What Is the Job of a Landscape Contractor?

Planning

• A landscape contractor meets with home or business owners to discuss ideas for the landscape design and makes suggestions for features and plants that thrive best in the area. Next, he creates plans to submit to the customer for approval. He calculates the equipment and materials needed and the amount of work required, including grading the landscape, installation of plumbing, introduction of topsoil, and the amount of hard and softscaping features required. He uses these calculations to make an estimate of the project cost and submits a bid to the potential customer.

Gathering Materials

• After securing a contract, the contractor must make arrangements to provide all the supplies needed for a landscaping job. In some cases, the customer will provide plants and materials, but these are usually figured into the contractor's bid. She will need to gather all of the plants needed as well as other materials like soil, mulch, stone, lumber and water features. The contractor may own her own nursery to generate her own supply; otherwise, she must maintain a relationship with local nurseries and landscape supply companies. She then must ensure that all the necessary equipment is available at the job site. This might include sub-contracting heavy equipment operators, or providing digging tools, lawn mowers, cement mixers or fertilizer spreaders.

Execution

• The contractor is responsible for ensuring that a landscape plan is executed according to the contract made with the customer. The contractor might never actually work on the landscaping project himself, but must delegate responsibilities to his crew to ensure the task is completed. The job may be as simple as planting a few plants or as complex as regrading the entire site and installing plumbing for intricate water features. The contractor must inspect the work periodically and coordinate adjustments to the plan as needed. He communicates with the customer throughout the job to address any concerns and provide information about changes to the plan and schedule. When the job is completed, he inspects the work again and confers with the customer for approval. He may also contract with the customer for regular maintenance of the landscape going forward.

Business Growth

• A major part of the landscape contractor's job is developing her business so that she always has work. One of the easiest ways is by word of mouth from previous customers to friends and colleagues. Providing excellent results ensures customer satisfaction and increases the chances of a good recommendation. She can also attend landscaping expositions to stay current with trends and products in the industry.