It is a topic that divides opinion within the landscape profession.
Is it right to work in a customer's garden over a holiday weekend?
Let's start with a few facts. Spring is the busiest time of year for gardeners and landscapers.
Gardens are just awakening from their winter slumber, grass is growing at a pace....weeds are too.
For a professional gardener, taking time off during this busy period is not always an option. Miss a scheduled visit and it's hard, not only to get a garden back into shape but also to get schedules back on track. The physical stress is only equalled by the mental turmoil of the potential for a disrupted schedule.
Many clients will be happy to see their gardener arrive and carry out the necessary maintenance as usual. For a client, having a tidy garden is part of why they employ a professional in the first place. During a holiday weekend a client may also be entertaining and they want their garden to be right.
Dust and noise
Of course there's always the potential for conflict if neighbours are in close proximity. A noisy stone cutter, or chainsaw, screeching early in the morning might be acceptable if you're the one having the work done but it might not be acceptable if you're next door and wanting a lie in. There's also dust to consider. Stone cutters should be fitted with a dampening device, however they are often ignored or are removed. Dust easily migrates over a fence, to settle wherever and whenever it will.
Contractor and client perspective
There is obviously more than one aspect to consider. As a client, do I ask my contractor to skip a visit and risk upsetting their schedule - not to mention missing my slot and having to look at an untidy garden. Do I pay more for the contractor to catch up should I request them not to come?
As a client, should I consider my neighbours too? It might be alright for me to endure a little bit of noise and dust but I'm the one (or at least my garden is) benefitting from the disruption. My neighbours however might just want to relax and enjoy their own garden. It is certainly a fine line between what's acceptable and what's not.
As a contractor there's often no choice but to work in order to keep on top of the schedules. Being self-employed comes without the luxury of having someone else picking up the cost - not to mention the stress - of having time off.
Let's say a scheduled fortnightly grass cut falls on Good Friday. If a lawn doesn't get mown then there's the potential for a month to pass before the next scheduled visit. And as it's spring time, grass will be growing at its fastest rate of the season.
As a contractor you'll struggle to fit in this job as an extra and as a client, would you want to pay more to your contractor to enable them to catch up?
As you can see...there's no simple solution and a lot to consider.
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