The Yard Crew
About us
Landscape Design/Maintenance Contractors. Five crews and 10 employees. Member of BBB/ OPRF Chamber of Commerce. Fully Licensed and Insured. Specializing in hand drawn designs utilizing native plants to the Chicago area as well as custom patios, knee walls and driveways. We use both clay and Unilock pavers as well as natural stone.
Business highlights
Emergency services offered
22 years of experience
Services we offer
Landscape Maintenance. Mulch Installation., Patios, Ponds, Residential & Commercial - Landscape Design. Landscape construction, Snow removal, Sod, stone work, walkways
Amenities
Emergency Services
Yes
Free Estimates
Yes
Accepted Payment Methods
- CreditCard
Reviews
3.919 Reviews
| Number of Stars | Image of Distribution | Number of Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 47% | ||
| 32% | ||
| 5% | ||
| 0% | ||
| 16% |
Showing 1-19 of 19 reviews
Denise F.
Nov 2019
I was so looking forward to hiring a small local company to promote shopping local and helping small businesses… Terribly unprofessional. The first few times they showed up I had to have them come back as they did not complete the job. I now have all kinds of different varieties of crabgrass and Clover growing in my lawn from the equipment they use. Every time I tried to reach the company the voicemail was either full or I never got a return call. Several attempts to reach on email. They bill for services that they do not provide and then they are very condescending and derogatory in their responses.
Nadine B.
Sep 2016
I paid my deposit the day I signed their contract. They came about a week later than the agreed upon date, citing poor weather. I asked them to put a landscaping cloth down to prevent weeds from coming through the rocks, they said their policy is to put a weed powder that is better than the cloth. I also showed them concrete stepping stones that could be purchased at Home Depot for less than $10 each that I wanted for a decorative pattern in the backyard. They called and said the stepping stones I wanted were out of stock but they had bluestone. I do like bluestone so I agreed but the price was way beyond $10 and when they laid the bluestone, it was not in a decorative manner but merely placed like stepping stones on top of the river rock. I could have done that, I was counting on their expertise. I also checked at my local Home Depot and they had plenty of the stone I requested. Then because they ordered more river rock than I needed, they threw the extra into my neighbors yard, burying of her plants and killing them. I had to remove the rock from my neighbor's house, today I'm pulling up weeds that are growing through the river rock and every time I look at the bluestone I get angry thinking about how I felt they lied to me. I also paid them the remaining half of my bill the same day they completed work by giving the check to a crew supervisor. Thirty days later they send me a past due notice, I called and was told that they crew supervisor just gave them the check that day. Never an apology, or any showing of professionalism.
Sarah K.
Jun 2016
unknown
Michelle M.
Sep 2015
It was a disaster. Before coming out, they quoted me that weeding and a mow would be charged at hourly rate of 65.00. Then they showed up on a day that I was at work & my niece was home babysitting my kids, so I talked on the phone with the person leading the crew to tell him what I wanted. Meanwhile, they had apparently already come and performed 4 hours of work on the front yard (again, I didn't know they were coming that day & was not home). Half way through the second day I still did not have an estimate & learned they had already done $520 worth of work! I never authorized that amount of work! The supervisor I was emailing with had them stop in the middle of the work when she learned that we were not on the same page fee-wise.
That is way over any amount I could have imagined & I was not even happy with the work. This had company come for a spring clean up earlier this year it was $175 and I was very happy with the amount of work done for that. When we discussed $65/hr I thought we were talking about 2-3 hours, and I did not intend for them to pull up ALL the plants in my beds -- weeding is pulling out weeds, not pulling everything out. I never authorized over $500 worth of work when all I wanted was weeding of the edges of the beds. The areas I noted on the phone that were a priority was not even done.
This was the response:
"We weeded around the edges of the beds as you requested in your email. You also spoke on the phone with our supervisor in detail about the service, and we did exactly as you requested. Our crew pulled out 3 cubic yards of weeds/weed trees around the edges of the beds. This was not a small job and without you telling us a maximum amount of money you intended to spend, our only assumption could be that you wanted the job done thoroughly and completely.
My hope is that you can see that we sent crew to do the service that you requested and exactly as was requested by you. Between labor cost and disposal fees we make very little money from offering weeding service. I will send over statement shortly via email."
