Mac and Will complete a project

Blue Dot Landscaping in Greenville and Spartanburg, SC is proud of our youngest members.  Mac and Will, are 11 year old twins and sons of Rich Regan (Partner).  This summer, as they have since they were 4, they work with their father.  They both are expert wheel-barrow drivers.  In the last two months we have installed a truckload of Palisades Zoysia, 18 pallets of 419 Bermuda and two places that got about 1,000 square feet of Emerald Zoysia.  In each of the previous jobs we had a crew leader and several workers involved. 

When Mrs. Thomason of east Spartanburg decided she wanted beautiful grass in her courtyard we knew Palisades Zoysia would be a perfect fit.  We decided to let Mac and Will do this job.  (It required less than 1 pallet).  They dug up the existing dirt and removed roots and gravel and debris.  They added mushroom compost to the soil and raked it smooth.  Then they hauled the sod rolls to the site, placed the sod correctly and used a hatchet to trim the edges.  This picture is the final step: watering the newly installed grass.

What was the rest of Blue Dot Landscaping doing during this time?
Well, building a fence with an arbor of course!

Paver Patio with Pergola - Built by Professionals

The project here is simple.  Making it high quality, functional and long lasting is where the expertise comes in.  Our customer in Greenville, SC wanted a patio in their back yard.  It will serve as a getaway to relax and also as a gathering spot for friends and neighbors.

We decided on a size - 18 ft. by 15 ft.

The customer also wanted a pergola.  They mentioned, also, that the afternoon sun was bright and the direction was from their house.  We would try to give them some shade and at least partially block the sun with the pergola.

The first step, as usual, was the excavation.  When building a proper paver patio you should always excavate to at least 7 inches below your expected final grade.

My 11 year old twins, Mac and Will get the joy of working with me during the summer.  No goofing off for my boys!  (Mac is in the blue, Will the red)

When excavating you also need to be planning.  The final slope of the patio should be determined.  You don't want it perfectly level because of water drainage issues.  You don't want it to slope too much or folks won't be able to have a good place to sit.  Generally about 1 inch of slope for 10 - 15 linear feet is good enough for good water drainage.  It is also a gentle enough slope that if you are sitting or standing on it - it seems level.  You also need to pay attention to the best place to send the water runoff.  We decided that the front left would be the best spot. 

A transit level is a useful tool in planning the elevations.  The man pictured above in red is holding the story pole.  The man in the blue will use the transit (not pictured) to measure the elevations.  We have decided that the back right corner is 0.  The front right corner and the back left corner will be 1 inch lower.  The front left corner will be 2 inches lower.  This will work fine for the patio, but means we are going to have to move some extra soil.  The right side turf area will have to be lowered about 6 inches and the left side raised about 6 inches.

Once we have the excavation complete we need to take a break from the patio construction and install the posts for the pergola.  We use 6 x 6 pressure treated lumber.  With a 8 foot high ceiling we need the posts to rise about 9 1/2 feet above the finished grade.  We purchased 6x6x12's and put them almost 2 feet in the ground (don't forget we have already excavated the 7 inches needed for the patio).

Now it's time for the aggregate base.  A well built paver patio will have at least a 4 inch base of stone and stone dust.  In our area a product called 'crush n run' is just about perfect.  For this job we are using 5 tons.

The installation of the 4 inch base is important.  If it is not the right slope - neither will the patio be.  You can't fix problems with the base by using sand in the later steps.  Compacting the base is also key to a well built paver patio.  The 4 inches of solidly compacted aggregate is the main cornerstone.

After the base is ready, it's time for sand and pavers.  We use a local product called 'river sand'.  Other areas in the U.S. have slightly different types sand underlayment materials.  We use 1 inch pvc pipe and a 6' level to screed.  Care needs to be taken so that the sand is as close to exactly 1 inch thick as possible.  The pavers should be layed so that you walk on the ones installed... to get to the place in which you are installing new ones.  The pattern we are using here is a popular one.  Using either Pavestone or Belgard products - we like the type called 'recs and squares'.  There are 6x9's and 6x6's (approx) in this pattern (called the K pattern).

My boys help with the hauling of the pavers from the pallets to the installer.

