As I pick up more and more customers in this business I would like to be able to provide this service for them,but actually know very little about it.All I know is what I do on my own lawn.Every spring I apply Scott's Turf Builder Plus to my yard.I never aerate,thatch(dethatch or whatever-don't even know what it is or how to spell it),apply pesticides or anything else.I just put out the Scott's one time(probably twice what they recommend) in the spring,then cut it once-a-week(at a very low setting) and then water it when I think it needs it.I rarely see a lawn anywhere around town that looks better than mine.I have zero weeds.Common sense tells me that if I apply this product to my customer's lawns their's will look as good as mine IF they water it properly because we're all in the same area.Now I'm only talking about centipede grass but that's what the majority of people have around here.Is it really this simple?How much education do I need in this area?
Fertilization and weed control;seems pretty simple to me
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Make sure you have a license to be able to apply pest and weed control. Been looking into it here in Florida. Not easy to get when you have to work with somebody (licensed sprayer) for 3 years full time. Doesn't't help when your trying to grow a business. Look into what you have to do to get licensed. If you get found out and don't have a license your in a whole heap of trouble.
Steve
Steve
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275 Posts
Key word there is if. Rarely do people water properly if at all with a new lawn never mind an existing lawn.
contact your Dept. of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection office, about pest. cert. and they will tell you what to do. Here in WI, we take a course through the University extention for $45.Then when you're ready for the test contact the DATCP and they tell you when & where you can take it.
cost for class: $45 (book & CD)
cost for test: $60
cost for license; $100
cost for class: $45 (book & CD)
cost for test: $60
cost for license; $100
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1,302 Posts
Yards are like people. Some, No matter what you do to them they look great. Its the ugly ducklings that take the knowledge, and all of these people will hire it done. Who can't manage turf that is properly watered? Got a cancelation yesterday. Lady called and said well our front is dead and my husband wants to do something different. Checked it and it was about 50% dead. Of course they did not water and they did not bother to call when it started to look bad. So I guess that was easy enough. Easy come Easy gone.
Fertilization & weed control is the most technical side of the lawn care biz . If you get your license and start , you'll soon find out how many questions your customers will ask you . Apply the wrong thing, at the wrong time ,and the wrong amount , and you have a damged lawn / landscape, mad client .
To seperate yourself form anyone who can throw down Scotts , educate yourself , and your clients will like your service .
Were still learning everyday
Hope this helps
To seperate yourself form anyone who can throw down Scotts , educate yourself , and your clients will like your service .
Were still learning everyday
Hope this helps
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2,103 Posts
Just because you luck into making one lawn look good does not mean that one approach will work on all lawns. You need to understand the general physiology and needs of the turfgrasses in your area, and to understand special circumstances that affect the individual lawn's health. Also, of course, you need state licensing to provide this service.
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This statement here is a perfect example of why you need to educate yourself. With fertilizers and weed control products, more is definitely not better. In fact, you have just succeeded in creating more runoff pollution in the environment and are the reason for pesticide bans and the fight to keep products available for the responsible applicators to use.
Turf products are designed to release their chemical at a particular pace due to how that product is encapsulated and what the turf needs at that time. Turf plants can only absorb so much product and put it to use in a certain amount of time. The process it goes through can only be forced along (so to speak) a little bit extra. Applying more than what the plant can potentially use is a waste of money, time, and leads to the excessive runoff that our great environmentalists are screaming about, thus contaminating our future drinking water sources.
And this, is one small aspect of what an educated applicator should know when applying products to turf. I have only been doing this for three seasons and continually learn new things on a weekly basis. Just because anyone can "apply a product" to their lawn, doesn't mean they know what they are doing and/or doing it correct.
Definitely enroll in classes and seminars to properly educate yourself in this HUGE part of the green industry and to, in turn, help educate future clients. Certification is a must, and that still does not mean you know everything there is to know, in fact, all it means is you read the proper training manuals, passed a written test, yet have no field knowledge or real life experience whatsoever.
Good luck with it and you can make it a profitable venture if done properly!
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Allstar, please take notes on what these pros are telling you. I started studying for my license about a month ago since I plan on taking the test in Dec/Jan. The first thing you'll learn is there's always more to learn.
Take into consideration that you will be required to obtain a minimum of $1,000,000 in liability insurance just to take the chemical aplicators test, and you will need it if you don't know what the h*ll you're doing. Large commercial accounts often require twice that amount of insurance.
All I'm trying to tell you is, if you're going to get into that part of the business be as professional as humanly possible. Everything from getting licensed to being able to diagnose and treat any lawn problem you may run across. Mistakes are extremely costly.
Take into consideration that you will be required to obtain a minimum of $1,000,000 in liability insurance just to take the chemical aplicators test, and you will need it if you don't know what the h*ll you're doing. Large commercial accounts often require twice that amount of insurance.
All I'm trying to tell you is, if you're going to get into that part of the business be as professional as humanly possible. Everything from getting licensed to being able to diagnose and treat any lawn problem you may run across. Mistakes are extremely costly.
What!...................Ive wasted over 30 years of my life.
He lifts his head slowly from his desk, the throbbing from the constant pounding over the years slowly leaves his brain.
"My word" he mutters to himself, "all I needed was a bag of Scotts"
"and know how to multiply by two"
Staring blindly into space he slowly begins to simply shake his head.....and sighs.
He lifts his head slowly from his desk, the throbbing from the constant pounding over the years slowly leaves his brain.
"My word" he mutters to himself, "all I needed was a bag of Scotts"
"and know how to multiply by two"
Staring blindly into space he slowly begins to simply shake his head.....and sighs.
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