The Apprentice Ed’s Garden Operator Style

Ed’s Garden Operators’ Canine Helpers

This is a really busy time of year for an Ed’s Garden Operator. With the milder weather we’ve been having, the grass is still growing.  This means that  there is still mowing to be done. However, the challenges of Autumn (lots of clearing leaves!) and getting all our lovely customers’ gardens in shape for the winter ahead are there too.

We’re not complaining though.  We love it.  Especially when the weather is kind, with bright, crisp Autumn days.

With limited daylight hours, our Garden Operators can do with a bit of help to get on top of their workloads. Indeed, some of their own canine apprentices have been providing an extra set of paws to get the job done.

As everyone knows, we love reviewing performance at Ed’s so we just had to ask our guys how the new recruits are measuring up…

Baloo’s Review!

This is Baloo, a lovely and loyal German Shepherd. She has recently started helping Bob, our Garden Operator in Horsham, to deliver his gardening services.

Bob says, “Well, I’m probably a little bit biased as I’m very fond of Baloo. However,  she is really getting to grips with the challenges of being a sidekick . Nothing is too much trouble for her and she is very versatile in helping out with whatever I need.  She is just great at multi-tasking.”

“Whether it be guarding the van or helping me uproot a somewhat stubborn tree, she is on it. Her focus is amazing and even a rogue squirrel in a garden won’t distract her from the task in hand.  However,   I can see it takes every ounce of her willpower to ignore them!  What can I say apart from I’m really lucky to have her on board.  If she can keep her current level of motivation, she will go very far indeed!”

Monty’s moment of truth!

Another recent recruit is a rather dashing Hungarian Vizsla called Monty. He  lives with Stuart, our Ed’s Garden Operator in rural Norfolk.  Clearly a handsome and delightful chap but we asked Stuart if he could sum up how Monty is cutting the mustard.

Looking thoughtful, Stuart says “ Well, it all started off brilliantly in the summer when Monty was very keen to spring out of bed and get to work. Sadly, since the cooler days have kicked in, it has all changed. Monty does a quick weather check before he decides whether he is going to grace us with his company or just stay at home snuggling beside the Aga. It really isn’t good enough.”

“Monty is still a very young fellow but I feel that his current commitment level could be better. I am out in all weathers but Monty…well, he just doesn’t seem to be made of the same stuff.  In all honesty,  he seems to be a bit of a fair weather gardener.”

“If only he could get his work ethic right, he would go far in this business.  His  interpersonal skills are second to none and everyone who meets him tends to think he is wonderful. It’s not fair really. I toil away, day in, day out, without as much as a grumble and yet Monty is always the one who wins the popularity vote hands down with my customers!”

 

Dave’s Stars and Stripes

Dave Laing Lawn Mowing Expert Andover

Dave Laing joined Ed’s Garden Services earlier this year  as our  Garden Operator in Andover.

Before joining Ed’s, Dave had wanted to run a Garden Operator business for quite some time. He loves being physically active and enjoys both gardening and meeting people. A perfect fit for him!

Dave’s friendly approach, hard work and high standards are paying off and he already has a number of regular customers who are very appreciative of his work.

Dave has been getting a number excellent five star customer reviews. Here’s what Dave has to say about that:-

“ I genuinely love getting great reviews. I know that I try hard to please my customers and pride myself in doing the best job that I possibly can. Whether it’s lawns, hedges, big garden clearances or autumn leaf clearing, I try to make my gardens look their best. When I’ve finished a garden visit, I always hope my customer is as satisfied with it as I am. Over the summer and autumn, I’ve particularly enjoyed perfecting my lawn stripes.”

This is one of Dave’s gardens…

“When I get appreciative reviews, I feel like it’s a real validation of what I strive to achieve. That’s satisfied customers. I’ve got some great customers and making them happy is without a doubt the best part of my job.”

If you think Dave can help you with your garden requirements, please do get in touch.

Ed’s preparations for the season ahead

The RHS Wisley location

Ed’s Garden Services Operators were out in force last week for another great training session at RHS Wisley. The Ed’s team visits RHS Wisley in all seasons. It looks absolutely stunning at any time of the year. This was our view from the office …

The training we get there is truly excellent – we have access to the best horticultural expertise there is.

We always plan our Ed’s training sessions to coincide with the changing seasons and go for an early start to avoid disruption to our Garden Operators’ busy work schedules. Our Wisley training sessions really help Ed’s Garden Operators to prepare for the season ahead and to apply their learning in their customers’ gardens.

What we cover

Last week, we covered a whole range of horticultural topics. We learned about recent developments in new technologies for re-turfing lawns, advanced methods of dealing with problem areas with existing lawns and also got some great tips relating to hedges. Planting was also covered, which is always great to unleash our Garden Operators’ creativity. We finished off with a session on important new developments. This included health and safety regulations to make sure our Garden Operators’ are kept fully up to date in this important area.

