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Jet Washing the streets of Rustington

Jest Washing Services in Rustington from Ed's Garden Maintenance

Providing Jet Washing Services to Rustington

I have now been running my own business for nearly six months and I don’t know where the time has grown. Despite the winter months, I have really enjoyed being outside helping prepare their gardens, either for the coming Spring or to tidy up their gardens prior to placing their property on the market for sale.

I have already met many nice people and received some very complementary reviews.

The ethos of Ed’s Garden Maintenance is providing a prompt, reliable and efficient service and I am always looking at ways to improve the services that I deliver by investing in the latest equipment and ongoing training.

Having already completed a Power Pole Pruning Course, obtained my award in the Safe Use of Pesticides and attended a Fruit Tree Pruning Course, I am looking for the next course that complements the regular internal training that we all receive.

I am not sure how many people enjoy the thought of jet washing their patio or driveway, not only do you lose your weekend but end up soaked and covered in dirt. This is a service that I offer, but have to admit, the thought of jet washing a large driveway made my heart sink until NOW!

I am now the proud owner of a Flat Surface Jet Washing Machine that not only means no more hunching, but it also keeps the dirt on the floor, meaning that I stay clean and there is minimal mess to the customers property when cleaning that driveway or patio. Bring on those large driveways that I used to fear!

Jet Washing in Rustington with Ed's Garden Maintenance

I have now cleaned the driveways of three of my immediate neighbours with a fourth booked in. I have also cleaned 40 years of dirt from my father-in-laws drive. Of those jobs completed, the finished results have been excellent with a lot of positive comments. There are a number of examples available to see.

So, as we move into spring, I feel well prepared to cope with meeting new people and of course those long hot summer days being outside.

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Clearing Up Gardens After Builders in Raynes Park

Garden Clearance before and after Builders in Raynes Park

During the last few weeks, Ed’s Garden Maintenance Gardener, Kevin Gallacher, has been helping his clients in Raynes Park with Garden Clearance.

Recently, the clients have had a lot of building work done to their house and, unfortunately, left their garden in a sorry state. Our Gardener, Kevin Gallacher, was called in to help rebuild their garden to its former glory. During this time, we needed to remove several bags of building waste before we even began work on the rest of the garden.

A Client's Garden ruined after Builders have been in Raynes Park

Kevin had to rake up the ground and remove all unwanted debris from the leftover sandpit. Afterwards, Kevin re-seeded the whole lawn, taking care to advise the client that they had to keep watering the lawn for the next two weeks. After two weeks, you can see the lawn start to return back to the way it should be.

New lawn after re-seeding by our Gardening expert Kevin Gallacher

As with all newly re-seeded or re-turfed lawns when lawn mowing, the next step was to make sure that the grass was long enough to cut. This is because the first lawn mow should begin when the grass leaves reach a height of 3 to 3 and half inches. Once this was the case, then we had to mow a third off the leaf blade in order to make sure that the grass roots had penetrated down into the soil or it would weaken the lawn in the future.

Our clients were delighted to see that the grass was soon growing back to its original self and looking fresh in the summer light.

Freshly re-turfed lawn in Raynes Park by Ed's Garden Maintenance Gardener, Kevin Gallacher

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Lawn turfing gallery

 A great-looking lawn makes a great-looking garden. With some turf and their green fingers, our gardeners have transformed many outside spaces over the years. Take a look at some of them in this gallery.

Double the lawn size

Before
After

Anita’s team removed 12 meters of brick and cement borders, about two tonnes of pea shingle and almost 8 bags of foliage to double this 12 square-metre lawn in Putney.

On a roll

Another before and after sent in by Anita shows off her turfing skills!

Teamwork makes the dreamwork

Two of our gardeners worked together to restore this garden in South West London. Kevin laid new turf for the customer, while Anita put up a new fence.

