BLUE IRIS LANDSCAPING

We liked Taylor very much but found communication extremely challenging and were very disappointed in the work. RESPONSIVENESS: We originally contracted with Blue Iris in May 2016, asking to be on the schedule for August. Our job kept falling off the schedule, and our inquiries often went unanswered or were only answered after considerable delay. Blue Iris finally said we were definitely on the schedule on November 1. At that point, we declined to have the work done, concerned that new and moved plants wouldn't have time to reestablish themselves before serious cold set in. Blue Iris contacted us in March 2017 to ask if we still wanted the job done. We agreed, asking to be on the schedule in mid-May or alternatively at the end of August. Blue Iris contacted us toward the end of May to say they would be starting the work in a couple of days. Unfortunately, this meant the work was being done during a rare visit from our son and his family, which made it difficult for us to monitor the work's progress. PROFESSIONALISM AND QUALITY: While we were generally pleased with the regrading, we were extremely disappointed by much of the rest of the work. There was a lead worker, who was skilled, and one laborer, who was not, on the job start to finish; other workers came and went, and the quality of their work was very uneven. For example, while we were happy with the careful mulching one worker did, she came for only one day, and the remainder of the mulching left much to be desired. Quite a few plants—some new this spring—were completely buried under mulch that looked like it had been thrown down in haste. We had to carefully search for the missing plants and dig them out from under the mulch. In addition, quite a few of the replanted and newly planted perennials were not watered at all after planting. They barely survived, and only with lots of effort on our part. A beautiful, large bleeding heart we had nurtured for several years was divided into four or five plants, which were then left lying in the sun in our driveway for hours. By the time they were transplanted to the backyard, they were to all appearances dead. Two large branches were removed from one of our lilacs, but otherwise the trees were not pruned. A good deal of underbrush and some dead wood remain on both, and their overall size is unchanged. Nor was the lawn reseeded where the sod had been damaged or removed. We deducted the pruning and reseeding charges from our payment. The final blow was finding, one month after Blue Iris’s work was completed, that our garden is now crawling with the invasive jumping worm. We’ve NEVER seen these in our garden before, so the only conclusion we can come to is that they came in with the soil or, more likely, the mulch. We suspect the mulch because we find them throughout the garden, including in the beds where mulching was the only work that was done. Altogether a very disheartening experience.

Taylor spent hours with us learning what each of us liked in terms of plant types, heights, textures, colors, density, etc. He then created a very detailed plan of exactly what the new gardens that replaced our old lawn would look like. Plants (perrenial flowers and shrubs) were listed by common and scientific name and photos of each were attached as well. This plan was far more detailed and innovative than any other we had gotten. (The plans from other vendors were free and Taylor charges for his planning, but boy was it worth the cost!!!) We had not envisioned a rain-garden at all. The rain-garden and rock features provide varied terrain and interest in what was a flat square yard. His crew then came with both heavy equipment and muscle and dug out our dense clay soil, graded the yard to ensure no water would collect and back up into the basement, buried tubes attached to the downspouts so rainwater off the roof would flow into the rain-garden, positioned the rocks, laid down the flagstone walkway, and planted the shrubs and flowers. The crew was friendly and efficient. Some of the plantings were transplanted from our backyard and that work was done with care for other nearby plants. They also dug out some old lilac bushes (by hand!!) and replaced them with other flowering shrubs we preferred. When they were done,they cleaned up the site and planted new grass where the flagstones has been laying before being installed. The crew were great to have around. Taylor's knowledge of plants is exceptional. And his plan exceeded our expectations. My husband and I tend to like very different things in a garden. I like a lively jumble of plants and he likes spaciousness. Somehow, Taylor's plan appealed to both of us and we are both very very pleased with the outcome.

As with our first experience, everything went perfectly. We loved the design ideas that Taylor offered; his design skills are really exceptional. The Blue Iris staff is really excellent. They were a pleasure to interact with, and their dedication to and interest in their work was readily apparent. The staff are real landscapers, not just spring/summer temps. We are totally delighted with the finished product, and would heartily recommend Blue Iris to anyone looking for a truly extraordinary landscaping company.

