Landscaping the yard (either ourselves or getting someone else to do it) has been high on our list of Things We Want To Do for a long time. After making a few attempts at it ourselves, the project was just too overwhelming, and we finally decided to get an estimate on what it would cost to have someone else do it. We got a referral from a good friend, and the proposal came in at an extremely reasonable price.
Derrick is an independent landscaper in his late 20s. He was courteous in his correspondence, and came to our house just a couple of days after i initially contacted him. We walked around the house together, and he listened to my suggestions (which were few) and shared his own thoughts about his vision for what things could look like. My favorite part was how he referred to unwanted plants as “volunteers” instead of weeds. We agreed to tackle the project in two phases – front yard first, and then the back. He measured the whole yard, then promised to get back to me in two days with an estimate. The estimate was in the form of a written contract, where he itemized all his expected expenses. All-in-all, i was very impressed with his professionalism.
The amount of work Derrick did in one day astounds me. We’re extremely happy with the results!
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A close-up of the area in front of our porch. The bushes in front are really bushy and undefined, and to the right of the porch is just a huge mass of the aforementioned volunteers. Derrick cleaned out the unwanted plants and put a thick layer of mulch down. |  |
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A side view of the bushes in front of the porch. This picture may not show it clearly, but there are actually two rows of bushes, some prickly hollies in back and azaleas in front. They’ve kind of grown into each other over the years, resembling one huge bush. My meager attempts at trimming them certainly haven’t helped. Derrick removed the back row of prickly bushes, leaving mostly azaleas. Their backs are a little naked right now, but we expect them to fill out in the back. |  |
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A picture of the crape myrtle on the left side of our driveway. It’s gotten pretty huge and out-of-control. It was thinned out and a flower bed defined beneath it. |  |
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A view of the left side of the house. HUGE gone-wild bushes over here. The big yellowbell looks nice and flowery because it’s blooming, but normally it was just a massive mess. The plants we kept were severely pruned, and a flowing flower bed has been defined. |  |
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A closer-up view of the wildness on the right side of the house and porch. You couldn’t even see through it. Derrick removed a bunch of volunteers, shaped the remaining azaleas nicely, and trimmed-up the holly tree to “show off her legs.” |  |
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A view of the nice Japanese Maple in front of our house, and the flower bed (really a weed bed before Derrick got to it) underneath. |  |
rooms of hardwoods that have to be swept and mopped. Especially when dog hair is everywhere. Plus i haven’t been motivated to vacuum ever since it was my most-hated chore as a teenager. And you can forget dusting.