If she really wanted to run a business that was customer friendly, she would have come out to see what they actually did -- which was not weeding the edges of the beds -- it was pulling everything out. And I do not interpret our communications as authorizing a "sky's the limit" understanding that they can work for unlimited number of hours. They should have provided a number of hours estimate for me to approve. Bottom line, don't use this service. If you feel the need to, get a firm estimate beforehand!
That is way over any amount I could have imagined & I was not even happy with the work. This had company come for a spring clean up earlier this year it was $175 and I was very happy with the amount of work done for that. When we discussed $65/hr I thought we were talking about 2-3 hours, and I did not intend for them to pull up ALL the plants in my beds -- weeding is pulling out weeds, not pulling everything out. I never authorized over $500 worth of work when all I wanted was weeding of the edges of the beds. The areas I noted on the phone that were a priority was not even done.
This was the response:
"We weeded around the edges of the beds as you requested in your email. You also spoke on the phone with our supervisor in detail about the service, and we did exactly as you requested. Our crew pulled out 3 cubic yards of weeds/weed trees around the edges of the beds. This was not a small job and without you telling us a maximum amount of money you intended to spend, our only assumption could be that you wanted the job done thoroughly and completely.
My hope is that you can see that we sent crew to do the service that you requested and exactly as was requested by you. Between labor cost and disposal fees we make very little money from offering weeding service. I will send over statement shortly via email."
If she really wanted to run a business that was customer friendly, she would have come out to see what they actually did -- which was not weeding the edges of the beds -- it was pulling everything out. And I do not interpret our communications as authorizing a "sky's the limit" understanding that they can work for unlimited number of hours. They should have provided a number of hours estimate for me to approve. Bottom line, don't use this service. If you feel the need to, get a firm estimate beforehand!
John F.
May 2015
unknown
Karen C.
Dec 2013
quality of work has slipped over past few years.
slow to respond
slow to respond
Response from The Yard Crew
"This member took 60-90 days to pay her bill, at which point she twice claimed that some services were not performed. Our slow response is better described as moving on to better clients that pay for services. 2013 was our second year providing services. I told my office to not send a renewal contract for the second season and it was sent by mistake. We only provided fertilizer and a two cleanups, hardly a body of work large enough to assess our quality of work over time. It's too bad that people like this are allowed to bash my livelihood."
Thomas H.
Oct 2013
They did a good job, I have no complaints. A couple of the flowers died but they came back out and replaced them.
ALLEN P.
Aug 2012
Very satisfied, see above.
Mary P.
Aug 2012
John understood my requests and provided a detailed estimate. I submitted a downpayment, and the work was scheduled. The crew arrived at the appointed hour, and I reinforced to the team lead that I needed to have the weeds removed from the roots, or else they would just return.
The worked very hard. The garden had gotten very bad, because I had not been able to keep up with it. There was quite an infestation of thistle (with it's small though painful, needle-like prickles). I got the impression the crew didn't know what they were in for, because they didn't bring any gloves. Given that, they did the best job they could.
The garden looked great after it had been mulched. Though the thistle has returned, the rest of the perennial weeds have not, so I am better able to track down the nasty thistle and dig deeply to get as much of the root as possible.
With the installation of the French drain, I was able to establish lawn in the barren area. There was a small problem with it leaking above ground, which became apparent witht he first rain after it's installation. I sent John an e-mail, and he sent someone out to check it out. A little work needed to be redone, which was handled expiditiously.
The estimate was spot on. There were no surprises. It was relief to get the garden cleaned out, and I thank them for their effort.
The worked very hard. The garden had gotten very bad, because I had not been able to keep up with it. There was quite an infestation of thistle (with it's small though painful, needle-like prickles). I got the impression the crew didn't know what they were in for, because they didn't bring any gloves. Given that, they did the best job they could.
The garden looked great after it had been mulched. Though the thistle has returned, the rest of the perennial weeds have not, so I am better able to track down the nasty thistle and dig deeply to get as much of the root as possible.
With the installation of the French drain, I was able to establish lawn in the barren area. There was a small problem with it leaking above ground, which became apparent witht he first rain after it's installation. I sent John an e-mail, and he sent someone out to check it out. A little work needed to be redone, which was handled expiditiously.
