Alford's English Gardens

Very well. We had several meetings with Kathy to talk about what we wanted for the budget we established. She was very good at providing the right balance of plants for our requirements: not too expensive, drought tolerant etc. After the plan was established, we decided to go ahead with the front of the house first. The installation went well. We had to coordinate with our plumber because the main line had to be changed at the same time but that went well too. The crew was awesome, working during very hot days but always smiling and cleaning after the work day. We are very happy with the final result that includes a water feature and two new retaining walls.

I resisted calling Kathy because I figured her services would be way over my budget, but they most definitely were not--for $2,500, I got a new irrigation system installed, complete debris removal/resod, and all new plants based on a plan that actually works for my soil and sun. My back yard is now gorgeous, and I owe it all to her. I first met with her at our house, where she took notes on the kind of style we were going for, the colors we wanted, etc., and then about a week later, I came to her office to walk through the living garden to check out her initial suggestions and tweak where I could. About a week after that, I got the full-color plans, a print-out with details about the plants involved (how much sun, water, root issues, etc.), and a detailed breakdown of the costs. To my chagrin, it was only at this point that I learned my husband had some issues he wanted considered, but Kathy patiently helped us redesign, recalculate, and reconfigure so that everyone was happy (all at no extra cost, I might add). Today, her team came out and did its thing: my mind boggles every time I go outside and take a look (and I know it's going to look even better in a few weeks' time). Please do check her out--you see other projects listed here clocking in at $10,000+ and you think it's way out of your league, but she works with any budget for any style. I can't wait to have her tackle our front yard!

This project went beautifully, I was very pleased.

I met with Kathy to have a landscape design done as part of a complete backyard remodel and pool installation. The plan was created and plants were discussed during a visit to her offices where she has a nice display of the actual live plants. It was helpful to see the plants live versus just looking at them in pictures. After the plan was complete we scheduled work to take place based on completion estimates from the pool company. Unfortunately, they blew their estimates on three separate occasions and Kathy's crew had to be rescheduled as a result. She was very understanding of the issues and worked with us each time with a positive attitude, even though I knew it had to be a bit inconvenient for her company. The work was completed in a timely and professional manner. I was impressed with her crew as they cleaned up the work site each evening and did not leave their lunch papers, empty bottles, etc. laying around the yard as the other work crews had done. Her crews were polite and easy to work with, they actually all seem to really enjoy what they do. Kathy consistently checked in with us and kept us informed on the daily happenings. Our yard is now installed and we are completely satisfied with the result. Our first party in the yard yesterday was the final telling as everyone raved about the plants and how pretty the yard and the pond looked. We are so pleased with Alford's that we are now using them for out monthly service as well. I can honestly say out of all the vendors we worked with on this complete backyard remodel she was the only one that lived up to her word and delivered as promised!

We called Alfords in the early October of 2012 and made an appointment for Kathy to come out to our Orange County home. Kathy, as all the others have said, is a real people person. She looked at our garden and came into our house and we chatted for at least an hour about all sorts of topics. Kathy is a genuinely nice person and is a pleasure to be with. She didn?t take any notes or measurements (more on that later). Kathy said we should come up there (to Signal Hill) to pick out plants for the design and that her office would schedule it. Several more weeks went by and we went up to Signal Hill to pick out plants with Kathy. Again, Kathy was a pleasure to work with and spent a long time walking us around her back lot to show us different flowers and trees. We put down a deposit for our plan. Basically, the problem that we ran into was 1.) Shockingly high price for the work (not the plan, but the actual work), and 2.) Didn't pick up on many of the things that we said we wanted and just went with a generic design. Kathy is super personable, but I get the feeling she is not a detail person, so some of the things that we say we wanted, didn't get written down and communicated to the back office that is actually doing the design work. The planning took months because they did the front yard plan and forgot the backyard plan so they had to send out their measuring guy again. They were involved with a big job and told us that it would take a few weeks, but I had to call after about a month. Then we ran into the holidays and I couldn?t focus on the garden. Come January I called to follow up and they then sent us the back yard plan. Again, shockingly high prices and they didn't listen to what I had requested. When she presented it to us, it seemed that she was just reading the proposal for the first time and didn't remember our situation. They did keep asking us if we were happy and if we wanted to change something, so I did make a few recommendations. I said that the cost was far too high for what we could afford and she asked what I could pay. I said, $8,000 and she said OK. They redid the proposal and took out some of the lights, but made the front yard $8,000 and kept the back yard at $3,585 plus lights and bird bath for a total of over $6,000 for the back. After that, I pretty much decided that I wasn't going to use them to do the work, so I paid the balance due and didn't communicate back. I am sure if I had made more of an effort to get what I wanted, they would have worked with me since they seem to really want to please, I just ran out of patience. I was a little disappointed that the design was pretty simple without any WOW factor that I thought a professionally designed garden would have. I already had a lot of plants in the back, and they wanted to add another several thousand dollars of plants to it and move everything around. I ended up going to Green Thumb in Lake Forest and brought the Alford plans with me. Jerry, the plant specialist there used the base plan, but said that a lot of the plants that were recommended would not survive for various reasons. He made an entirely new recommendation in a few hours (that took me 6 months with Alfords)! I used a gardener that he recommended and got the whole thing done for 1/3 of the price in about 3 weeks. I did use Alfords to purchase a Mayten tree that Kathy had recommended that looks wonderful. I also found the fountain that I saw at her office, for about half the price at Green Thumb. I will credit her for introducing me to both those things that I never would have known about without Alfords. Let me also say, that I had to use several different people to do everything that Alfords would have done and it took much more of my time and energy to get the job completed. I had to make the decision on where to put the lights and hire a plumber to move the sprinkler and hose unit away from my walkway, pick up some of the plants, etc, but what I saved on the soft-scape, I was able to buy another large fountain for the back yard and 2 new sets of patio furniture (all at Green Thumb).

