Are you a landscaper wanting to prove yourself? Perhaps you’re even considering starting your landscaping business with the knowledge and skills you’ve accumulated over the years. For a better chance of success, you need to become the best of the best. Even if you’ve been in the landscaping business for many years, the chances are there are some areas that you can polish up! Read on to learn how to improve your landscaping skills.
Table of Contents
Use the Right Tools and Equipment
As a landscaper, you’ll know that your equipment can determine the outcome of a project. If you’re laying down decking for a client, for example, the type of decking you use will determine whether or not the client will end up happy! Even with excellent skills, you can’t make up for decking that doesn’t stand the test of time. So, always look for the best materials if you want to improve your skills. You can find decking online for both residential and commercial landscaping projects, along with all the other necessary tools. Below are some of the basics you will need. Remember – quality makes a difference.
- Lawnmower
- Shovels
- Hedge trimmer
- Chainsaw
- Wheelbarrow
- Garden fork
- Pruning shears
- Rake
Listen to the Client
Every landscaping project is unique. While your skills will transfer from project to project, you still need to listen carefully to your clients to ensure you provide what they ask for. Doing so will build your skills up more and more over time, as you’ll gain the necessary experience for different types of jobs. For example, for one client, you might learn how to precisely trim a hedge so that not a single branch is out of line. For another, you may discover the best grouting technique.
Improve Your Plant Knowledge
If you want to be better than other landscapers, consider sprucing up your knowledge of plants – particularly native plants. It will give you a real edge. By knowing the different trees and plants in your client’s gardens, what pests to avoid, plant disease signs, and what plants grow best together, your gardening results will be much improved. Plus, having this knowledge naturally means more freedom to create the garden of your client’s dreams.
Take Your Time
Many landscapers try to rush jobs, but this can make the result less than perfect. It’s all about managing a balancing act by not wasting time but not rushing, either. If you have to choose one, always take your time, as your skills will improve when you slow down and acknowledge the task at hand a little more closely. Plus, it’s better to provide a good result than it is a fast job! Remember, your skills will improve over time, so even if you’re slow now, you will speed up as time goes on.
Being a landscaper often means developing your skills over time. Of course, you won’t be the best in the business during your first couple of years, but the more projects you take on, the better you will become. Just remember to slow down, spruce up your knowledge of plants, and always use the best equipment you can get your hands on. Also, always listen to the client carefully – they know what they want, so don’t assume you know better!