As with our first experience, everything went perfectly. We loved the design ideas that Taylor offered; his design skills are really exceptional. The Blue Iris staff is really excellent. They were a pleasure to interact with, and their dedication to and interest in their work was readily apparent. The staff are real landscapers, not just spring/summer temps. We are totally delighted with the finished product, and would heartily recommend Blue Iris to anyone looking for a truly extraordinary landscaping company.

Taylor spent ample time with us getting to know us and what we wanted to accomplish on our difficult lot. He impressed us with his sense of design and extensive knowledge of horticulture. The plan he laid out was beautifully presented. He listened to us and suggested his own ideas for which we were grateful. We appreciated that he was on the job supervising his crew. His crew was very professional. The work was done in a timely manner, and the site was in excellent shape when the project was finished. We have received many compliments from the neighbors. We look forward to doing business with Taylor in the future.

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I paid for and received a plan. I chose not to go with this vendor.

We were very pleased with the work overall. Taylor is artful, creative, and very knowledgeable. We solicited three bids for our project, and his was competitive. Not the lowest of the three, but very close, and we were convinced that he would do a better job than the company that submitted the lowest bid. Taylor was willing and able to work with us to modify the design and rein in the costs a bit. Everyone on Taylor's crew was intelligent, friendly, and hard-working. They kept us well-informed of their progress and their plans. The foreman, John, was especially outstanding. The work he did on the retaining wall and the patio pavers was exceptional. He is a very hard worker and a perfectionist.

We were not impressed because it took him 2 weeks to return my phone call that I just received today.

Excellent. Taylor is a wonderful man to work with, sweet, smart, and professional, and has a good crew. He was very patient when we changed our mind about things a couple of times, and came back and replaced a tree that didn't make it.

Very well overall, in some aspects superb. In all elements Taylor and his staff were highly responsive to our desires and (occasional) concerns. Integrity level is very high. Commitment to quality work is very high throughout the company. Project management is very good, with the only problem being communication glitches going from the customer-owner discussions to the owner-workers instructions. These seem to be omnipresent among contractors, and certainly better than usual at Blue Iris. The design experience was a pleasure, with Taylor being patient, flexible, and willing to listen and to provide as much information as needed about plants and hardscape materials. As the work was done late in the fall we haven't really seen the plan in its full glory yet, but certainly looks promising! One minor complaint would be that it didn't seem that as much attention was paid to lawn preparation and planting as to plants and hardscape, where I think Taylor's heart lies. The execution of the plan was also a pleasure. His staff were uniformly excellent and committed to high quality work beginning to end. Taylor bent over backwards to coordinate with our building contractor, including accelerating our schedule with Blue Iris to match some cement work. The work was completed in a timely way. The price was fair based on comparison bids - not inexpensive but also not high. One minor complaint was that more attention could have been given to our budget cap and more concern/response provided when we passed through it. I value integrity very highly, and on this front Blue Iris is at the very top. As one example, they built a very large wooden fence and by mistake did not use exterior nails. Very quickly the nails corroded and stained the wood. The fence was rebuilt in a timely way, no questions asked. In fact, they used new wood, which we hadn't asked for or expected.

It went very well. He came promptly, got here on time, and prepared a drawing of the area. I’m not much of a gardener and I told him that up front; he was sensitive to my priorities. I had a limited budget and I was looking for curb appeal. He prepared a suggested solution that came within budget and would accommodate my lack of gardening know-how. He got back with the estimate within 48 hours and he had people here to do the work within a week. The workers that came to do the work were excellent, his recommendations were excellent, and the plantings still look very nice. I was impressed with his work. I was worried at one point because Japanese beetles were shredding one of the plants and he came over within six hours or so to look at it. He told me what remedies were possible and what the outcomes would be. I went with his recommendation to just leave it because the beetles moved on and the plant looked very nice well into the fall. I had one other estimate and Blue Iris was less ambitious and less expensive. He got the work done within the time frame that I needed it done it. He was very professional. Last summer our street was under construction but he and his crew still showed up and managed to get around it. I had a lot of workers at the house and they were very accommodating in spite of everything and they got it done in a punctual manner. I also really appreciate that they gave me recommendations for another flower bed that I had but couldn’t afford to have professionally landscaped.

He was very responsive. He was very serious. He did the work on time. We had no complaints. His price is reasonable. I would recommend him and use him again in the future.