What does a Landscaping Contractor do?
A landscaping contractor meets with the owner of a home or business to learn what the person requesting landscaping services has in mind. The contractor can perform all of the steps necessary to create a customized landscape. He or she may design a plan, develop the landscape, plant flowers, trees, and shrubs, and maintain the yard when the job is finished.
During the initial consultation with a client, the landscaping contractor will find out if the customer has a specific theme in mind or desires particular plants. Sometimes a client may want trees or shrubs that won’t work in his or her planting zone. When this happens, the landscaping contractor has the expertise to recommend more suitable plants. He or she can provide sketches or photos of alternatives for the client to approve.
Many landscaping contractors have software that will show the client how the finished project will look. Some landscape software is also capable of a time progression. This progression shows the client how the plantings will look in several years, once trees have grown and shrubs have filled out.
A landscaping contractor might construct various types of water features such as ponds, waterfalls, and manmade streams. If there is a drainage problem on the land, the landscape contractor can design a plan to correct it. The contractor will then be able to install a French drain, culvert, or other solution.
Sometimes a landscape contractor is consulted when there is a problem with erosion. Planting grass or other vegetation is the most common solution to an erosion problem. The landscape contractor may also use mulch sprayed with an organic glue to help prevent erosion on a slope.
Walls, sidewalks, patios, gardens, and terraces are stylish features that a landscaping contractor can design and build. The owner of a home or business may have chosen a plan and be able to physically do the landscaping work, but not have the ability to tie everything together in a harmonious way. Hiring a landscaping contractor may ensure the final result will look attractive. After the work is finished, the owner can then choose to perform the regular maintenance that the landscape requires, or hire the contractor to do it.
The right landscaping can lend a sense of style to a yard. It can improve curb appeal and increase property values. If there are no plans to sell the property, landscaping will create a yard suited to the homeowner’s taste, and create a harmonious flow between the house and the land that surrounds it.
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![Landscaping contractors can put in water features.]()
Landscaping contractors can put in water features. -
![The physical work of landscaping is done by a landscape contractor.]()
By: alinamdThe physical work of landscaping is done by a landscape contractor. -
![Landscaping contractors may be in charge of developing green space for public use.]()
By: JulietPhotographyLandscaping contractors may be in charge of developing green space for public use. -
![Landscaping lends curb appeal to a home and can improve it's value.]()
By: Barbara HelgasonLandscaping lends curb appeal to a home and can improve it's value.
Discussion Comments
I can't afford to hire a landscaper contractor. My kids want to go to college one day and they expect us to foot the bill, so I get them to do as much of the work as possible. My husband and I do the rest.
However, my neighbor across the street does use a landscaper, and the guys who work with the landscaping company are doing something in her yard year around. I had no idea there was so much work involved in having a healthy and attractive yard. They have the best looking yard in the neighborhood, but I imagine they pay a healthy price for that pleasure.
I own several small businesses that are service oriented. I'm thinking off getting into landscaping with a main focus on cutting grass. Around here, cutting grass will be about a seven month job out of the year. I don't have a degree in landscaping, and I don't have the computer programs or applications mentioned in this article, but I think I have enough common sense and experience working in yards to get the job done.
We have a drainage problem in the yard at our house. Water stands after heavy rains and much of the yard is flooded. The standing water can be a nuisance, even though the ground soaks it in relatively quickly. Still standing water for a couple of days is more than we want, and this makes growing certain plants a bit of a challenge.
I thought I might try to create a drainage system myself, but after planning the project I am not sure that I know exactly how to lay out the system so that it is most effective. I think a landscaper would probably be able to figure out exactly what type of drainage system we need in our yard.
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