Flipping Gardeners, a dilemma needing some ideas.

The two guys who came to dig over gave me a proper reciept each time and I paid by cheque.

Right here we go. Do you think I can send this as it is. (with the proper names.)
Dear Incababilty Brown
I have been trying to use your services over the last few months and you have twice provided two men for two hours who did a good job of clearing out a lot of old shrubs.

From the start I mentioned I wanted you to do some work to put timber edging on the borders of my flower bed to keep soil in place and make everything easier to manage. It was suggested that the border edging should wait until the weather improved.

I texted you on 5/5/16 and asked if you could now visit to look at the work I want doing and give me a quotation.

10/5/16 Your reply. "I will have to come and price it up".

I suggested after 5pm Wednesday 11th and your reply was "After 5 Wednesday would be great." You made no contact then.

You contacted me on Thursday 12th asking for my address. I texted you that on 12/05/16.

No more contact from you and I had to text you again on 17/5/16.

Your reply! " Yes course we are in BLANK doing maintenance tomorrow I will pop in in the morning to see you at 9am."

No show again that morning and I texted you saying I would be in after pm on Wednesday 18th.

I am getting a little annoyed by this. Do you want to do this work or not? if you can't do it please be honest and make it clear. At present I feel my time is being wasted.
You run a small business that appears successful. I quote this from your website page.
No job is too big or too small and the team pride themselves on being “Small enough to care – big enough to cope” – call them today to discuss your gardening needs.

What I feel is that by not making proper contact with your customers and not keeping to agreed appointment times your company appears unreliable which is clearly not good for your business reputation. Your website has room for reviews of work done. To be honest because of these failures to keep appointments I would find it difficult to make any recommendations of your services at the moment.

I will try once more to offer you this border edging work. I really want it done at some suitable time before winter.
So please will you contact me to let me know if you wish to do this work or not so I can make other arrangements.

Thank you

Good letter Nelliemoser. It's absolutely infuriating when people make an arrangement and then fail to stick to it - especially when they give themselves such glowing testimonials.

My gardener is coming next week and will be putting the back garden in order, moving storage around, sorting the bins out and putting up my new swing seat. He is a treasure and one I am going to keep hold of if he helps me out like this, he is worth his weight in gold. I have nagged my DS to do the work, for money but he wont so I will pay my new friend instead. Sorted.

Just a follow up to my letter to Incapability Brown on Friday 20th of May. After I sent my stroppy letter on 23/5/16, I had a post it note stuffed through the door. This post it note said "I have already priced the job it will be £65 pounds."

Well I knew straight away by the price this was not my job he was talking about.

25th of May I struck lucky. The neighbours had a local fencing company van across the road. It said on the van timber and much more. I collared the man when he came out to his van and he came round to look at the garden and price it up. I did not think about them doing such stuff but it's part of their business. A bit more hopeful now.

So after he got my stroppy email Incapability B texted to say he would be around on bank holiday Monday to measure up. Well I thought this could leave me with a difficulty about who to choose but Incapability yet again failed to appear.

This morning I had the full quotation details and rang the company to confirm that I wanted them to do the job. Just a few minutes later I had a text from Inacapabilty to say he would be along tomorrow, Wednesday to price up.
I was delighted to tell him as politely as possible he had missed the boat.

If you run a buisness take note on how not to do it. If when this work is done I will post a picture.

Hi Nelliemoser
I've worked in gardening/horticulture for many years and have found that knowledge of 'gardeners' beyond basic maintenance is very rare. The important thing to look for is good communication, enthusiasm, someone who will listen and learn and someone who you feel comfortable with. Lack of knowledge can always be overcome with a 2 way discussion - you know your plants and what you would like done with them. Most true gardeners will enjoy the interaction [don't waste too much of your money chatting though]. If you meet a 'know it all gardener', steer clear. Re missed appointments, gardeners are not great at time keeping but it's worth giving a person a second chance but no more. Above all trust your instincts; remember the gardener is working for you in your garden.

Hope this helps.

The gardener did come, but was very aggresive in his manner. His daughter and business partner had had an accident in a garden and had broken her arm. Hence an operation and time off work. It made the gardener very angry and he did say that if there was another accident he would sue the people involved!

He did not put together the storage unit I had bought due to no instructions but it's one that just clips together. I left it, I didn't want to antagonise an already angry man. He was supposed to be coming this last week to cut the front. I told him not to bother. I wanted my son to do it but that's not got done. The next door neighbour's son is home alone all week and will probably appreciate some extra money so I might ask him to do it this weekend. It would only take him ten minutes. So, on the lookout for a new gardener now, one that is not angry and threatening to sue!

Hi RubyLady
The gardener sounds a right pain; good decision not to use him. Where in the country do you live?

I'm in Bolton, near Manchester.

Gardenergrandad Welcome if you are new on here.
What I really want now when the bordering is done is some reliable muscle who will listen to what I am asking and do it as advised. And do the heavier stuff about once a month.

I have a great idea. You could be GNs own gardening expert.

What do you do about what I think are Flea Beetles which have eaten holes in my clematis and many other things. They don't look like slug holes. Or quite like vine weevil bites.

Look what is happening in my garden right now. Three knights in shining armour, some sleepers and big saw.
These guys have not stopped working. I only found them because my neighbour ordered some fencing from them. It is looking so much better already.

I haven't had a gardener, but have been very happy with tradesmen I got from checkatrade. I took a while to read feedback before contacting anyone. Good luck!

Checkatrade and streetlife are both useful but I am finding it a nightmare trying to get tradesmen to quote -currently my DD in London needs a fence putting in and I'm doing the 'research'and contacting as she is at work all day.I have so far contacted-answerphone messages and texts -8 companies and three have got back to me .I wouldnt mind if they just said 'sorry overwhelmed with work'.Its a 'nice'job too.No fence to take out, easy access
Same when I was trying to get our own drive done
Come another recession and I suspect some of these people will wish they had bern more customer-friendly ..