Before
After

Value for money

A client really got their money’s worth with this turfing job! Restoring the garden of this rental ensured the tenant got their deposit back – and all for half a day’s work!

Before
After

Clive laid £40 worth of turf which, he said, “enabled the Hampton tenant to have the garden reinstated back into better condition than at the start of the tenancy. This secured return of his deposit in full, and the sale of the property on the 1st day of viewing for his landlord.” A great investment!

Ready for summer

Before
After

Den, who covers the Twickenham area, sent in these photographs of a 40m2 turfing job. Den is going back every other day to water the lawn.

Laying the stripes

Before
After

This was a satisfying turfing job for Richard Weightman, who lay a brand new lawn for this garden in St Ives.

Replacing gravel with grass

John Marshall from Ed’s Garden Services Guildford transformed several gardens in one month by laying down new turf in preparation for next summer.

John’s most recent project was to clear the site of gravel, level and turf 100 m sq of lawn.

Before
After

Terrific turfing

Ed’s Garden Services gardener Carl Ward, was pleased with this turfing job he worked on in Eastbourne.

Before
After

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Stuart Thackeray reflects on his first year with Ed’s

Stuart Thackeray came on board to run an Ed’s business in the spring of 2014. Let’s hear what Stuart has to say about his first year with Ed’s.
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“Before I joined Ed’s I had an established career in London and outwardly I guess my life looked very successful. The reality was I was bored with the rat race commute, no longer inspired by my job and felt that my work-life balance made it hard for me to pursue my interests as much as I would have liked.
“To be honest I felt that I was living what was perceived to be a “successful” life but true success is measured by being at one with yourself and happy and in that aspect my career was severely lacking. I’ve got a strong business background so I knew up front what the important factors were when starting up your own business.
“I had my checklist and of all the options I looked at, joining Ed’s was the one that came out on top. I’ve had conversations with friends who questioned my reasons for wanting to be part of a franchise operation when I already had experience of running a business. The answer is simple – it was nothing to do with lacking confidence but all about the realisation that there was no way that I could develop such a strong sales, marketing and technical support engine as I am getting for the level of investment required to join Ed’s.
“Well, here we are one year on and life is very good. Encouraged by my success in setting up an Ed’s business in New Malden, Surrey during my first year I took the decision to complete the change in lifestyle and move to the country.
“I never thought I would have the confidence for such a bold move given I was still in my first year of trading, but I’d always wanted to return to the county I was brought up in and live the rural dream with all it’s clichés. However, by following the Ed’s business model, my business was developing so well, I was 100% sure I could still make it work for me in rural Norfolk rather than the heavily populated suburbs of Surrey.
“So now, instead of a journey to work on the packed 07:30 train into London Waterloo, my commute, in my Ed’s van winds its way along quiet picture postcard country lanes with me at the wheel and Angus, my working black Labrador sidekick, keeping me company.
“I don’t want to make it all sound perfect, obviously work always has its challenges and starting a business takes a lot of dedication and very hard work. My customers are generally lovely although you always get the odd one who does not value the services I offer. It is real life after all.
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“What I can truthfully say though is that a bad day gardening for me is always ten times better than a bad day at the office. Freedom and the knowledge that I am running my own show but with a successful business backing me gives me peace of mind and a sense of wellbeing. Birdsong, big skies, the sun on my back and feeling fitter than I have done in years are added bonuses!
“Would I join Ed’s again, knowing what I know now? Yes, without a moment’s hesitation! In fact, one of our operators has just joined Ed’s for a second time – Lucy sold her successful Ed’s business due to a lifestyle move abroad and, having decided to move back to the UK a couple of years later, she’s joined Ed’s again. I think that says it all, who would do that if Ed’s wasn’t what it professed to be?”
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Hedges and horticulture: Gardening gallery

As hypnotising as lawn stripes can be, our gardeners handle more than just grass. From garden clearances to fencing to jet washing, Ed’s gardeners are jacks of all trades. Extending their skills to hedges and horticulture, here are some of the great jobs they’ve done for customers in the past.