Many from Spartanburg might be surprised to see my partner, Mike Vandever, actually doing some work.  Here he is nailing in 8 inch spikes in order to hold the edging in place.  Some sort of permanent edging is vital in keeping the interlocking pavers in place.

I get the fun work now.  We spread polymeric sand (a sand with a glue type chemical mixed in) on top of the pavers and sweep the sand in the cracks.  We then use the tamper to make all the pavers solid and firm and level.

You then want to slightly dampen the surface to aid in the hardening of the polymeric sand.

With the patio complete now it's time to focus on the pergola.  Here we are notching a space for the 2x10 rafters.  By creating a 3/4 inch notch, placing the 2x10 in the notch, and then bolting it all together - you get a solid roof foundation that isn't going away.

The 2x10 rafters.

The finished pergola.  We used 2x8 pressure treated lumber for the top part.  Created curved endings on the 2x8's for a decorative effect.  On the very top is 1x2's to hold everything together.  The 2x8's run north to south to further block the setting sun.  The 2x4's you see in the front are for the purpose of creating a little more shade.

If you want something like this and live in the Charlotte area - try Tex Lawn Company.

How to Select the Right Grass For Your Lawn

  Upstate South Carolina (Greenville and Spartanburg counties) is my location and it is the climate in which I know the most about grass types.  From Birmingham, AL to Atlanta, GA and then along I-85 up to Richmond, VA encompasses a similar sort of soil types and climate as mine.  The USA hardiness zone we are in is "7b".  When specifically speaking about grass types, we are described as a "Transitional Zone".  This means that we are not perfect for warm season nor cool season grasses.  Our primary type of cool season grass is Fescue.  We have 3 primary warm season grasses - Centipede, Bermuda and Zoysia. 
   Fescue - This is the right choice if you want the greenest most beautiful lawn you can have for twelve months a year and don't mind the effort of irrigation, weed preventers, lime, fertilizing and other issues.  Fescue can be installed fairly easily by planting seed in the fall.  We recommend an Oregon grown certified blue label.  This is also the best for predominantly shady lawns.  For deep shade we recommend mixing in some Creeping Red Fescue. 
Centipede - Is sometimes called the lazy man's grass.  Although establishment from seed can take 3 years, it requires the least amount of watering, mowing and fertilizing.  It likes sandy soil and direct sun but does ok in other environments as well.
Bermuda - Is the right choice if you want a low cut golf course look.  For areas with plenty of sun it can also be the easiest to grow.  You can actually have a lawn of this type without seeding.  Common Bermudagrass occurs naturally in our environment.  All you need do is to kill the competition with herbicides and fertilize and water the Berumda.  In 2-3 years you can have a thick lush lawn.  For a little better and quicker result, you can purchase a hybrid Bermuda seed.  For the best and quickest Bermudagrass lawn, sod with a Bermuda known as 419.
Zoysia - Is the most versatle grass in that it does well in sun or partial shade.  It is a very strong grass that is superior in choking out weeds.  Zoysia, after establishment, takes little care.  Irrigate once a week during the growing season and fertilize twice per year are the main requirements.  Zoysia needs to be installed by sod and is by far the most expensive grass to install.

   For more information you can see Carolina Fresh Farms.  Clemson also has some good information.

My Top 10 Flowering Shrubs

   Anyone in the nursery business can tell you that sales of plants skyrocket when they are in bloom.  Azaleas sell well in the spring when they are blooming, the same can be said about roses in the summer.  We all can be guilty of the impulse buying.  We see something, we really like it, so we buy it.  That, however, is a really poor way to landscape.  We should plan ahead.... and plant when the season and weather best dictates it.  I believe that a quality landscape design incorporates different plantings that bloom at different times.  An ideal plan has something of interest (blooms or color changes as in Red Maples in the fall) 12 months a year.    Another good source, particularly if you live in the St. Louis area is Landscape Concepts. OK, here are my top ten favorite flowering shrubs:

Azalea - genus Rhododendron -Azaleas are a signature plant in the south.  From Augusta National to what seems like 100 percent of landscapes of older stately homes - azaleas are prominent in spring.  An extremely large variety of azalea species, hybrids and cultivars are available.  Most can trace their family tree back to  the Orient.  Among the standard variety blooming once a year around Easter - I like the 'Hershy Red' and 'Delaware Valley White'.  There is also available a low growing, late blooming variety - the 'Gumpo' azalea.  By far my favorite, however, is the newly released Encore™ series of azaleas.  They offer blooms twice a year, in the spring and again in the fall.

