Among the greatest nemeses of a lush lawn is thatch, a layer of dead, organic debris that develops between the blades of grass and the soil surface. While contractors commonly turn to power raking to tackle thatch, Pinellas Park, Fla.-based York Landscape takes the high road with its verticutting service, removing thatch and excessive top growth from turf using a... read more
A decade ago Chris Lee went out on a limb when he decided to bring all tree services in-house for EarthWorks, located in Lillian, Texas. Now, garnering $75,000 in annual revenue from the add-on, the president of the $13 million company has no further reservations. Plus, the stump grinding facet of the service is one of EarthWorks’ most-desired services. Clients value... read more
When talking about horticulture, Tom Strangfeld is a natural at addressing crowds. The independent landscape designer and horticulturist has lectured at Boston’s Arnold Arboretum and appeared on “This Old House,” to pick a few bullet points from his resume. But a few years ago he got the urge to teach in a more intimate setting to give people more individual... read more
Being based in Blasdell, N.Y., Mike Pace could have relied on snow plowing to make up for lost revenue in the off-season. But the owner and president of Pace Landscaping & Ice Rinks chose to veer from the usual to build backyard ice rinks instead. As a former hockey player, it was the perfect fit for Pace’s winter business. Of... read more
McHale Landscape Design, based in Upper Marlboro, Md., promotes itself as a “property management” company. As such, its crews handle a slew of services for clients in a “one-stop shop” effort—everything from gutter cleaning to fall annual installations and exterior holiday lights for clients throughout Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C. A few years ago, one of McHale’s exterior holiday displays... read more
Virginia-based J.W. Townsend specializes in wildflower meadows. In its first year of installing wildflower meadows, J.W. Townsend, a Charlottesville, Va.-based landscape company, only did one. But the interest has grown dramatically since that first meadow installation in 1998. In fact, the service has increased by 50 percent each year. This past year alone the company installed 16 meadows. Ed Yates,... read more
