Frequently Asked Questions
A comprehensive list of questions we commonly receive.
General
Yes, we are, in the whole CSRA (North Augusta, Augusta, Aiken).
We have been servicing the CSRA and surrounding areas for 14 years and many more to come.
If it has anything to do with the outdoors, we are all about it! Everything from turf management, sod, and plantings, to pools, pergolas, and retaining walls. If you can dream it, we can do it.
Yes, our company holds many licenses, certifications, and qualifications. We also have customer references from the past.
Design
One of our core values is Family. We want our clients and their families to enjoy the spaces we create for them. There are many amenities you can add to a yard that will encourage your family to enjoy these environments. You could have a kitchen garden installed. We could install an outdoor living space with a firepit for a marshmallow roast. We could build an outdoor kitchen where you could cook and enjoy football. You could get a nice lawn area where you could play sports or games like bocce ball, badminton, soccer and volleyball. We could also install a putting green and bunker for golf. When designing your outdoor flora, we want your landscape to be seasonally interactive by including year-round color and texture with blooming plants and intentionally layered evergreen and deciduous plants, and sometimes edibles!
We use mostly low voltage outdoor lighting on our projects. We use a company named Coppermoon for our fixtures. They are made in the USA and are a quality lighting fixture. We use LED bulbs now for sustainability and lighting spectrum. We believe in a romantic and minimalistic lighting approach. We use uplights to hit accent trees, pathlights for circulation, and step lights for safety on our LED low voltage projects. We sometimes do 120 volt lighting when the project and design qualifies for this. We will use lanterns for columns and sometimes spotlights too.
Most landscapes will raise the price of the home to a degree. Plants, healthy, well-manicured lawns, and hardscape structures (fire pits, fireplaces, patios, outdoor kitchens, etc) will increase the price of the home. However, pools do not raise the cost of the home. Pools are installed solely for the enjoyment of the family for memories and laughter, not to get more on a home when selling.
Low maintenance includes few shrubs and trees and less grass. When there are fewer shrubs and trees, there is less to prune. When there is less grass, we spend less time mowing. There is also the option of using low maintenance plants meaning plants that don’t need special treatment (plants that aren’t susceptible to as many diseases, tolerant to drought, wet-feet, sun, shade, etc according to the specific landscape).
Contracts & Scheduling
It depends on when we can start a new project. We normally stay booked out on construction 4-8 weeks depending on the time of the year and how our staff size is looking. We do our schedule board each Tuesday and update based on how far our crews work for the week. We do not put any new jobs on the schedule board until we have gotten all contracts and warranty signed and returned and the security deposit paid in full.
We can start service the following week.
Once the proposal is signed, we will send you a contract and warranty via DocuSign and a deposit invoice via QuickBooks. Once the contract and warranty are signed and the deposit is paid, the job folder is handed to the project manager to schedule in the order he/she receives them.
Contracts are used to effectively have open communication and understanding between the client and the company. It lists the final details of the job, the warranty protocol, and what is to be expected, so the project runs smoothly and both client and company can enjoy the install process.
There are many types of jobs and they can all take various amounts of time. We have jobs that take one day and jobs that take a year. When you meet with your sales or design associate, they can give you a range for job time completion. There are many things that affect the time of completion on a job too. Rain can affect a jobsite to where it is not workable, especially in clay soils due to inability to run equipment. Your project manager will keep you up to date on schedule and communicate these adjustments.
It really depends on the time of the year and if our H2B guys are here. We use Visa workers for some of our labor force and our guys return each year to work for us. They come in April and leave in December. A job is not put on the schedule until plans are approved, contract and warranty are signed, and the security deposit is paid. Once the office receives contract, warranty, and deposit, then it is put on the schedule board for install. Typically, we run 4-6 weeks out before we can start a new project, but it does depend on the size of the project. Large projects sometimes take longer to start, especially if there is permitting involved. We are typically really busy right before Masters in March and in the fall of October. Rain and weather can also affect your job start date. We stay at our jobs until we finish and don’t jump around to different jobs, as this prolongs the process. So, if it rains and we cannot work, that delays the start date.