Knockout Rose - rosa 'knock out' -

"Despite the great possibilities for failure, the burdensome work, and the lack of glamour, my hobby became a passion. Even with successes, it didn't take me long to realize that growing roses would be more fun if it entailed less work."- William Radler, breeder/inventor of the Kockout Rose. You plant this rose just as you do most shrubs and you get beautiful blooms from spring until frost.  Very little maintenance is required.

Endless Summer Hydrangea -Hydrangea macrophylla 'Endless Summer'

In our southern climate most Hydrangeas only bloom once per year.  The 'Endless Summer' variety usually will have two full blooming periods.  'Endless Summer' may be pink, blue or lavender, depending on the soil in which it is grown. 

Yuletide Camellia - Camellia sasanqua 'Yuletide'

  Sometimes referred to as Christmas Camellias, the sasanqua varieties of Camellia are native to the evergreen, coastal forests of southern Japan. It was introduced by Dutch traders into Europe in 1869. Yuletide is a chance seedling of Kanjiro and originated at Nuccio's Nurseries in Altadena, CA. The Japanese use the leaves of sasanqua to make tea, and the seeds are pressed into tea seed oil for use as a lubricant and in cooking and cosmetics.

  This variety of the Camellia Sasanqua as well as many others are good choices for a large bed around a tree or even as a hedge.  It is also an excellent choice if you want an Espalier.

Camellia Japonica - Camellia japonica 'Governor Mouton'  -

I actually like ALL Camellia Japonica's.  They have lustrous dark green leaves and can be used in many situations.  They can be a speciman plant in the center of a bed, they can be a hedge or even a stand alone planting.  Camellias  prefers acidic, highly organic soils.  I like to  mix in pine bark mulch when planting.  You should maintain a good mulch bed because of shallow rooting.   Mature size can be 10 ft. wide and 15- 20 ft tall, but also easy to keep the size you want with twice a year pruning.  This Governor Mouton variety  has 3-5" flowers and  semidouble to loose peony form flowers are red with white splotches. 

Kleims Hardy Gardenia - Gardenia jasminoides 'Kleim's Hardy'

By far the most frequently used plant you will find in my landscape designs.  In addition to being very beautiful and fragrant, it can be used in many situations, sun and shade.  I particularly like using it in the same planting bed as Radicans Gardenia.  I like this combination near and around summer environments like a back porch or a swimming pool area.

Kaleidoscope Abelia - Abelia x grandiflora 'Kaleidoscope' -

The newest shrub on our list and possibly the most unique.  You get 3 different looks from this shrub per year.  You get a nice spring blooming of white flowers.  That is followed by the greenish /yellow tint you see in the picture on your left.  And then my favorite is in the fall when it has more of a bright orange,red and yellow 'kaleidoscope' look.
“…really packs a wallop...specimens are vigorous yet compact, colorful to a fault, do not bleach in the sun, and catch visitors’ eyes.”– Dr. Michael Dirr, University of Georgia

Rhododendron -  Rhododendron catawbiense -

First we should get something straight.  Azaleas are actually Rhododendrons (or Rhodos).  Most nuseries and landscapers refer to Azaleas as the variety of Rhodo from Asia.  And we call what are actually 'native azalea' - Rhododendron. 
  The Rhodo typically has larger leaves, larger blooms, a less compact shape and blooms later in the spring.
The Rhododendron catawbiense I like because it is fairly easy to grow in our climate.  This variety comes in many different vibrant colors.

Burgandy Loropetalum - Loropetalum chinensis Purple Pixie™ 'Shang-lo' -

There are many varieties and different uses for the Burgandy Loropetalum.  There are the taller shrubs for a hedge and medium sized for color in a bed.  There are even shrubs made into a tree form that are beautiful and sort of cool in that you don't see them on every street corner.  My favorite is the Purple Pixie.  I like it for its dark purple color and compact size. As with most Burgandy Loropetalums, it has nice pink flowers in the spring.