Quick improvement

Steve Frise who covers Esher to Weybridge enjoys the immediate improvement to gardens by maintaining or trimming hedges for his customers.

Before
After

Regular maintenance

Guy cuts this hedge twice a year to maintain it’s classy shape. Guy’s top tip is to always have a sharp blade – and to be careful with it!

Saving a hawthorn

Richard, our Ed’s gardener in St Ives, rejuvenated an old hawthorn hedge, which in parts had become overgrown with ivy. Having recently completed his chainsaw maintenance and cross cutting course, Richard made use of power tools to cut through the ivy, which in some areas had trunks as thick as the original hawthorn.

In other areas, the hedge needed patching with new, four year old hawthorn plants. Once the hedge was cleared and tidy, 50 metres of fencing was erected on the field side, with the base buried below soil level to exclude rabbits from the garden.

Richard said the job was very satisfying, and looks forward to seeing the hedge come back to life in the spring.

Urgent call

Clive had an urgent call from one of his regular customers one evening, asking for help!

Their beautiful 30 year old Acacia Dealbata – otherwise known as a Mimosa – had fallen over in high winds. The tree had been weakened by regular trimming on one side, and had become unstable.


Clive rushed round the next day and the work was completed the same day – the customer was delighted.

Flowers don’t hang around

A wisteria Clive planted for a customer is out in bloom and looking gorgeous. Clive takes regular care of it, pruning it when needed, and sending us photos when the flowers blossom each year!

All shapes and sizes

Andy enjoyed doing some interestingly-shaped hedges for a customer’s front garden.

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Ed’s First Business Split Releases Capital to the Franchisee

 

 

 

Ed’s franchisee John Marshall has successfully split his business generating a capital sum that exceeds his original franchise investment.  John who started an Ed’s franchise in the Chobham area only three years ago has developed a large enough customer base to enable him to sell half of these generating a significant lump sum whilst retaining his franchise.
 
John said, “I found myself in a dilemma in that my kids have now fled the nest and my wife and I want to move away from London. I have created a strong gardening business and want to build another one with Ed’s. Being part of Ed’s is unusual in that I am able to split my protected area and capitalise on all the customer goodwill I have generated over the last three years and carry on where I want to live. I have sold half my area for more than I paid when I initially started. Where do you get that kind of flexibility in a business venture?”
 
 “It’s all about creating a win-win scenario for all parties involved” says Ed Mauleverer, founder of Ed’s Garden Maintenance. “What we really want is a thriving network of happy operators and happy customers. John has received a payment greater than his initial investment and can rebuild his Ed’s business where he wants to live. The customer is happy because they are still going to get a good service from Andy who understands Ed’s core values about being prompt reliable and efficient and Ed’s has gained a new franchisee. I think we’re pretty unusual being able to offer this.”
 
Releasing a percentage of his customer base keeps John under the VAT threshold, and in freeing up some of his time he will be able to take a strategic approach to growing the business again.  Whilst people may think it’s better to have a large territory the Ed’s business model works on developing an area of customers that is as concentrated as possible. This reduces travel time between jobs and increases the number of gardens that can be maintained in a day.  The perfect scenario is to arrive at one end of a residential road and simply move from garden to garden to the other end of the same street; a scenario that many Ed’s operators have created.
 
“By paying a little more than I would for a new franchise” says Andy who has just purchased John’s regular customers “I can really hit the ground running with a strong customer base in place from Day One. I know that I’ll have a very healthy revenue stream that will accelerate my goals of growing the business to the next level. The lifestyle is a lot more attractive than my previous one too. My decision was a total no brainer.”

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Ed’s Garden Maintenance Welcomes New Franchisee for Norwich

 

 

 

 Ed’s Garden Maintenance welcomes Ian Waters who has taken on a franchise business covering Norwich and Broadland.
 