My family and I have been enjoying our cottage garden for a couple of years now! But I must say it is directly due to the wonderful maintenance service provided by Alford's English Gardens! Her guys are always professional, courtious and take such pride in their work! It is always such a pleasant surprise to come home from work to a beautifully mowed and maintained yard...one less (BIG) job for us to do. It is always a guilty pleasure to to hear the nice comments about my yard from people walking by - many of them have told me they make it part of their walk to see what's in bloom this week! Many. many thanks to Kathy and her crew!!!

Job went very well. I was very concerned due to presence of tree roots (which caused damage to original concrete). We were worried that removing old concrete could damage roots of mature trees. The owner is an arborist and developed a plan to elevate the driveway and preserve the trees. Contractor also suggested we add flush mounted driveway lights. This really made the project. It helped with both entry and exit. Right after installation, we had large delivery truck run over the lights without any damage. I was considering above ground lighting, but this was much better. The crew was on-time and cleaned up every day.

We decided to have Alford's English Garden perform our backyard remodel after Kathy created our design plan. We signed a contract with a payment schedule and start date. Originally estimated at 2 weeks, the project took closer to 4 weeks because of our design changes, weather delays and outside electrical/plumbing contractor/inspection delays. Throughout the project, Kathy's crew arrived on time, quietly went about their work and generally cleaned up after themselves. Kathy's site supervisor, Miguel, was always onsite. Miguel and Kathy communicated regularly via iPad to review the crew's progress. Kathy was onsite regularly to personally check on the operation. Miguel took time each morning to meet with us to: explain the work performed the previous day; the work to be performed that day and listen to our feedback. This allowed us an opportunity to request rework/changes for tasks performed and ask questions about current and upcoming tasks. Miguel immediately resolved any and all issues that arose to our complete satisfaction. It was apparent that Miguel worked on our house as if it was his own house and we greatly appreciated that. Of course along the way we asked for design changes/upgrades which as expected incurred additional charges. Each time Kathy would guide us and offer practical advice. Kathy and her crew created a beautiful dream back garden for us and we enjoy it every day! We highly recommend Alford's English Gardens and would not hesitate to use their services again.

We were looking for a landscape design company that has great customer service, quality work and an excellent reputation to produce a design plan for our backyard remodel. After searching/reviewing Angie's List we decided to contact Alford's English Gardens. The designer, Kathy Alford, arrived at our home on time for our scheduled meeting/appointment. After a brief walk through of our backyard, Kathy asked us what our thoughts/vision/concerns were for the backyard. She listened very closely and took notes and pictures. Kathy offered her interpretation of our vision during that initial meeting. We appreciated that because we felt that she "got" what we were trying to accomplish. We met with Kathy a second time at her facility to review our goals, review some of their past designs and get a tour of the 'plant nursery' in her back lot where we could give her feedback on the kinds of plants we might like. It was during this second meeting that we formally agreed to produce a design plan. Kathy arranged to have our backyard accurately measured and within a couple weeks our design plan was ready. We arranged a third meeting at Kathy's facility to review the design plan. During this meeting we discussed the design plan and agreed to several changes. Kathy reworked it and delivered the final design plan in a timely manner. Kathy and her staff were very professional and very friendly throughout this entire process and the design plan was exactly what we were expecting. We highly recommend Alford's English Gardens. In fact, we later decided to have Alford's English Gardens perform our backyard remodel.

Kathy and her crew were great. They did the work in no more than 5 days. The result was amazing. My neighbors are still knocking on my door asking who did my garden. I have already referred her to my next door neighbor and the neighbor across the street who loves looking at my yard everytime he walks out of his house.

They were so busy that it would took them 2-3 months for them to come out. I called them because they had so many reviews, but I was not pleased with their work or service. When they did come out, I noted that the pavers they put down were too far apart. I took some pictures and sent them asking if they could correct it. They corrected the spacing, but the pavers were still uneven. They said they would put down grass seed where the pavers were before to fill in the mud spots that were left. They never put down grass seed. When they were ready to go and everyone was in the truck, they sent the younger kid they had working to run back to my door to ask for a check. He gave me the invoice and said he needed the check before returning to the office. This gave me the impression that they were through with helping me. I would not recommend them. I felt they were rude on the phone and the service after the sale was poor.

All of the workers were really polite and respectful. They had to put up with my two very obnoxious dogs! The work took about 3 weeks and although it may have put me out a bit... it was all worth it. Their work was professional and just what I wanted.