Gold Mound Spirea - Spiraea japonica 'Gold Mound'

Spireas (Spiraea species) are among the easiest flowering shrubs to grow. There are two distinct kinds of spireas: the bridal wreath type, with clusters of white flowers on arching branches in spring; and the shrubby, much lower-growing type, which has pink, red or white flowers clustered at the end of upright branches in summer to fall. The Gold Mound is a low mounded shrub with pink flowers.  3ft high by 5 ft wide is the normal mature size.  Yellow-green foiliage in summer. Recurrent summer flowering.

For more ideas you might try this informative blog or for actual good research you could try our favorite Nursery in North Carolina.

How to have Outstanding Annual Flowers

Perennials are flowers that come back every year.  Annuals are planted once and die back when the weather changes.  In our area it is usually best to plant summer annuals right after Easter and your winter annuals around Thanksgiving.  Do you ever notice a local business, beautiful estate or apartment complex with absolutely beautiful flowers out front?  Well they are installed by professionals - but there is no reason you can't do the same quality work yourself with just a few simple tips.....

Photo of nicely landscaped entry with flowers by Backyard-Creations , a landscaping company in the Dallas, Texas area.

The following are good tips on how to have a beautiful flower bed with annuals:

• Step one is to do a real good job of making the soil right for planting annuals.  This is by far the most important step - and also the step in which I see people take the most shortcuts.  Do NOT skip this step if you really want beautiful flowers.  The soil should be tilled, amended with compost, peat moss and I really like to use a lot of coarse vermiculite.  The best beds will be 8" deep.  If you can easily dig the planting holes for your flowers with your hands, and use no tools, you probably have prepared the soil correctly.  Mixing in your initial fertilizer with the soil is not a bad idea either.  Raised beds work well.  Buying a planting mix at your nursery is also acceptable. The good news is that if you do this correctly the first time, subsequent plantings will be much easier.
• Plant selection and spacing:
• Try to get larger annuals.  We like the 6" pots.  We're only going to have these plants 6 months.  Might as well start off a little bigger.
• Get the best plants for your location.  Read the label.  If you have a shady area - get shade loving plants.
• Try NOT to get too much of a variety.  Sometimes less is more.
• Pay attention to the size they will get and space accordingly.  Larger plants to the rear please.
• Fertilize.  I like liquid (or water soluble) because it works quicker.  It also goes away quicker.  As a general rule if you use liquid you need to fertilize every 2-3 weeks.  Granular every 4-6 weeks. To get the most prolific flowers on your annuals you need lots of phosphorus. That is the middle number in the analysis (10-20-10). Phosphorus is good for strong roots and disease resistance as well as enhancing your blooms.
• Water!  In contrast to my irrigation advice for everything else (Water more, but less often)... with annuals you can water every day.  Do water at least a minimum of 3 days a week.  It is much better if you can do this in the mornings.

If this seems like too much work, you can always hire us.  If you have success doing it yourself, please email me a picture  :)

