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SERVICES - FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS: Q . Why do you charge a design fee? A . A design often requires on-site visits and many hours designing. A design is the result of a synthesis of the site conditions, your preferences, a budget and design objectives. Just as an architect has a fee, so do we. Q. What happens to the design fee if I have work done by you? A. If we carry out the entire project as designed the fee will be credited. However, we also usually credit the entire fee if a significant portion of the work is carried out. Q. Can I have you do the design and install the work myself or have another contractor do it ? A. The design is copyrighted. You may do the installation yourself but we will enforce our copyright protection unless you have requested a release which we will usually grant free. Q. Is the price estimated fixed? A. The price is fixed for the work described. Small variations that occur during installation will not change the price. These changes can come from our installers or you. If a change is significant you will be quoted the cost increase or decrease prior to that work being carried out. This change will be in writing. Q. Will I get a detailed plant list ? A. You will get a plant list upon completion of the project. The design will carry some suggested plantings that will change according to the availability of top quality plants. We will not plant anything we are not completely happy with. Q. How long do projects take? A. This depends on the size of the project and the weather . We can accurately predict the job duration just prior to commencement. Q. When can you start a project? A. We require that a deposit be paid (for size of deposit, see payments section CLIENT REFERENCE HANDBOOK) prior to being placed on the production schedule. The schedule is an estimate only and is usually accurate to within a day or two. We will not leave your job until it is completed and we offer this same courtesy to the job prior to yours. Q. How much input do I have in the selection of hard-scape materials? A . You select all the materials. You may do this by coming to our showroom, visiting other projects, visiting suppliers or directing us to materials you have seen. Once these choices have been made any changes will usually incur a cost resulting from handling, labor or other work to be redone. We are willing to do whatever it takes to make you happy. Q. What are your guarantees? A* . All materials carry a warranty from the manufacturer. All our labor is guaranteed for at least a year. All shrubs and trees are guaranteed for one year, as long as they are watered properly. All perennial flowers** are guaranteed for 30 days. * If it is determined that the shrubs and trees have not been maintained the guarantee is voided. ** If perennials are going to die as a result of poor quality or poor location, they will show signs very quickly, easily within 30 days. However, if the loss of the plant is due to improper watering, the guarantee is voided. Q. What other services do you offer? * Garden Maintenance * Water garden maintenance * Garden illumination Q. How do I know when to expect what services? CALENDAR OF SERVICES Common lawn cutting questions and answers. Q . What day of the week will you be cutting my lawn? A . During high growth periods it is nearly impossible to come on the same day every week. During the height of the summer we will usually settle into a steady weekly schedule but even then rain may cause some changes. Q . What height do you recommend cutting the grass? A . This varies from lawn to lawn depending on turf type and time of year. Drought prone lawns are usually cut at much higher levels than lawns that are shaded or watered regularly. We will honor any specific requests but will not take responsibility for any damage done to the lawn outside of our scope of work, (many people request a very short cut, which can kill the lawn and allows weeds, pests and disease to attack.) The standard for most lawns is three and a half inches, with adjustments higher in the summer, and lower in the Spring and Autumn. Q . Is it better to bag clippings or to mulch them? A . When you take away the grass that has been cut, you are also removing the nutrients and energy that if left on the lawn will feed the soil. Sometimes, however, excessive amounts of grass will suffocate the lawn and should be removed. We use mulching blades and remove clippings when appropriate. Q . Why donšt the lawn crews use the weed whackers to whack the grass that is growing in the flower beds? A . Our crews are instructed not to whack anything beyond the edge of the beds. More times than not something gets cut down that should not. Proper bed maintenance is a different service, which we do offer, but requires different tools. Q. Can you cut my lawn with a small mower? A. Unless otherwise agreed upon when your maintenance package is quoted, the quoted price is based on the use of commercial equipment. Smaller equipment is far more labor intensive and will cost more. Q . When will you start/stop cutting the lawn if I do not have your spring/fall leaf clean-up service? A . Lawn cutting is provided when the lawns start growing in the spring and until the lawns go dormant and stop growing in the autumn. If there are too many leaves on the lawn when we come to cut the lawn (and you have not hired us to do the spring or fall leaf clean-ups), the lawn will not be cut. You can help coordinate getting your lawn cut by calling and asking us when we will be visiting, and gathering the leaves before we visit. Notice, in the spring if the lawn has not been cleared of leaves from the previous year, we will not cut the lawn, (of course, if we are providing the spring and fall leaf clean-ups, this does not apply). Commonly asked questions on snow work. Q How are heavy snow accumulations of six inches or more handled? A While these snow accumulations of six inches or more happen five or six times per season, these are the most challenging. While snow accumulations of two to four inches are cleared in five hours on each route, snow clearing times increase as snow accumulations increase, doubling at eight inches of snow, and lengthen even more depending on the temperature (around 32 degrees Fahrenheit