New Jobsite by the Ocean

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Here are a few more pics of our gear, 2520 with Turfs as she spends her time moving soil, me going into the ditch with the 17D, can get the heart going first thing in the morning, the two soils we use one is turf dressing the other organic top soil, these properties (9) are in a gated community that we picked up from another company, we will be there until the snow flies fixing damage done by grubs, roundup pro, wrong application of various things to the lawns, very poor quality mowing and the list goes on, we generally would not have this much gear at one location as it’s overkill BUT, this is a massive contract and a long term deal as we signed a five year contract for total property care. Our dump trailer which we use to haul stumps and stuff away that is not needed, this ditch you see we are covering, installing 12” pile and covering to grade.....major list. Anyhow the girls told me first thing this morning they slept well by the Ocean and they were ready to get to work, we had to quit by two due to rain, man the 2520 tractor with the landscape rake and a top link cylinder is the answer to spreading turf dressing, I did 44 yards by myself, have about 9 acres to do. A crew is there now spraying Nemadoes to take care of the grub and other insects killing the root system, as we lift out old sod the ground is actually white with them, this is the worst I have seen. One picture shows the condition of most of the lawns and these folks were paying big, big bucks, this is a common field for all the residents to use, about 1.5 acres, all topped with new top soil and sod, two tractor trailer loads of sod and we have Organic Top soil being dumped every 1.5 hours as that's how long it takes us to spread, level and roll 18 Yards. There is a reason I have this much gear there, this area is super rich and mainly private communities, we have now picked up two, the other one is in bad shape and they have to vote on my proposal but I was told it was a done deal. I figure go over kill, put 8 or 10 guys there with gear that will open eyes of people driving by and it's working perfect, we have spoke with at least 15 people in the past two days since we arrived. I had Deere out today as we will add another X749 loaded with all the options, not sure if you guys have driven a tractor with their comfort seat OMG what a difference, you can go over rough terrain and hardly feel a bump.

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Andy
Halifax, Nova Scotia

[Steve]

Lawn care business tips

Andy, I always love seeing your pictures and updates. Could you give us a brief description of what is going on in each of the photos? There is so much happening there, it's nice to see a pic and then read what is going on in that pic at that moment I'd love to see some of the pics of the lawn and the grub issue!

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[picframer]

Originally Posted by Steve

Andy,

I always love seeing your pictures and updates.

Could you give us a brief description of what is going on in each of the photos? There is so much happening there, it's nice to see a pic and then read what is going on in that pic at that moment

I'd love to see some of the pics of the lawn and the grub issue!

Thanks Steve,

Here are pics as requested:

This is the first of nine homes, beingthe president of the association we are doing his place first:

He had moss in the pavers so the other company sprayed something on the moss and it killed all the grass along the walk way and the moss was as green as could be, I went in with Moss Buster which will not harm the grass and sprayed, it was dead the next day. We leave it for a week then pressure wash and fill with the proper sand which will not let moss or any weed grow.

Next to the walk he had some weeds, these guys were spraying Roundup Pro which is not legal here in Nova Scotia, they buy it on the net and have it shipped in, the law suit this company is facing will be hundred of thousands of dollars, not only by the home owners as our bill is coming in at fifty grand but they call in the Dept Of Environment, they are on the Ocean for heavens sake and this other lawn care company is very large.

Next they noticed animal and bird activity on their lawns about two weeks ago, they called their company and they came in and sprayed something, the activity became even greater, that is when the President of this Association was driving by and saw our gear at the private community next to them, we had a one hour chat and I went over, I gave him an on the spot quote to kill the grub, he accepted and I had Nematodes flown in, then we talked about the lawn conditions and went home to home, long story short we ended up back at his house with every home owner that evening and from my notes I went house to house on what the issues were and how our company would handle it, I knew the cost question would come up and I presented a written proposal which I wrote on the laptop after I left and printed copies in the truck, they asked me about on going yard care and total property management, I was ready and handed out a five year contract, they asked if I could leave for half an hour while they discussed and voted, I did, came back and everything was signed, we had a drink together and talked about other things and I went home around 10.

This is just the beginning, I want this entire area which is referred to as Glen Haven, it is one of the richest areas I know of, easy access for me, 30 min from my home outside the city so no traffic, easy for staff to get to, it is simply ideal. In two weeks we have eighty thousand in work just from this community and I have a meeting with the President of the Association three lots down tomorrow morning at 8, he doesn't know it but I have already been there and have the proposals all ready for him, if we get that one it will make four gated groups, all within walking distance of each other, friggin ideal for mowing and spraying and everything else that goes with it.

The first set of images are just showing the gear we would use.

