by Bob Duden

Created on: July 21, 2008   Last Updated: November 23, 2009

The front of your house is distinctly different from the back. They serve two opposite purposes and should be dealt with separately. The front's for show, and the back's where you go. So when it comes to landscape design and hiring a contractor to do the job, there are any number of different things to consider. Curb appeal is the standard for the front. The back should be your haven. Consider what you you want to spend just as hard as considering what you want.

I'll start here with the assumption that money isn't pouring out every orifice and you are among the huddled masses of folks within the stereotype classified middle. Money is an object, and something you want to hold on to. You also want to get the most bang for your buck so, an idea as to just what you want to do with your front and back yard is essential before you hand over control of the project to someone who comes highly recommended or was just plain picked out of the phone book. There's also that friend of a friend, or even an old friend, who does landscaping and, that just might be the worst avenue to pursue. A story here, I had, as in past tense, a long time friend who did landscaping. My wife and I downscaled and bought a smaller house that was in dire need of a back yard. It was a sea of caked mud with virtually no grass and just one lone evergreen planted against the back fence. There was a huge old maple tree that sat too close to the house and created havoc every spring and fall with all sorts of stuff dropping down. It needed work. The front yard was nicely manicured with trimmed bushes and seasonal plantings. The front lawn was crab grass free and well watered. The prior owner maintained the front but, apparently ignored the back.

Enter my friend. For a set price, he would put in a patio, set a walk from the patio to the garage and out the side gate, add a garden between the walk and the house, plant privacy hedges across the back fence and alleviate the flooding problem by sinking a dry well. He may not have been meticulous in his life but, he was meticulous in his work so I trusted him. I may have trusted him too much, as I gave him the money he asked for and took my wife and dog on vacation so as not to disturb his creativity. A week later, I returned in a driving rain storm to find flooding up to my back door and shoddy workmanship every where else. There were used blocks for the walk and patio and the maple tree was never touched. When questioned about the quality of the work, he told me I got what I paid for. When asked about the flooding, he offered to sink another dry well for an additional thousand dollars. Needless to say, our friendship died that day.

So what can a landscaping contractor do for you? The right one can turn your yard into an escape. You just have to have an idea of what you want. A pool, a hot tub, a gazebo, gardens and walk ways, anything is possible. But take my advice, have an idea before you decide to hand the job over to someone. Get a confirmed price quote and look at some of the work that the contractor has already done. Ask for referrals and pore over his portfolio of completed jobs. Choose wisely because you're going to need that extra cash to keep your house warm this winter.

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