Before you hire a landscape company for a large property: the questions that matter

The questions that separate a landscape company from a mowing crew

Before you hire anyone for a large property, ask five things: who designs, builds and maintains the landscape and whether any of it is subcontracted; who your single point of contact is and how often they are on site; who does the tree work and whether they are ISA Certified Arborists; whether irrigation work is done by a state-licensed irrigator; and which properties they designed years ago and still maintain today. The answers, and how easily a company can back them up, tell you more than any brochure.

At Southern Botanical we hear from many owners who hired on price or personality and ended up managing three or four vendors who never talk to each other. This guide is the list we would use if we were on the other side of the table, with the reasons behind each question and how to check what you are told.

Who designs it, who builds it and who keeps it

Start here, because it decides almost everything else. A company that draws a design and hands it to a subcontractor to build, then leaves maintenance to whoever you hire next, has no reason to care whether the planting suits the irrigation or whether the beds can be maintained at the level the design assumes. When design, construction and maintenance sit with one organization, the people drawing the plan know they will be the ones living with it.

Ask directly: are your designers on staff, are your construction crews your own employees, and does the same company maintain the result? Ask whether any trades are subcontracted, such as masonry, electrical or irrigation, and who supervises them. There is nothing wrong with a specialist subcontractor, but you should know who is accountable when something goes wrong.

At our company, residential design-build is handled by in-house designers and crews, and many clients then move onto a 52-week maintenance plan so the finished landscape is kept by the people who built it. Whoever you hire, get the same clarity.

Who will I actually talk to, and how often will they be here?

On a large property the single biggest frustration is not knowing who to call. Ask who your day-to-day contact will be, whether that person will walk the property in person and how often, and how you reach them. A sales representative who disappears after the contract is signed is not a contact.

Ask what reporting looks like. Will you hear what was done this week, what is scheduled next and what is coming up that might affect your budget? Can you text a photo of a broken sprinkler head and expect a response? Our maintenance clients each have a dedicated account manager who is on site weekly, can be reached by text, call or email, and sends updates on completed, scheduled and forecasted work in relation to budget and priorities. That is the kind of answer to listen for.

• Who is my named contact after the contract is signed?
• How often will that person be on the property?
• How do I reach them, and how fast do they usually respond?
• What updates will I receive, and how often?

Questions about your trees, and how to verify the answers

Mature trees are usually the most valuable living things on an estate lot and the slowest to replace, so ask who will prune them, treat them and judge whether they are safe. The International Society of Arboriculture suggests checking for an ISA arborist credential, checking membership in groups such as ISA or the Tree Care Industry Association, asking for proof of insurance and calling the insurer, and getting the work in writing. It also warns against people who go door to door offering bargains.

You do not have to take anyone's word for a credential. ISA offers a free tool on its consumer site, TreesAreGood.org, to verify whether an arborist holds an ISA credential. Our tree care is performed by ISA Certified Arborists, including Board Certified Master Arborists and Oak Wilt Qualified Arborists, and the company holds TCIA accreditation. If a company says its crews are certified, ask for names you can look up. For a sense of what a good arborist should notice on your property, see signs a mature tree is in trouble.

Questions about water: irrigation licensing and drainage

Irrigation and drainage decide whether everything else survives a Texas summer, so ask how the company handles both. In Texas, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality requires a license for people who design, install, repair or connect irrigation systems. Its homeowner guide advises ignoring ads for irrigation services that do not include the irrigator's license number, making sure bids, invoices and warranties show the irrigator's name and license number, and asking for a copy of the irrigation design before a new system goes in. It also notes that a license holder must be on site during any installation or repair.

On drainage, ask what the company will do about standing water or water running toward the house, and how that work is shown on the plan. A vague line item for drainage is not enough. If you want to understand which sprinkler fixes are safe to do yourself and which belong to a licensed professional, read our guide to DIY sprinkler repairs.

• Is your irrigation work done by a TCEQ-licensed irrigator, and what is the license number?
• Will I get a copy of the irrigation design and the final as-installed plan?
• How do you adjust watering through the seasons and under local watering rules?
• What exactly will you build to fix drainage, and where?

Red flags worth walking away from

Some warning signs are worth acting on even when the price looks attractive. The TCEQ guide makes the point that cheap irrigation quotes are not always better, because unlicensed work can mean the wrong equipment, dry areas, runoff and higher maintenance costs over time. The same logic applies across the landscape.

• A proposal with no drawings, no plant sizes and no description of drainage or irrigation work.
• No license number on irrigation bids or vehicles.
• Tree work offered by someone who knocked on the door after a storm.
• No written contract, or pressure to sign the same day.
• No properties they can show you that they installed years ago and still maintain.
• A price far below every other bid with no clear explanation of what was left out.

Questions about the contract, the schedule and the guarantee

Once you are close to choosing, move from the company to the paperwork. A written scope protects both sides: it says what will be built or maintained, to what standard and on what schedule, and it gives you something concrete to point to if expectations drift. The ISA's advice for tree work applies to the whole landscape: get it in writing, read it carefully and ask questions before you sign.

Ask how the company handles surprises. Digging on an established lot often turns up old irrigation lines, buried debris or roots where nobody expected them, and you want to know in advance how changes are priced and approved. For maintenance, ask what is included every week and what is billed separately, such as seasonal displays, deep root fertilization or tree work, so the first invoice holds no surprises.

• What exactly is included, and what is billed as an extra?
• How are changes found during construction priced and approved?
• What does your guarantee cover, and for how long, in writing?
• How do you respond after a severe storm, and how quickly?

How to check what a company tells you

Ask to see properties near you that the company designed and still maintains, ideally ones installed several years ago. Anyone can make a landscape look good on installation day; the real test is how it looks after five summers. Our design-build page notes that we can connect prospective clients with past clients and arrange property tours, and you should expect that kind of openness from any firm working at this level.

Read reviews for patterns rather than single comments, especially reviews that mention specific people, communication and follow-through. Look up the credentials you were told about. And compare proposals on scope, not just totals; we walk through how to do that in what drives the cost of a landscape project.

Finally, pay attention to the questions they ask you. A company that asks how you use the property, what has failed before, what your budget is and how much detail you expect week to week is thinking about the long term. One that only asks for the square footage is thinking about the job.

What a good first meeting should feel like

A first meeting should leave you with a clearer picture of your own property, whether or not you hire that company. Expect the person to walk the whole lot, look at the trees, the water and the soil, ask about your plans and your budget, and tell you plainly what they see, including problems you did not ask about. If the only thing you learn is a price, keep looking.

Our process starts with a free consultation: a local expert contacts you within 24 hours to schedule a 30-minute site visit, and a detailed proposal follows with no obligation. Bring your list of questions from this guide, and ask us every one of them. Most of our residential clients are in the Park Cities, Preston Hollow and the suburbs north of Dallas. If you are still deciding whether your property needs better care or a full redesign, our guide to why estate landscapes decline is a good place to start.

Questions people ask me