Every season has its perks. Winter is a good start date because the plants have gone dormant and will not have as much shock with transplanting as in the summer months. Spring is a good start date because everything will green up quickly after install. Summer is a good start date because you can see how the plants look with greenery and thriving (this is harder to see in the winter since so many plants go dormant). Fall is a good start date because the growing of plants and turf are slowing down and will not experience shock as harshly. If anything goes awry, our warranty covers plants and turf that don’t make it (according to specifications listed in the warranty protocol).
This answer is dependent on how many people have signed their contract and warranty and paid their deposit invoice before you. We are usually 4-6 weeks out from the moment we get the contract, warranty, and deposit. Remember, we want to plan and organize in advance so the job can run as smoothly as possible. We also order materials specific to your job, which does take time.
Construction
There is a crew leader on site constantly. The superintendent checks on the job, as well as the project manager to make sure we are constantly on top of the job and in good communication with everyone involved.
Of course! We have a whole design process that can put our collective ideas together and put it to life. This design is done before the installation project is scheduled to ensure the install project runs as smoothly as possible.
We will call 811 before we dig. Which is a utility marking company that the utility companies pay to provide utility marking services. When we call, they have 72 hours to come and mark utilities based on business working days. The only mark lines they install and service lines. They do not mark any private lines or lines put in by other contractors. We follow all procedures to not damage any utilities but sometimes it is beyond our control. We will be sure to cut your cable line too. They do not bury this well and if we lean on a shovel wrong, this line gets cut.
Before we start a project, we request that each utility provider come out and mark the location of utility lines. In a perfect world, the utilities would be exactly where they mark them, however, there is always a chance that a utility line may not be exactly where they are marked. By requesting that the utility company come make the locations, if one were to be damaged, the cost of repair will not be passed on to you, only the inconvenience of a temporary outage of a service. In the event that a communication/internet cable is cut, you as the account holder will have to call into your provider as they will not discuss anything regarding your account with any other party.
We are a design, build, and maintenance company and in our design phase of the project we do our best to specify materials that suit the project and design program. When no specific materials have been selected, your project manager will bring samples or provide websites or vendors where you can see material selections available. This mostly occurs on hardscape items such as walls, pavers, masonry, concrete, and fencing materials. We do not encourage clients to go look at nursery materials unless accompanied by one of our Verdant representatives to ensure proper plant selections for the growing conditions of the landscape.
We do most of the work in house except for specialty trade jobs like plumbing or electrical. These trades require licensing and are not something we keep on staff. We work with our subcontractors on a regular basis so they are experienced with our quality expectations and core values. We do hardscapes and walls in-house. Our guys have been trained in SRW and ICPI certifications and they install per those specifications. We also have an inhouse carpentry crew that does all our framing and wood working.
We subcontract them and oversee the process, ensuring that the hardscape and landscape surrounding the pool works together to accomplish your vision for your outdoor living space.
Our warranty for plants is a six month time period. However, there are some specifications to this warranty. If we are not allowed to install irrigation to the plants during the project, the warranty is voided. Also, if we do not buy the plants, the warranty is voided. We will only warranty each plant once. If the shrubs/trees planted in the same spot die twice, the second replacement has an hourly rate. When plants are warrantied, we diagnose the issue (Is it being overwatered? Is there more sun than anticipated?) and we mitigate the issue with the warranty plant. Sometimes, a new species change is necessary.
The only material that will show stress cracks is concrete. We always say, “there are two types of concrete, concrete that is cracked, or concrete that is going to crack.” Cracking is the nature of concrete. You can do things to prevent cracking or get it to crack where you want it to crack, but it will defy the norm in many situations. Unfortunately, there is no warranty on concrete cracking, as that is one of its downfalls. It is a lower budget material and can have many imperfections, as it is finished by human hands and humans are imperfect. If you want a material free from imperfections, you would need to choose a material that is finished by machines or manufactured for perfect finishes. These materials increase in cost based on those techniques.
