Answers to Common Questions
What you may not know about KH Landscaping
KH Landscaping is owned and operated by Kathy Harvie. I have an extensive background in the horticultural industry. I graduated with a Diploma in Horticultural Services in 1992, from NSCC, Kingstec Campus. In 2007, I completed the requirements for a Diploma in Landscape Design from University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario. I have also completed the requirements for the following certificates from University of Guelph: The Horticulturist, Creating Landscapes and Building the Landscape. I also have several years of experience working in garden centers throughout HRM.
A full range of services based on your needs and your budget. Everything from the initial consultation to a design if needed to the installation and maintenance of your property.
Currently I have clients from Lake Echo to Middle Sackville to Hubley. For regular maintenance I cover most areas of HRM. If it is a design you are looking for, I will cover areas in mainland Nova Scotia.
KH Landscaping promotes an organic approach to keeping your garden looking good all season long. I follow HRM bylaws regarding pesticide use. Dormant oil sprays, biological insecticides and sulphur-based fungicides are used on an as needed basis. Horticultural vinegar is used for weed control in pathways.
Email money transfers and cash are the preferred methods of payment. If you do not do online banking I will accept a cheque.
Plants are warrantied for ninety days.
KH Landscaping carries liability insurance.
The Process
I will meet with you and walk around your property with you, while discussing your ideas, your likes and your dislikes. I look for ideas for focal points, perhaps you have a view that could be enhanced. We talk about your lifestyle, i.e. do you like to entertain or do you spend most of the summer at a cottage? We then sit down, discuss how your ideas would work, and I make suggestions.
During the consultation we also discuss what happens next. Is there a formal design needed? If there are existing gardens, we can discuss plans to renovate and restore them along with the costs involved. Communication is key at this point, as it is throughout the whole process.
There are two options here. I can do a formal design, or we can adopt a design/build approach. The design/build approach will be based on a conceptual sketch. The design/build approach allows more flexibility. Creativity can be spontaneous and this is important in the overall design.
Kathy uses professional landscape design software to produce a scaled drawing of your property. It will show the location of any buildings on your property, any hardscaping, i.e. decks, patios, pathways, etc. as well as the garden areas showing what plants will be used and where they will be placed. A complete plant list with pictures is also available.
KH Landscaping provides an installation service for her designs. This includes small garden walls, pathways, supplying and spreading the soil and mulch for the beds. I also purchase the plants, transport them to the site and plant them.
For larger projects such as retaining walls, driveways, decks, fences, pergolas, etc. I will contract that work with reliable contractors.
Services provided:
- Building garden walls
- Building pathways
- Supply soil, mulch and fertilizer
- Build the proposed beds
- Purchase plants, transport to the site and plant them
A variety of packages are available, ranging from a Spring and Fall cleanup to weekly maintenance.
Spring cleanups are done during April and May, weather permitting. This includes removing debris from flower beds, cutting back perennials if this was not done in the fall and weeding. Edging and mulching will also be done at this time if requested.
Fall cleanups are done in October. This includes cutting back perennials where necessary, weeding, and raking leaves from the flower beds.
Shrub pruning is done as needed at the correct times, i.e. spring blooming shrubs are pruned after they bloom. Summer blooming ones are done during the spring.
Maintenance includes:
- Weeding
- Edging of flower beds
- Mulching
- Pruning
- Fertilizing