The excavator removes the sod, we have a sod lifter however there are so many rocks here and they want them removed, some areas receive turf dressing but not many, most of this community has to be topped with Organic soil, levelled then sod laid, I have 30 people coming Monday from my sons University, it's a Holiday here and what a chance to show off, I have company shirts for everyone, it will be like a home improvement show as I will bring in three more tractors with loaders, if they think the gear is amazing now for what is there, wait until Monday, it will be the talk of the area, no question and Deere is lending me some additional gear which we will use, I have 12 experienced operators, the others will do the grunt work but with what we have, that is laying the sod, tractors with attachments do all the work.

Hope that answers your questions, this is the time of the year I wanted things to slow down so I could work in the shop, that is not going to happen until the snow flies and even then we can still run the excavators and fix the ditches, cut and chip trees etc.

[justin_time]

I am moving to Halifax

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Now here is what is under the sod, grubs are circled, I frigged up on the image of a grub as it was raining and there must have been water on the lens so it's a bit blurry.

[picframer]

Originally Posted by justin_time

I am moving to Halifax

Come on down......I know from my banking days how to handle these people, play into their ego, they are all worth over a million bucks each to be able to live in this area, next is the professional look and I mean everything from the gear to the way staff are dressed, look and talk with the clients, they have to know their stuff and mine do, I take the time to teach them, being super proactive they asked me while having a drink how the hell I did a proposal so fast, so I took them out to the truck and showed them, the king part of the cab is a mobile office, laptop, software I wrote and wireless printer, company letterhead and folders I had made, took me about 45 min to have everything ready that afternoon. I think I finally have the process and gear nailed, products are working perfect and I have a good group of staff that I can count on, some my age, some older looking for part time work and willing to work hard.

Now when you place $200,000 worth of gear and start with the Presidents place as it can be seen very clearly from the main road that every community within this area has to drive on and I made damn sure every piece of gear was in plane sight, the word travels like wild fire, who is this new company in our area and what are they all about and what are they doing....then it turns out they have the same issues, it really is exciting.

The other company doesn't wash their gear, ours looks like showroom after every job, the didn't keep sharp blades, staff went around shirtless which drives these people around the bend, their uniforms are a joke as is their gear and vehicles.

I will wipe this other company right out of this area, I decided last evening it was my goal for next year and when I really focus and want something, I generally make it happen.

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This is a pic of my son Seth, I was into the University to pay the guys and they were in the weight room so I snapped a pic........and this is my best friend Maya, she is a Portugese Water Dog, man the best dog I have ever had and it took a year of waiting to get her.

Anyhow Seth runs the University group, picks the staff, we use Google Docs to track projects which he has access to, he can see how many staff are required at a site and how many I have from my group, he then will find the right people to get the job done and we havn't had a problem yet.

I leave my 2010 TDI Jetta at the University for him to drive and their is one other student that drives on days Seth can't, then he is in with a group of fairly rich kids and when they show up with the vehicles, OMG the money sitting there, all this turns heads and it works.....at least for me

[picframer]

Originally Posted by picframer

This is a pic of my son Seth

Forgot, The guy in the red shirt is Brett, he is here from Ontario studying Law, his dad owns an excavation company and seth hired him on the spot, what an operator he is and he is amazing with clients. He spent three evenings with me going over everything we offer and do, he is one of these kids that just has to know so we ate lots of chicken wings and he is fully up to speed and is able to work for me three days a week, he has differnt days off than my son so he is also allowed to drive the Jetta and they all scope potential employees......

[Steve]

That is wild! You know with all those people coming to help you on the site and all that equipment, it might make for a perfect opportunity to take a group shot. Maybe line up the equipment and the staff. This could make for a great holiday card?

[picframer]

Originally Posted by Steve

That is wild! You know with all those people coming to help you on the site and all that equipment, it might make for a perfect opportunity to take a group shot. Maybe line up the equipment and the staff. This could make for a great holiday card?

Very good idea and I have a friend that owes me that I do picture framing for, just sent him an email asking him to do the shots so I can be in them to and he is a professional when it comes to taking pics....I am not

Son made a good point, I should have touques as the mornings are pretty cool, never thought of that but I went to Deere and bought all they had in John Deere and Stihl....don;t have near enough.

Now if this nice weather just holds.....

Meeting went well today, I now have four communities, we will have to do two of them in the spring as I would guess we have four weeks until snowfall if that, then I am pretty much shut down, it's a drag as I have so many contracts and picked up 5 more conformations to rebuild driveways last evening and today, just need more gear but not this year and I am not interested in renting and training, we will do what we can do and leave it at that, it's honestly too late in the season to even be laying sod but we will and I do inform the clients.

Things are going strong and way ahead of plan!