Senior Citizen Assistance
Santa Rosa senior, Barbara who was fighting skin cancer needed assistance due to a storm that damaged her tree. Barbara was on a fixed income and could only afford 1/4 of the service. DK Landscaping donated the full service.
Mike Desmond, manager of Horizon supplied material to DK Landscaping at cost.
A Holiday Concert for Sara
The community of Rohnert Park came together in a festive celebration of the holidays at Sonoma Mountain Village. The concert raised money for the family of Sara Baker who was a young woman involved in a horrific Highway 101 traffic accident on October 24, 2007.
David and Kathy Lee of DK Landscaping donated the following:
- $250.00 in cash
- Three Christmas Trees and decorations
- Volunteered their time for the event
- Printed and mailed over 200 flyers with a cover letter to promote the event
- Emailed and distributed flyers within our sphere of influence and the neighborhoods
- Lined up Rohnert Park Public Safety to provide Santa Claus & Sled combination
- Lined up volunteers for cleanup duty
- Provided free landscaping service to Sara’s mom.
Gail’s Story
David and Kathy Lee of DK Landscaping donated their services to a widow, named Gail as she fought cancer and who was faced a financial hardship. Gail had to move out of her Rohnert Park home, rent it out and relocate to a low income housing unit.
During her time of need, DK Landscaping cleaned, fixed and upgraded the irrigation system and maintained her landscaping for 1.5 years until her passing.
Tamar’s Story
Tamar moved with her partner from Colorado to California to pursue new careers. They rented a nice place in Santa Rosa. After some time, her partner went in a different direction and Tamar did not have the financial resources to remain at the rental. Tamar had to downsize and move to a lower cost rental.
The old place was weed free when they started renting it and the property manager expected it to be weed free upon the end of their lease. Her partner left the entire gardening chore to Tamar. Prior to moving out, Tamar worked her fingers to the bone to get the yard back to an an acceptable level. After Tamar has already settled in her new rental, the old property manager informed Tamar that the landscape was not acceptable and must be corrected within a few days. That is when Tamar contacted DK Landscaping.
Tamar was stressed out over her move from Colorado, a new career, her partner going in a different direction, moving out of the old place, moving in to the new place, and the pressure from the old property manager as well as, financial constraints — the landlord will not return her deposit.
After hearing Tamar’s story from her sister in-law, Misty, DK Landscaping decided to perform the job as a community service event. We cleaned up the rental to satisfy the landlord so that Tamar’s security deposit would be refunded.
The Flare of Fall
Fall is officially here. For some, it means crisp clean air that gives us a break from the summer heat. For others, the first thing that comes to mind is bare trees and dull and colorless landscape. DK Landscaping shows you that fall doesn’t need to mark the end of beautiful landscaping and that it’s actually the optimal time to highlight colors in your landscape.
If you’re looking to put a little spice in your fall, consider these trees and shrubs (as well as the one’s pictured):
SUGAR MAPLE TREES: A great, extra-reliable tree that makes an impressive statement in fall. Sugar maple are known for their distinctive flower and bark characteristics and offers gorgeous red, burnt-orange, or yellow end-of-the-season leaves.
SOURWOOD TREES: Has summer blooms that look like lily-of-the-valley flowers. The drooping panicles hang on the tree until it turns color in late autumn, giving the effect of white flowers set against brilliant red foliage.
MUMS: Gives your garden a splash of cheerful color well into the cooler months at a time when the rest of your flowers are winding down.
DOUBLEFILE VIBURNUM
This beautifully tiered branching gives a layered look with reddish/purplish leaves
Finally, there are a number of accessories, centered around the season that can further enhance your fall look without the long term commitment. Adding bales of hay and cornstalks to the landscaping — these can often be picked up at local farms or even craft stores. Pumpkins and gourds also make wonderful additions to the bright colors of the fall landscaping. These can be added to a porch or front entrance, or can even be placed on the ground among your other plants. Last, a fall wreath on the door adds the perfect touch to the fall landscaping outside of any home.
BURNING BUSH
Known for their brilliant red fall foliage. With dark green leaves through spring, in late summer the leaves turn a beautiful burgundy red.
With the proper preparation, any yard can easily be transformed for the season of fall. Any local nursery or home improvement store will have a large selection of items available to purchase so that the added touches of shrubs, fall flowers and trees can give your home an elegant and seasonal look with little effort.
For more information and tips on your landscaping needs, please contact DK Landscaping (707) 280-3632 or by email, davidmunlee@aol.com.
Pitfalls of Unlicensed Contractors
Let’s face it! Economic times are still tough and everyone is looking for a bargain. But the one area a homeowner should avoid taking shortcuts with is hiring an unlicensed contractor. There are plenty of them out there and most often, they come in at lower bids. And what seems like a “great deal” could end up winding you a lot more than you bargained for in the end.
Take for example a recent case of an older Santa Rosa couple who wanted to save themselves $1,500 on a job by hiring an unlicensed contractor (this technically made the homeowner the contractor and liable for any and all mistakes and injury). During the job, one of the workers fell off a ladder and was seriously injured. He in turn sued the couple for over a $100,000 and was successful!
An unlicensed contractor lacks the necessary permits and the liability and workers compensation insurance that’s required. Failing to check for a license or overlooking the lack of one, can backfire if the contractor simply disappears without doing the work or if the work is shoddy. Not only can homeowners be subject to a rude awakening, but the homeowner’s insurance policy might not pay the claim if it was connected to an unlicensed activity.