No visit to Wisley would be complete without a stroll round the beautiful gardens. It is quite magical to be there before the gates are open to visitors for the day.  Autumn was certainly showing itself in all its glory. What a great start to a gardening day!

 

 

Gardening in Sutton Coldfield

My name is Pete Henchey and I established my Ed’s Garden Services business in Sutton Coldfield earlier this year.

I knew I would really enjoy being a gardener but, to be honest, I didn’t realise just how much. It’s been a very busy first summer for me but I have found the work to be really rewarding and I particularly enjoy meeting new customers and understanding their gardening requirements.

My work is very varied, ranging from re-turfing and mowing lawns to hedges and jet washing patios and I enjoy the variety of it all. However,  I particularly love transforming my customers’ gardens. I find it so rewarding to stand back and look at the finished article and I can’t resist taking a few photos here and there!

There’s something very satisfying about seeing the final product when you’ve turned an area in need of a bit of work into a great new piece of lawn. The first photo below shows the new piece of lawn in a recent re-turfing job. I was delighted with the end result.
Newly Re-Turfed Lawn by Ed's Garden Maintenance

The second photo shows the lawn after its first cut. Still looking good! My customer and I have now moved on to set up a routine maintenance schedule to keep those stripes looking as fresh and sharp as the first mow.

Newly Re-Turfed Lawn with its first fresh cut by Ed's Garden Maintenance

Finally, here are a few impressive hedges I have been working on lately. This job required a lot of attention to detail but I thoroughly enjoyed it and was delighted with how they looked when I’d finished the job.

Hedge trimming Services in Sutton ColdfieldHedge Trimming Services by Ed's Garden Maintenance

Richard’s Gardening Gallery

Watering the Grass in South East London

Richard Cooke, our Ed’s Operator in South East London, has very kindly showcased his excellent work by sending some great photos into the Ed’s Office. Richard has been running his Ed’s business for nearly five years and has loved having the opportunity to work his magic in a range of gardens.

This is what Richard has to say about his life with Ed’s:-

” I love being an Ed’s Operator. I’m a really high-energy, outdoorsy person and love a challenge. Before Ed’s, I did a variety of interesting jobs, but I always got itchy feet and felt that I had far too much energy for what I was doing. I’m at my best when I am on the move and solving problems!

I love the sense of achievement when something is a bit messy and difficult and I can look at the end result and see the difference I’ve made. I love the variety of the gardens I get to make a difference in, from small to large and new to old and established ones.

I also really enjoy the customer interaction aspect of my work and almost five years in, I still get a big thrill from feedback from delighted customers. It sounds a bit of a cliché but I feel really privileged to be able to run a business that suits my personality so well. My wife and I have recently welcomed a baby son and my wife jokes that I take almost as many photos of my ‘before and after’ gardens as I do of the baby!”

Here are some of the finished articles from Richard …

Garden Tidy Up in South East London

Garden Lawn Mowing Services in South East London

Border Edging Services in South East London

Clearing Garden Border Edges

Maintaining Balcony Gardens in South East London

Front Garden Maintenance Service in South East London

Garden Tidy Up Before Spring

It maybe sunny but cold and crisp now but the sun will so be warming. So give your garden a tidy up before spring. Mark an Ed’s Operator covering Bournemouth will get your garden ship shape ready for the spring.

A tired overgrown garden in need of attention.

Mark soon got to work with this clients garden in Bournemouth using his skills and enthusiasm to transform this neglected back garden. This three level terraced garden had not been touched for over a year and needed a good cutting back to get it under control again. The individual shrubs had merged into one forming very untidy hedge row. Mark had all the tools he needed and got to work pruning back the individual shrubs. This provided each of them the space and light they desperately needed.

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So do you need a garden tidy up, or is your fence damaged or your patio/deck dirty, then give Mark a call. He covers all areas of Bournemouth and will come and provide you with an estimate. A few hours of work by him will have your garden ready to enjoy. Mark’s skills don’t stop there though, he is also able to provide on-going care to your garden throughout the season. Services can be made flexible to meet customers requirements and range from Lawn Mowing/Cutting, Lawn Repairs, Hedge Trimming/Cutting, Hedge Reduction.

A very Merry Christmas from Ed’s!

2016 has been a great year for us. We have had 7 new franchisees join us, which means we now have 40 garden maintenance franchises in our team. This consolidates our position as the UK’s largest garden maintenance franchise business and, most importantly, means that we are growing ever better at meeting our customers’ needs.

We’d like to wish you all the very best for 2017 and look forward to a brand new year of delivering excellent gardening services.

Spring At Last!

It’s days like this that remind me how lucky I am to be doing garden maintenance! Signs of life showing all over and newly cut lawns set everything off nicely. A lot of moss on lawns and around the garden after this long wet and mild winter. I’m well stocked up on Ferrous Sulphate to green things up and start controlling that moss. I can see lots of scarifying and re seeding coming up…

 

Controlling Moss on Lawns after a wet and mild winter by Ed's Garden Maintenance