Hiring a person or company to tend to your lawn and garden is like hiring any other type of contractor—you’re ideally looking for someone you trust, who is experienced, and who can help you match your landscape vision and needs with your budget.
Doing your homework and asking friends and neighbors for recommendations is a great way to ensure you find someone worthy of your time and money. Additionally, petitioning for quotes and interviewing potential candidates is key.
As you look for quality lawncare, the following points can help guide you through the process and find an expert to make your home’s surroundings be the envy of your neighborhood.
- What services do they offer? Prior to looking for help with your lawncare, you likely have a list of things you’re hoping to tackle: Fertilizing and ensuring your grass is healthy, cutting your lawn, weeding, adding ornamental elements, and so on. Before hiring a pro, make sure the services you’re seeking are all covered by the company you’re considering. (It would be less than ideal to settle with a company—and then learn that one of your key tasks can’t be accomplished and you end up needing to outsource another pro!)
- What tools and equipment do they use? It doesn’t hurt to ask a prospective lawncare pro what equipment they use for their services and if they keep service logs. Knowing if and when they’re sharpening blades and servicing equipment can tell you how careful they are with their tools—and how careful they are with your lawn. Dull blades or negligently tended machinery can cause damage to your grass and plants. Additionally, poorly cared for tools can mess with service schedules and keep machinery that should be in regular rotational use instead in the shop for fixing. (Which can translate into unattended lawncare or off-schedule plant care.)
- Talk with them about contracts. There are several different schools of thought regarding the pros and cons of lawncare contracts. Some companies are good with verbal agreements. Others want a specific maintenance schedule built into the contract, including timing, tasks, and so on—and all carefully laid out on paper.
Pros for this include you are ensured your lawn will get all the services it needs. Cons are sometimes those services may be inflexibly scheduled. This can mean having your lawn serviced when it may not necessarily need it—or skipping service when it may unexpectedly be in need (for example, with drought or other extreme weather). - License, insurance, and bonding. Any lawncare pro you hire should be able to provide you with a copy of their insurance and license. They should also prove they are bonded. This triad of coverage provides important protections for you and your family. If a worker is hurt on your property or if the landscaping crew mistakenly damages your property proper licensing, insurance, and bonding mean you’re not liable and won’t be held financially responsible.
- Employee background checks and customer service. Since you’ll be having one or more service providers work on your property—potentially when you are not even at home—it is important to also make sure anyone who sets foot on near your home can be trusted. Ask potential lawncare companies about how they vet their employees and what level of background checks are enforced. Reputable companies can supply you with the paperwork needed to allay any concerns you may have about their staff’s qualifications.
Additionally, do some sleuthing and inquire with neighbors or friends who may have used the company you’re considering. Are they easy to get a hold of or responsive to questions? Good customer service goes a long way with any company providing an ongoing service; particularly if that service is to your home and property.
How we can help
Take the guesswork out of whether or not you’re hiring a company you can trust: Charlotte Backyard and Outdoor Living has been a go-to landscaping and lawncare provider for families in and around Charlotte for years. In fact, we were voted the Best Landscaping Company in South Charlotte in 2019 and we’re accredited by the Better Business Bureau.
With over 25-years of experience and state-of-the-art technology, we’re able to provide you with top-notch service and lawncare you can trust.
Please give us a call at 704-672-5572 to learn more about our services or to discuss your hardscaping needs. We look forward to partnering with you!