every customer, is unique. If you don’t find the information you need here, give us a call and we’ll be glad to help. You may click on any question below to view details about the topics that interest you.

What can you do for me that my present landscape contractor cannot?

At Landscape Associates, we can customize a landscaping program for you. We realize that there are budget constraints with every property—we can tailor a program for you to include only the services that you desire. Under no circumstances, no matter what the price, will we sacrifice quality.

What makes Landscape Associates different from any other landscape management company?

It is our people! We are dedicated to hiring, training, and retaining the most professional people in the industry. We challenge every single one of our employees to exceed our customers’ expectations.

What services do you provide?

When it comes to landscaping services, we do it all. We do installation, renovation, maintenance, irrigation, floriculture, erosion control and hardscapes on residental and commercial properties.

What will your services cost? Are your services expensive?

We will take the time to determine a realistic price for the scope of work that you request. The cost for our work depends on your property and your unique specifications. Our goal is to give you value for your dollar–we won’t provide you with services that are not needed, nor do we want to exclude services which are required by your landscape.

Landscape Associates is known as being a large company; do you only do big projects?

We would not be in business for years, nor would we employ the large number of people that we do if we relied solely on large-scale landscape projects. We have the ability to handle projects that range from installing a few shrubs in a residential home to maintaining a multi-acre commercial property. Because of the size of our company, we can often offer the best to everyone.

How often will you visit my property? Do I have a regular visitation day?

Between account managers, cutting crews, shrub/tree pruning crews, floriculture crews, and spray technicians, we are on site between one and three times per week. We try to schedule your visitation on the day that you request; sometimes due to weather and holidays it might be forced to change.

What is the best time of year for landscape installation?

It is said that spring and fall are the best times of year for the installation of plant material. But being in the south means that we can install plants almost year round. Hardscapes (i.e., retaining walls, water features, etc) can be installed and designs can be created anytime of the year. No matter what season, we would love to hear from you!

What is the difference between annual and perennial?

Perennial plants are those that grow and bloom in the spring, summer, or fall, then go dormant for the winter months. The benefit of perennials is that they return year after year, often times putting on a better show with each new season. Annuals, on the other hand, are plants grown for their “instant” impact, usually producing a single-season period of bloom. There are cool season annuals and warm season annuals–they should be planted accordingly.

Are your plants guaranteed?

All of our plant material, hardscape materials and labor are conditionally guaranteed with proper client care. We do a final walk-through with our clients to be sure that they are completely satisfied with the results.

Why do I need an irrigation system?

A properly designed irrigation system is insurance for your landscape investment. It efficiently delivers adequate water to the plant material–allowing the plants and your entire property to look its best.

When are certain landscape maintenance job functions performed?

We stay busy all year long. Pine needles are applied between January and April. Summer annuals are planted in May. Grass is cut, shrubs/trees are trimmed, and pesticide/herbicides are sprayed in spring, summer, and fall. Aerating and over-seeding starts in late summer. Leaf removal begins in October. Winter annuals are installed in November. Spring flowering bulbs are planted in December. All year long we do what it takes to keep our customers looking good.

When will you plant my new annual flowerbeds?

Typically we plant annuals around the first of May and at the first of November; the actual date depends solely on the weather. For summer flowers the weather needs to warm up; a frost (which is different than a freeze) can kill summer flowers. For pansies and other winter annuals, the weather needs to cool down. Warm weather in the fall will make pansies “stretch” and will leave them more susceptible to damage from cold weather.

Why do you aerate and seed in the fall as opposed to in the spring?

The cold of the winter in the south tends to be milder than the heat of summer. By aerating and seeding in the fall the grass seed is allowed to establish healthy roots before being subjected to the stresses of heat and drought common to our summers.

How often do you prune plant material?

Our trained personnel know that keeping your plant material shapely and under control is key to healthy plants. We don’t prune just to prune. We try to bring out the best in the plants.

Since a majority of the properties that we service have fast-growing plant material, we prune as needed to bring out the best. Unlike other companies, our professionals are told to prune and shape plant material as needed.

Do you work in the winter?

Though the grass and trees aren’t growing as readily, for our maintenance crews it is “business as usual” to make sure that your property continues to look neat throughout the winter months. Our construction crews work, too—they can schedule certain types of projects for winter. We are able to retain our staff when other companies have to lay theirs off, which means we have the ability to take care of your landscape needs year round.

The shrub crews trimmed today but did not do all the shrubs. Why?

We trim certain plants at certain times of the year because of their growth habits. Our trained personnel know when to prune the different varieties of plant material to insure that they will look their best.