DK Landscaping provides you key things to look for when hiring a prospective contractor to ensure they meet certain qualifications and make your landscaping experience a positive and professional one:
- Contact your Contractors State License Board (CSLB) or go visit http://www.cslb.ca.gov: A contractor’s license offers the homeowner some degree of protection during and after the project. An active license indicates that someone in the company attended classes for their trade, passed a state exam and can legally work in the State of California. Here you can look up the status, bankruptcy, years in business, fines and disciplinary actions. You can also make sure the contractor is not currently involved in any disputes.
- Get Proof of Insurance: Call the contractors insurance company and confirm insurance is current and will cover your type of project. Liability insurance covers property and bodily injury losses caused by the contractor. Surety bonds pay damages to the homeowner if the contractor fails in his or her duties. Finally, workers’ compensation covers employees who are injured on the job and ensures that those injury claims don’t come back to you, which they could if your contractor doesn’t have workers’ compensation insurance.
- Check References: Get a list of references and call to find out about the quality of the work. Did the contractor stick to the original budget numbers and timeliness? Were they happy with the contractors work? Did the homeowner have any issues with problems after the project was over?
If your unlicensed contractor goes missing in action or phone calls aren’t returned after the job completion, be prepared to pay for someone else to do the repairs. If disputes arise with your licensed contractor, the CLSB has a dispute resolution process including mediation. You can make a claim against the contractor and get the work completed or obtain a judgment for the contractor’s surety payment.
Most importantly, know who you are letting into your home. Once they are able to satisfy the legal requirements to perform your work, make sure they perform the work to YOUR satisfaction.
DK Landscaping is a fully licensed and bonded landscape contractor. For more information on our services please call us at (707) 280-3632 or contact us by email, davidmunlee@aol.com.
The Art of Irrigation
One of the challenges for a gardener is managing the proper use of water. The lack of water can be damaging, or deadly, to anything growing outside. DK Landscaping shares the art of irrigation and will help you prepare your garden for it.
Benefits of Drip Irrigation
By using drip irrigation, your garden will use less water, will require less maintenance, and help discourage less weeds and pests. You will be giving them the moisture they need, where they need it: at their root zone.
It will save you up to 90% compared to watering with a hose. It saves you time having your drip system on a timer. You control your irrigation timer and adjust it for seasonal changes (for instance, August heat in Northern California consumes the most water). Together with mulch creates an organic weed control without the use of harsh and unhealthy chemicals. Watering only the roots of your plants with drip irrigation also cuts down on water-borne pests and fungal diseases that spread by water movement.
With a timer, you can control how much water your plants receive by setting up your drip system with different size emitters, which are the system’s delivery mechanism. You can use a small emitter, such as one that delivers 1/2 gallon of water per hour, at the base of small plants, such as herbs; for larger plants, such as trees, you can provide more than one emitter that delivers 3 gallons of water per hour, or more.
DK Landscaping also recommends that all valves feeding the drip system should have:
Large Filter: A small filter or no filter will result in debris clogging the system.
Pressure Reducer: Absence of it will result in emitters being blown off the main feed line. Drip systems are designed to work under low pressure (nominally between 25 PSI to 35 PSI) while normal pressure on the water main line is nominally 70 PSI.
Pressure Compensated Emitters: Pressure compensating drip emitters (PC Emitters) deliver a consistent output of water, even with increase changes in elevation or pressure due to long drip runs. PC Emitters are best used in landscapes and gardens that have drops in elevation that would cause an increase in pressure.
Emitter Hole Punch: Oval or wrongs size holes will result in leaks.
For more information and a free consultation on your irrigation system, please contact Kathy Lee at DK Landscaping. Kathy is our QWEL (Qualified Water Efficient Landscaper) Certified Irrigation Expert. We are also a certified WaterSense Partner. QWEL and WaterSense are certified by the EPA.
Irrigation Sensation
Summer is just around the corner which means, for most of us…the “dog days” are coming!
DK Landscaping brings you tips on how to beautify your landscape while maintaining the lusciousness of your lawn through irrigation.
A great lawn is a start to an exceptional landscape. Landscaping will not only make your property look better, but will also raise your property values. Adding effects and color can increase the value of your home and property by as much as 10% depending on your lawn, landscape and property.
Watering your lawn is essential to protect your landscaping investment. A residential sprinkler system improves the overall health of all plantings because of the consistent water being delivered. It not only helps manage your water usage — but you will have a greater appreciation for when your water bill arrives each month.
DK Landscaping recommends the best time to water your lawn is in the morning, before the heat of the day has set in, so moisture has time to evaporate before the evening. Watering in the evening can result in rot and fungal infections of the plant roots being left moist and cold at night. We also believe it is far better to water a lawn deeply once a week than to give it shorter periods of water more frequently.
For more information and a consultation on your irrigation system, please contact David Lee at DK Landscaping.
Welcome to the new Blog!
We will be updating this section of the website with news about landscaping trends, tips and resources. Stay tuned!
Fallen Soldier Trust Fund Nova for Sgt. Ryan Connolly
Help us help Kayla Connolly with her education trust fund so that she may be able to go to college someday. Kayla’s father Sgt. Ryan Connolly was killed in Afghanistan serving our country. DK will donate $50.00 to Kayla’s education trust fund for each new maintenance account.