We source our materials from both local and out of state vendors. It is part of our job as the contractor to find the best quality and value in material selections. We will work with you to make color and pattern selections that best suit your taste and needs.
Yes, however this will impact our ability to warranty the job.
No. We buy plants in bulk to use on specific projects that are planned on our schedule.
Unfortunately, we do not sell retail. If you like our rocks, come inside, talk to a sales associate, and we can get your pricing on installing the rock materials that you like. If you are just wanting materials delivered, we can refer you to some companies that do that kind of work.
Yes, we can usually tie in to an existing irrigation system. However, a system evaluation will need to be performed, along with any necessary repairs.
Paying your deposit and returning contracts and warranties signed to the office just locks in your job. That means you have secured your place in line in our schedule. We redo our project schedule board each Tuesday and update for rain, delays, and completion of already scheduled jobs. Your salesman, designer, or project manager can give you a range of project completion once we start your job. All jobs are different, so there are many timelines on projects. We have some basic projects that take a day to large backyard renovations that can last 6 months to a year.
The design process is meant to give you the best options based on the feedback you give us at your consultation. However, during the construction phase of your project, you may have an idea that didn’t occur to you earlier. Your option to make changes to the project depends largely on where in the process your project is in and the cost associated with that change. Many changes will require a change in the project cost as well. In those instances, you will be issued a change order that will require your approval to move forward with said change. The difference in price has many factors. Everything from the difference in cost of the new material to the cost of removing an item that has been installed in order to install something different. When and if this occurs, our staff will work with you to help you make the best decision for your project.
During the construction process, you will have access to the daily log used by our team. This will give regular updates regarding the project and keep you up to date with what is going on. You can also contact the office if you have any questions that may not have been addressed prior to start or in the Daily Logs.
Yes, after the completion of the job, you will have a 6 month warranty through Verdant. If something breaks after 6 months, it could possibly still have a manufacturer warranty and we will help you see if that is the case.
At the final walkthrough of your project, we will answer all of your questions in order to make sure that you are prepared to care for your new landscape and or outdoor living space. If this includes irrigation, we will give you an overview demonstration of your timer and give recommendations for best watering practices for your unique landscaping. The great news is that there are many resources that will help you with your timer even after we are gone. Most timers have detailed instructions on the inside of the door and there are video tutorials on the manufacturers website that can be a great help as well.
There can be many reasons for a failing retaining wall. A few big reasons are using products that tend to erode more quickly than others and also, not having a strong foundation by cutting corners for cost purposes. One of our core values is sustainability. We want our product to last at least 20+ years or more.
Yes, we offer maintenance plans.
Maintenance
We have systems in place to make sure the property gets serviced on a regular basis. Our crews are supposed to take pictures of completed tasks and post them in the BuilderTrend app for our in house supervision. We also check after the crews on periodic ride-arounds, especially when crews have a task list to be completed. Our horticulturist on staff is available for field check ups and consultations. There is also a crew leader on each maintenance truck that is the accountable party to make sure the route is completed in a proper and professional manner.
We want everyone to be serviced on their assigned day but there are many factors that can lead to off schedule service. Some are weather, staff shortages, equipment issues, employee problems, and sometimes just poor choices. If we do not service the landscape, we will be there the next available day that these factors above are still not affecting us.
While it would be easy to think that all lawns are created equal, the care and maintenance of your lawn depends largely on what type of grass, or grasses make up your lawn. Here is a list of the common grasses used in our area with the proper mowing height…
- Bermuda – 1.5-2 inches
- Centipede – 2-3 inches
- Augustine – 3-4 inches
- Zoysia – 1.5-2 inches
- Winter Rye (overseed) – 2-2.5 inches.
The mowing height is not the only unique factor to keeping your lawn looking its best. Read on in the next article to find out other best practices and even what type of grass is most suitable for you and your home.
(This is another opportunity to create another post with more in depth care and recommendations)
Glyphosate in bed areas and selective herbicides labeled for turf on lawn areas.