snow is heavier), snow amounts and traffic congestion. Q What if my crew doesnšt come in or the equipment breaks? A Crews always attend work. Each operator is called well in advance of any snow event. When equipment breaks it is either repaired at our fully operational mechanics shop (complete with two hydraulic hoists) during the shift, but usually the reserve equipment at the shop is put into use. Q Will the turf damage from the snowplow be repaired? A Yes, sod damage is repaired in the spring at no charge, unless the customer requested snow piles be pushed to inadvisable areas during the winter. Q When are snow plowing stakes placed and removed from marking the driveway? A Stakes are placed in late October or early November, and removed in April. Q Should I call the office if it is snowing or my property has not been cleared? A Rest assured we know when it has snowed. As the crews have already left by the time you call, it is unlikely youšll be able to talk to someone unless you call during business hours. A recording will advise you of when the crews were dispatched, and you can expect to be cleared within five hours of the dispatch time, as long as the snow accumulations are not extraordinary. Q . Can I expect to be cleared during a blizzard, or when the municipality issues driving bans or łcloses the city˛? A . Safety for our operators is very important. When visibility is close to zero and streets have not been cleared by the municipal plows, we will wait until it is safe to work. Records show two or three times a year in Buffalo snow storms make conditions unsafe, even for our four wheel drive trucks. While we hope these occasions are few and far between, they do and will happen. When they do occur rest assured wešre working very hard to get to you as quickly as possible. The bottom line? Expect the challenge of Buffalo winters to frustrate you twice every winter, so plan what youšll do during these snow falls, and enjoy the time at home. Q . When do snow clearing services start and end? A . From November 1st to April 1st. Q . When do I incur extra charges for snow clearing? A. Extra charges occur when you call us to clear drifting snow from strong winds or to clear snow deposited at the apron or mouth of the driveway or parking lot by the municipal plows. The only other charges occur when snow accumulations exceed 135 inches (as determined by the national weather service). The average snowfall amount per season in Buffalo is 97 inches. Q . When do garden maintenance visits start and end? A . Gardening visits begin in early May and end in late October Q . Can the gardeners do additional unexpected work if I ask them while they are currently at my home ? A . Yes, more than happy to do extra work if time permits on that schedule, If time does not permit the gardener will make an alternative arrangement. Fees for extra work will be invoiced. Pruning Service Trimming, shaping and pruning of your hedges and shrubbery to prevent loss of control, twice a year. We also clean out underneath the shrubs to control diseases, promote air flow, and remove the clippings. Additional visits to prune your shrubbery can be provided at your request, (privet hedges often need 3-5 trimmings), for an additional charge. Customer is responsible for keeping shrubs and trees free of holiday lights and other electrical hazards, and for arranging for fertilizing, preventive treatments and watering. EG is responsible for trimming shrubs previously agreed upon and removing clippings, twice a year. Common pruning questions: Q. When will my shrubs be pruned ? A . Most shrubs require a pruning in late spring and another in early autumn, and most clients choose to be pruned twice during the year. However, some shrubs need to be pruned at other times, and will be pruned at the correct time, but the agreement must include these additional visits specifically. Common Spring clean-up questions: Q. W When will my spring clean up be done ? A . Weather permitting, before May 1st. Q. What if my lawn has snow mold or needs some other special attention, which is discovered when the crew arrives? A . As a general policy, crews are advised to provide service immediately for any reasonable request which does not significantly affect the successful completion or their work schedule for the day. An extra half hour of work does affect the schedule. The leader of the crew will record your request, and may offer a price quote right there, and complete the job if you agree. Otherwise, the request will be processed and an agent of the EG will contact you. Common fall leaf clean-up questions: Q . When do fall leaf clean-ups occur? A . Fall leaf clean-ups begin in October, when some varieties of trees and shrubs start to drop their leaves. While lawn trimming services are performed weekly, as the autumn season proceeds the time spent at each property first doubles, and then triples. Hence, the crews visit each property every two to three weeks as the łleaf harvest˛ season progresses. Each property usually is łharvested˛ three times, but a December visit may occur if the snow waits, allowing a last visit. Notice crews will remove the bulk of the leaves during the initial leaf clean-ups, and remove 95% of all leaves on the final visit, when the trees affecting your property have dropped all their leaves. Q . What happens to the leaves? A . Each municipality has different rules. Buffalo requires bagging the leaves on most streets, while Amherst picks up leaves at the curb. Notice in Amherst it is illegal to place leaves on the street. They must go on the lawn at the curb-strip, because of fire hazards. Fees are adjusted according to where you live. If you want to keep the leaves, and perhaps make compost, please advise us and wešll make arrangements with you. Q . Why do I need both clean-ups ? I could have it all done in the spring. A . If you compare the descriptions of both services you will see why they are both important. If we are instructed to carry out a spring clean-up and no fall clean up was carried out the fee will be approximately equal to the sum of both fees. (Unfortunately we are often unable to repair some damage caused by leaving rotting leaves in beds over winter.) that winter over in decomposing leaves. [Back To Top] |
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