D. A Gracey & Associates is an award winning residential Toronto landscape design contractor specializing in high quality, unique residential landscaping and construction projects.
Call us at 905-761-9490 to discuss your landscape ideas with us.
 The dog days of summer are upon us, and our landscape construction crews are all-stars for working through the heat.
For the first time ever, the temperatures had us letting the guys finish mid-afternoons, so they didn’t keel over from sunstroke and heat exhaustion. It’s important for them to pace themselves on the hot days; a ten hour average day means they should work at a steady pace that they can maintain throughout the day. The temperatures on a dusty job site can be even higher than the forecast temperatures; due to lack of shade and the use of heavy machinery. Our thanks to the great homeowners who hand out cold drinks and popsicles; they are always much appreciated by our workers.
We have completed some rocking residential landscape construction projects already this year! A great backyard with an awesome pool as the centerpiece; a bird and butterfly haven backing onto a park; an absolutely empty backyard that is now a hidden oasis of serenity, and a lovely minimalistic shade garden backing onto a ravine come to mind.
The landscape construction crew has been getting straight A’s for their work on each and every job. The stone crew has stepped it up with the completion of several over-the-top hard landscape installations with stone; flagstone steps and patios and walls. The carpentry guys have been very busy creating some awesome decks; screens and pergolas. Our horticulture crew has done some great work in spring cleanups, as well as installing the new planting on the job sites.
We have more great landscape design projects in the works; in various stages of planning and construction. We go from a general concept plan, to a more detailed landscape plan for residential designs. In many cases a building permit is required, especially if the landscape design calls for features like an attached deck, pool or gazebo. Permits can take up to three to four months to obtain; so lots of planning ahead is required. We provide a ball park budget at the concept plan stage, and work out a detailed cost estimate at the detailed landscape plan stage. We base our estimates on very specific quantities of each of the elements involved; labour, landscape materials and machinery. This estimate also provides the basis for the amounts to be ordered of each of the products and materials.
As we approach the middle of the landscape season, we are all enjoying the cloudy days on job sites, large shady trees to work under, freezies and popsicles, a refreshing swim after the work day, jobs well done with happy homeowners; and upcoming new projects to get started on.
Adam Gracey, President
D.A Gracey & Associates
Landscape Design
Landscape Construction
Landscape Architecture |