At Verdant Landscape, we encourage proper horticultural practices for shrubs, perennials, and trees. Not everything needs to be trimmed all the time and not every shrub needs a flat top buzz. Some shrubs need just hand pruning. Very few shrubs need hedge trimmers. We spent over a year creating a horticultural manual for our crews to learn these techniques so your investment will get proper care and maintenance. That means that things are trimmed at the appropriate times to encourage proper growth and flowering. This will give your landscape the moxie it needs to provide color, texture, and smells during the proper seasons of your landscape.
The care of your azaleas is based on the time of year and variety of azalea you have in your yard. The best time to hard prune azaleas is toward the end of February or after the last frost of the season. They can then be pruned again within the first six weeks after they bloom. If you have Encore Azaleas (these will give you at least two blooms each year) it is best to prune them to the desired size within 4 weeks of each bloom.
There are multiple reasons that could cause this, including, but not limited to, dryness, extreme heat or frost, fungus, weed control, or pests.
Yes! We recommend our sister company, Palmetto Turf Solutions, for all of your turf application needs. They offer a program that includes 7 total treatments per year. These applications address turf weeds and fertilization.
Not unless you have specific questions or things to show us. We are happy to update you via phone and/or with photos throughout your project.
While it may seem only necessary to service a yard biweekly during the slower growing season, there are reasons that a weekly service is still beneficial. Servicing your landscape weekly allows your technician to stay on top of any issues that can arise such as storm debris, fall leaves, irrigation and drainage problems, etc. You may not need the lawn mowed as often in the slow growing season, but staying on top of all areas of your yard will keep it looking its absolute best all year long. When you become a bi-weekly client, it does not really make it cheaper to maintain your property because the crews will be there longer every other week catching up on tasks that are needed on a weekly basis.
It is best to call our website number for our main office staff. From there, your call can be directed to the personnel that can handle your situation the best, or the main office staff will be able to handle your call on the spot.
First, consider the season. Most plants that go dormant in the cooler months will begin to show signs of dormancy in September/October. A good rule of thumb is the earlier a plant buds out in the Spring, the earlier it will begin its dormancy process. There are many reasons plants can appear sick. We are happy to take a look to help evaluate the problem.
Depending on how much rain, we will either come through and do shrub/bed work, or if there is excessive rainfall causing us to be unable to work, we will get the scheduled work done the following day. If it must be postponed further, we will notify you.
Although not necessary, it is highly recommended that you do so in order to better care for your turf.
Lawn treatments keep the turf healthy and looking good. These treatments are used to prevent weeds, pests, and diseases from taking over the lawn by killing off the turf
Pricing
There are so many different things that go into pricing a job and task to complete different landscape projects. It really depends on the size and the scope of the project, accessibility, ease of access, hardscapes, and softscapes. Please refer to the job example and pricing page for examples. These prices are just starting points and each job is individual in nature and we cannot be bound to any of these prices based on what we have shown until an individual estimate has been given for your specific project in the form of a BuilderTrend proposal that you can approve, deny, or install in phases.
You can pay by cash, check, or bank transfer online. There is a credit card option, but there is a 3.5% processing fee, so we usually steer people away from that option.
It entices serious clients and reduces cancellations and no shows.
Typically, your contract will include a specific allotment for hauling away debris from your project. If you make changes to the scope of work that result in additional debris that needs to be removed, there could be additional charges.
We do not encourage a daily rate but sometimes a job warrants this kind of job costing. Maintenance rates and construction rates are different. Any time we are doing a maintenance project you are basically purchasing hours of labor or how much time you want us to spend on your property. Our hourly rate for maintenance is $55 per man hour and typically the crews are 2-3 men. This hourly rate counts on drive time to the project too or any time we are preparing to complete this project. For example, if you want us to bring pinestraw, we need to purchase it from a vendor and bring it to your property. This would be billable time on the project. The construction rates are $85 per man hour and typically crews are 3 men. Sometimes, 4 men if the project is big. The same hourly rate is applied for drive time or job set up in the morning. The crews have to be paid the time they clock in, per the law, and if they are working on your project by loading materials to bring with them, then that is billable time. On a day rate or hourly job, you also would have equipment time you need to factor in. A DitchWitch hourly rate is $45 an hour, Skid Steer is $65 an hour, and Excavator is $85 an hour. This is additional to your man hour rate. This covers fuel, insurance, and equipment wear and tear. The operator time is in your man hour rate.