Went well, they arrived and quietly went about their job. Cleaned up after themselves. I wasn't present when they arrived but did see the results of their work and was more than pleased.

Called the office for a consult and Kathy and her assistant were at my house early the next week for a walk through of what I was looking for. I was invited back tot he office later that week to walk around their garden and see what plants caught my eye. Kathy also showed me many pictures of different yards to get an idea of what I liked. We discussed a low maintenance/water yard that was as California friendly and native as possible without going cactus. She then asked me to put together an idea book on Houzz.com to give even more direction with what I liked. A man from the office came out not too long after and took measurements of my yard and it was a few weeks until i went in to see the landscape designs. we made a few changes after the first meeting and then we set a project start date. The crew was very nice and hard working. The entire yard was finished in 2 weeks and looks absolutely beautiful. As warned the yard is high maintenance because o f weeds until it's established so I got on the books with Kathy's crew to do weekly weeding and monthly irrigation checks. As soon as we save up we will be having Kathy's crew come and do our back garden as well

Kathy asked my what I envisioned for my yard, and she shared many of her ideas. She came equipped with her notebook computer with many examples of beautiful, creative work she has done. She gave me the names of possible plants for my yard so that I could look them up and think about what I wanted. She also invited me to come to her office where she has examples of different landscapes. Kathy is very personable and willing to work with her customers. Alford's could do the design and I could do the work, or they could do the whole thing. This summer I plan to visit Kathy's office and make decisions about my backyard design. I would like Alford's to prepare a design for me and then perform the heavy work. I will probably do the planting myself.

Kathy came to our home and asked what type of style we wanted for our front yard. We wanted the New England look. We toured her nursery in Long Beach where she showed us what type of plants she was thinking of putting in our yard and if we liked them or not. Kathy and her workers were very accomodating in working with our cement man as they came and put in the pipes for the sprinklers and lighting before the new concrete driveway and patio were poured. Then Kathy came and directed her workers as to where to place each plant in our yard. Also we put a willow tree in the center of our yard. There are 2 lights on the front of our house, 1 light on the side, and 2 lights in our willow tree. Everything is growing great and looks beautiful! The neighbors are still giving us compliments on our lovely yard as they walk by day or night. We enjoy our new yard everyday! Everyone at Alford's English Gardens has been helpful and patient with us as they answer our questions. I recommend Alford's English Gardens to anyone who wants a beautiful yard!

They came according to the schedule we set up, and did a very good job on the flower beds, watering system and lighting. Have no complaints. The landscape design was clear and submitted to our HOA. They drove from Long Beach, and the price reflected the distance they had to come. They came as promised and did a good job.

Working with Kathy, the owner, was a wonderful experience for both my wife and I and we felt very comfortable with her upon meeting her. She was very attentive and listened to what we wanted and drew plans that complimented our wants very well! We would be happy to work with her again and highly recommend Alford's to all.

The original concept was very pretty and the actual result looked just like the artwork. The entire yard was done in two weeks. The staff of Alford's was friendly, very efficient, and knew what they were doing. The workers showed up at approximatly the same time everyday and stayed till late afternon. The office kept us updated with the progress and next steps. We are very pleased with the service, Kathy and her staff are very knowledgable and provided excellent advice. We would engage with Alford's again for a future project.

I highly recommend Alford's English Gardens for landscape renovation and yard maintenance! Six years ago we had Kathy and her team totally re-design the landscaping in both the front and back yards which was a major renovation effort. We started with a consultation and then decided to have Kathy create a landscape design based on our input. The plan alone was well worth the cost. She not only created a beautiful design but she providing the names of plants she would suggest for the yard. She, of course, wanted the job but she suggested that we take the design and get other estimates if we liked. There was an instant connection with Kathy so my husband and I decided to have her complete the work. The effort was expensive so we decided to break it up into smaller chunks which made it more affordable for us. Having the master design plan enabled us to have the work done in a way that created a cohesive design. We started the initial work in 2007. We could not have been happier. We have created a great relationship with Kathy and her team and continue to use them for our yard maintenance.

I had questions about how much the landscapers knew what they were doing.

Kathy met with me, took pictures and came up with her plan. I gave her free reign to put in whatever she wanted and plan to have her put another climbing rose in the front in springtime as well as do some long needed tree trimming.

Alford's English Gardens had installed a native garden in the front yard for the previous owner of our place, so they were the first company we called for maintenance when we moved in. They did a good job of explaining the unique needs of the native plants and helped set up a service schedule that fit our budget. At the same time, we hired them to do some work in the back yard. They prepped the ground and installed a small herb and salad garden. The biggest job was laying down decomposed granite over a section near the patio. The crew was professional and quick. The whole job was done in two days -- one for the front and one for the back.

I don't want to chase them down for and estimate as it does not bode well for their responsiveness.

Although Alfords did what they promised for a couple of months, personnel changed and, except for the basic mow and blow, contracted tasks were infrequently performed, pooly performed, or simply not done at all. Phone calls left for Ms. Alford were not returned and appointments to visit the property to discuss problems not kept.