Ian, a father of two has spent 25 years working in London. He has a background in IT project management, and for the past three years has worked as an IT contractor.
 
On joining Ian said, “My five hour daily commute meant that I was hardly getting to see my two children aged six and seven. Whilst intellectually challenging, my work was not personally rewarding, and I wanted a healthier lifestyle.  I’ve always had a love of gardening from being a teenager and explored a number of gardening related franchise opportunities.  Ed’s was the best fit; a good business model with good financials.  I am looking forward to developing a sound business; becoming excellent at what I do then achieving financially what others in Ed’s have achieved.  There are some great role models within Ed’s and I have already spent time with other franchisees including Matthew May in Folkestone, a finalist in this year’s British Franchisee awards.  I’d love to replicate what Matthew has achieved.
 
Founder Ed Mauleverer added “We’re delighted to welcome Ian as we now start to expand into territories outside of London and the South of England with our first franchisee in Norfolk.”
 
 

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HSBC Franchisee of the Year Awards Finalist

Ed’s Garden Maintenance Operator Matthew May is through as a finalist in the HSBC Franchisee of the Year Awards which are supported by Express Newspapers.  The winner is to be announced on October 2nd.

Matthew May

Brian Smart (BFA), Suzie McCafferty (Platinum Wave) Mathew May (Ed’s Garden Maintenance) Cathryn Hayes (HSBC) and Sean Hammond (Express Newspapers)

 The judges really enjoyed hearing about his relationships with some of his customers.  Please contact Ed’s Garden Maintenance for more information.

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A gardener’s top tips for lawn care

Mowed lawn with flowers in the foreground.

Lawns can make or break a lovely garden, but they can also be a pain to maintain. Thankfully, we’ve got our gardener Clive on hand to dish out his knowledge and experience. So, here are some of the best tips for a well-kept lawn, courtesy of Clive – our Ed’s gardener in Hampton.

1. Keep it well-fed

Freshly mowed lawn by Ed's gardener Clive in Hampton

A well-fed lawn encourages a strong root system, promoting healthy growth and that luscious green colour you see the lawn Clive mowed above.

2. Aerate and scarify

To avoid the dull, soggy look that lawns get coming out of the winter season, scarify the lawn as the warmer months approach. Scarification removes all the dead growth and moss from lawns, allowing water and nutrients to properly reach the roots.

You can see what a difference it makes in these before and after photos from a lawn scarification job Clive did a few years ago.

Lawn before scarification - mossy and dull
Lawn after scarification by Ed's gardener Clive - healthy green grass

Clive recommends aerating and scarifying the lawn on alternative years for the best results. Aeration prevents bare patches in your lawn by releasing pressure when the ground becomes compacted.

Making small holes in the soil with either a lawn aerator or a garden fork lets the lawn breathe and encourages regrowth in those sparser patches.

3. Regular mowing

Neatly edged lawn maintained by Ed's gardener in Hampton
Freshly mowed lawn, done by Clive, our Ed’s gardener in the Hampton area.

During peak growing times, mow the lawn weekly on a medium height blade. Just like hair, lawns need a frequent trim to maintain strong growth.

Regular mowing also deters weeds and keeps your grass looking vibrant, fresh and healthy. Plus, we love the stripes!

Take care not to cut it too short during dry weather, though, as this could damage the lawn and leave it looking yellow and patchy.

4. Neat lawn edges

Crisp lawn edges are the cherry on top of a well-maintained garden. They’re also super satisfying to create, as our Ed’s gardener Nick shows you in the video below.

Lawn edging is especially useful if you have flowerbeds around your lawn that you’re keen to show off. Simply trimming the overhanging grass on a regular basis is a great way to elevate your garden.

Need a hand with your lawn?

Although rewarding, we know lawn care can be time-consuming, and it’s sometimes difficult to get that desired result. If you’d like help from an expert, find your local Ed’s gardener and get in touch today.