This is a great question. I would say we give great value. Our construction practices are built on years of sustainability and experience. One of our core values is sustainability. We want our projects to look as good as the day they were installed, 20-25 years after install. In order to do this, we use many construction practices that many landscaping companies don’t use or even know. Just a few examples are proper concrete footings with vertical and horizontal rebar. Waterproofing and drainage of all walls including masonry and segmented retaining walls. Proper planting techniques which includes amending soils and providing food for plants. We also follow all state and federal regulations on the way we operate our business in a sustainable way. That means we pay our people living wages so they can support their families and no one is paid cash. We pay workers compensation for all of the employees. We have significant insurance and bonding for all projects. We have overhead costs on the management side that allows us to manage projects and our business in a sustainable way. We have all business licenses needed to perform work in the different areas. All these practices and some not listed contribute to cost that some landscape design build companies do not have or even intend to provide.
For jobs under $10,000, there is a 50% deposit and a 50% final payment after the completion of the job. For jobs between $10,000 and $50,000, there is a 30% deposit, followed by a 69% draw during a specified part of the job that is dictated in the contract, then a 1% final payment after completion of the job. For jobs above $50,000, there is a 30% deposit, followed by a 35% draw during a specified part of the job that is dictated in the contract, then a 34% draw at a different stage of the job dictated in the contract, and a final 1% final payment after completion of the job.
No, we do not finance projects for clients. However, we do have some partners we can set you up with to help with financing. One is Lightstream. There are many other financing companies including: SoFi, RenoFi, and Ally. Do not let financing keep you from your next project, as we can help you through this process.
A big project can be intimidating. Especially the possibility of unforeseen costs and expenses. The cost of your project has many factors such as the type of work itself, the type of materials used, and any changes you may want to make in the process. After your consultation, if you choose, our Landscape Architect will create a design that they feel best fits your wants and needs to create an amazing outdoor space for you and your family to enjoy. Once you have signed off on a final design, we will be able to assemble a full quote based on the option you select. While it would be ideal if that cost was the final price, everyone should have the expectation that unforeseen expenses will arise (extra dumpster costs, irrigation difficulties, and additional needed drainage to name a few). We typically recommend having an additional 10% of your project cost in reserve to cover these types of costs. We will always do everything in our power to avoid such costs, but will also make recommendations that we feel are necessary to complete your project in the best, most sustainable way. Afterall, our core values at Verdant Landscape are Family, Sustainability, Creativity and Moxie.
Stages are more expensive due to material cost fluctuations, increased commute time, and logistics to the project site.
As with any construction project, there is a chance that unforeseen expenses could arise. There are many reasons that this could happen, but our team will do everything we can to keep additional expenses to a minimum. We recommend that you keep additional funds equal to 10% of your project cost set aside just in case.
We don’t ask for this retainer until the project is completed. This does not include warranty work. We used to leave 10% as the final retainer, but we had a couple clients that did not pay the final 10% because of a spot in the grass or because of 1 dead plant. These items are covered in the warranty, but the warranty starts once the project has been paid in full. To make this easier and for us to be a sustainable company, we have a 1% retainer. Being a small business, not getting paid 10% of a project can really hurt, as we have to pay our employees, subcontractors, and vendors.
We can offer you some general overviews of your options within a budget range – see our website for examples.
There are many types of outdoor kitchens and the sizes of these amenities. Lots of things can make up the cost of an outdoor kitchen. The types of appliances, types of materials, countertops, and utilities can make outdoor kitchens range in prices from $8,500.00-$35,000. Please see pricing pages for starting prices and outdoor kitchen examples.