Rich

Greenville, SOUTH CAROLINA

   Blue Dot Landscaping has run a promotion the last two years.  We have done it from February through April.  What we have done is gone to every mulch place in two counties and negotiate the best bulk deal we could on the price of mulch.  Then we advertise online a February Mulch Special.. then a March Mulch Special ... you get the idea.  This has been a successful promotion for us, bringing in many thousands of dollars in business.  More importantly, we have gotten great exposure and been able to introduce ourselves to literally hundreds of new potential customers.   Hopefully potential customers who want more than mulch.  Maybe a Koi pond or our lawn maintenance?   
   Well, as we are getting busy with other tasks and our mulch special is about to expire, we get one of our last mulch customers... Mr. Strayons.  We advertise heavily in our market - Greenville and Spartanburg, SC.  We focus our internet marketing on things like 'Spartanburg Landscaper'.  Mr. Strayons sends me an email and asks several questions about our mulch and wants to make sure we go to Greenville.  (Our home office is halfway between Greenville and Spartanburg - Lyman, SC).  He is not satisfied with all the emailing and he phones me.  We figure out he is going to need a lot of mulch and he decides we are the ones he wants to do the work.  We schedule an entire day to do his work... and of course it rains.  His rescheduling was for today.  And of course today doesn't start out too well.  We are missing one employee this week due to a death in his family.  Another calls me this morning and tells me he can't work because he hurt himself last night playing soccer.  The third worker... was the soccer players wife... and naturally she has to take him to the hospital.  So now we're down 3 vital workers.  I'm kinda of a 'go-getter'... and I 'go' and 'get' some extra workers.  You know those trailer parks you see with a lot of latino sorts that seem to work a lot in the construction industry?  Well, a truck and a little bit of spanish speaking and you can get you some good workers!
  All this and it's not even 7:30 am yet!  So we are hooking up the truck(s) and trailers, getting wheel barrows, pitch forks, etc. and I look up Mr. Strayons address in my trucks GPS... it's not there.  Sometimes happens.  No problem, I look it up on google maps... still not there.  So I do the obvious thing and call Mr. Strayons.  I ask him his exact address to make sure I was entering it correctly.  Then I ask what part of Greenville he lives.....
    Guess what?  He does live in Greenville..... Greenville, NORTH CAROLINA!  Only about a 6 hour drive.  Mr. Strayons does display a sense of humor - he says "I guess I won't see you at 10 then?"

LOL... what a Thursday!

Rich

To Have the Will to Win is Not Enough

"To have the will to win is not enough.... You must have the will to prepare to win" - Vince Lombardi.
    I am writing a little off topic from Landscaping today.  Today I was reminded what a great community I live in and how lucky my twin boys are to be in this school district.  At this little town named Duncan, halfway between Greenville and Spartanburg, SC... is one of the best high school football programs in the country.
    I could describe how good this team is in a number of ways.  Byrnes High School Rebels have been rated as high as #2 in the nation. Their skill and conditioning is like that of a small college.  They have a million dollar weight room and an ex-Marine Seargent as a weights and conditioning coach.  We have won 7 out of the last 10 state championships with 2 other 2nd place finishes.  We have a phenomenal amount of players that get division 1 football scholarships.  We haven't lost a home game since I don't know when.  We only have 14 losses in 10 years.  That counts big time out of state schools we play and SC state playoffs... only 14!  During the same period we have 132 wins.
     I could also describe how good our team is in matters other than wins and losses.  The members of these teams sign contracts that describe their personal behavior and conduct that is expected.  They consistently do things like volunteer to help another school organization by working at a car wash or other fund raising activity.  They have Friday prayer breakfasts at the local diner - and a high percentage of the players freely wake up before 6 am. so they can attend.  Football players at this school are not spoiled aka the Lebron James' of the world... football players at this school are required to sit at the front of the classrooms, they pay attention, they have good manners and they get good grades.
    So we win lots of games and we have great kids... but that is not the purpose of my writing today.  Today my boys had their medical physicals so that they can play next year.  (They'll be in the 7th grade.  Mac is 5'5" and weighs 205 lbs and Will is 5'2" and 147 lbs.).  All of the 7th - 12th grades must have a physical and the school district had this set up at a local Dr's office.  We were to fill out this form and be at the Dr's office between 6-8 pm.    Well... I don't like to be late... I am normally early.  So we show up at 5:27.  33 minutes early.... And there is a line out the door, across the parking lot - and down the street.  I swear there were people there just to see what next years team might look like!
   Yeah, Yeah.. so you say maybe they just all wanted to get home early for dinner.  Being early for a physical is not that big of a deal.  Well - Byrnes football is always like this.  The Monday after the Saturday they won the state championship last year they were in the weight room getting ready for this year.  There is an air of excitement in this little town because spring football starts next week.  From the  7th grade thru the 12th the boys will spend time all summer in the weight room at Byrnes.  There are footballish camps and other activites all summer. 
     So why do I feel lucky?  It's not because I hope my boys are Byrnes football stars or that they get a college scholarship.  It's because they are being taught that the will to win is not enough... they are being taught how to prepare to win.  If they learn this they will be great at whatever endeavor they choose... even being a landscaper!

Rich