Thanks to three months of hot and humid days and intense summer sunlight – plus a hurricane -- homeowners in South Jersey have their work cut out for them.
As the dog days of summer fade away, it’s time for homeowners to not only embark on an annual cleanup, but also to enhance the existing landscaping, adding new features like paver patios, elegant water features or even a whole new redesign.
Whatever the project, Elite Landscaping, an award-winning design/build company, has a solution. Located in Berlin, Elite operates year-round, offering varied residential and commercial services across the tri-state area. “We have a full staff of landscape professionals that can handle any type of outdoor project, delivering it on time and on budget,” owner Dave Feast says.
While there’s always time for a landscape makeover, autumn is ideal for yard cleanup, including pruning, edging existing planting beds, putting in new plants, as well as soothing tied turf.
“Going into the fall, you have less stress on the plants,” Feast says. “Plants needs less water and there are fewer chances of disease and insect damage. Planting now gives them a chance to acclimate to the environment before the winter.”
Now is also the ideal time to plant new shrubs and new trees, adds general manager Jeff Schrock.
“Adding color to planting beds with some seasonal colors,” he says. Planting brightly-colored flowers like mums or winter pansy, or hearty plants like cabbage and kale, are all ways to add some seasonal curb appeal to the property.
The team’s complete tree division, consisting of certified tree experts, will diagnose tree and shrub problems or diseases, then quickly treat them. Cropping, pruning and cabling are all part of the team’s services, he says, in addition to removal services and stump grinding for trees past their prime.
How It’s Done
Elite’s areas of expertise branch far past traditional planting and trimming to include weekly and seasonal plant care and maintenance, custom landscape designs and installations of any size, as well as Elite Green, their environmentally-friendly organic landscaping program. The 23-year-old company also does commercial landscaping services for offices, local municipalities and homeowners’ associations.
Regardless of a project’s scope, Elite’s friendly, knowledgeable and professional staff always employs what Feast calls the “Grandscape Process.”
“The first thing you need to do is decide what type and size of a project you are planning, and whether to do everything all at once or break it up into phases,” Feast says.
Elite’s experts will begin the process by pre-planning, working to customize a landscape design/project and provide a detailed proposed budget, description of work and written contract.
Then, the design team will analyze the property, determine all the environmental conditions and recognize the best use of space and materials. Homeowners are then presented with a conceptual plan and construction costs for their re¬view and approval.
Details are added to the conceptual plan and materials are se¬lected for installation. “We want to know what the homeowner envisions for his or her outdoor environment,” Feast says. “For ex-ample, you may love a certain type of plant, but your backyard is not conducive for that particular plant to thrive. Our clients’ wish lists are often extensive… we can fulfill many of those wishes while educating the homeowner at the same time.”
The Professional Difference
When looking to hire a professional landscape designer, experience is key.
At Elite Landscaping, you’ll find a team of highly-skilled and trained landscape professionals, backed by more than 20 years of experience. Feast re¬quires that his employees become members of many prestigious trade organizations and take part in continuing education classes and certification programs to ensure they will be able to offer homeowners an advanced degree of skill and service.
“What makes our company great is our people,” Feast says of his staff of roughly 85. “We’ve got a very qualified professional staff, from our degreed landscape architects to our arborists to our chemical applicators.”
Customers who choose to hire Elite Landscaping can always expect the highest in craftsmanship and materials, the owner says. “We carefully choose materials that are highly rated and tested to ensure a professional, finished product that we are proud of displaying.”
Whether your project is residential or commercial, overall trust in the landscape company you hire
is essential, the company says. After all, your landscape is the first impression people see. “Home-improvement projects can be stressful,” says Feast, “but if you select the right professional landscape contractor, the only thing you’ll need to worry about is finding time to enjoy the finished product.”
Elite Landscaping
8 Pineview Avenue, Berlin
(856) 753-1944
EliteLandscaping.com.
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Family Magazine, Volume 2, Issue 7 (September, 2011).
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