The estimate was spot on. There were no surprises. It was relief to get the garden cleaned out, and I thank them for their effort.
ILENE K.
Jul 2012
The $80.00 is a monthly cost because we have a small yard we get the cheapest amount. They weren't very prompt when discussing quotes, but once we got schedule they gotten much better. The service good.
AMY H.
Dec 2011
Update: I was happy to hear from Patrick Jones (President) after he saw my review, but disappointed to read his which tried to place blame on me. I did place a phone call to his company and was told that leaves had blown back which was why I ultimately chose to write this review. He did offer for his company to come back so that I would be a satisfied customer, whether or not I would return to their company. I was impressed by this as many people would feel that if they already lost me as a customer that I was a lost cause. He told me his company would come out the next Friday morning. When they arrived they got to work doing a TON of work. When they were done a few hours later they came to my door with an apology--that the fall clean up had in fact NOT been done at all and obviously there was no way it was just leaves blown back in the beds.( I honestly thought I was going crazy!) Furthermore, they adjusted the amount due on my statement so that this final service was free. I was pleasantly surprised and was not expecting that to happen. The work performed during this final service was A+ with nary a leaf on the ground. I changed the grade to B (from C) as this interaction was still a big deal and the initial customer service (not from Patrick) was lacking.
I hired the yard crew for my summer/fall lawn maintenance. Their crews were always professional and came on scheduled days--even in the rain. I have been disappointed by the fall services and clean up of my beds. Basically I expected better clean up during the fall on and quot;regularand quot; days where the rates went up by $10. They did come back once on my request to remove more leaves. They agreed to do this work if I signed up for the more thorough fall clean up which to my understanding, included clearing out the flower beds, dead heading plants etc. They came while I was on vacation and I just found out. I did not know they had been here and was waiting for them to come--until I got my bill. They have assured me they came and did their job. I am not sure how all my leaves blew back into the beds, but not onto my neighbors beds. I think this is a major case of different expectations. My neighbors yard has consistently looked better and I will be hiring their landscaper next year..
I hired the yard crew for my summer/fall lawn maintenance. Their crews were always professional and came on scheduled days--even in the rain. I have been disappointed by the fall services and clean up of my beds. Basically I expected better clean up during the fall on and quot;regularand quot; days where the rates went up by $10. They did come back once on my request to remove more leaves. They agreed to do this work if I signed up for the more thorough fall clean up which to my understanding, included clearing out the flower beds, dead heading plants etc. They came while I was on vacation and I just found out. I did not know they had been here and was waiting for them to come--until I got my bill. They have assured me they came and did their job. I am not sure how all my leaves blew back into the beds, but not onto my neighbors beds. I think this is a major case of different expectations. My neighbors yard has consistently looked better and I will be hiring their landscaper next year..
Response from The Yard Crew
"The member initially declined services that included Fall bed work, despite being offered such services in the Spring with her service agreement. We were contacted in the Fall by the member to explain why services including plant bed maintenance were not being performed and that furthermore she thought should be included. We referred to her agreement which clearly outlined services as she requested. At this time she requested additional Fall maintenance services. The matter of leaves blown back into her beds could have been addressed at no cost to the member had we been contacted and informed of her arrival home after vacation to find leaves blown back into her beds. There were two days during late November in which we had sustained winds over 40 mph and gusts up to 60 mph. We returned to numerous homes in the area on our own accord to address the leaves that blew back into clients yards as a courtesy and attempt to provide great service. We are a small local business that prides itself on attention to our clients. It is unfortunate that in place of a phone call which would have provided a simple remedy, we have received a less than stellar professional evaluation of performance based on an assessment of taken days or weeks after service was performed. We will contact the member today to offer at no charge an additional visit to address the areas of her concern. Our reputation is important and we go out of our way to satisfy every client. Patrick Jones President"
Mike B.
Jul 2011
Patrick and the Yard Crew provided outstanding service. We contact multiple landscaping companies to and ldquo;start from stratchand rdquo; on the landscaping around our whole house, front and back yard. Patrick drove around our neighborhood with us, in the car with our 2 year old, looking at idea for what we liked. He put together a plan, drew it out, and talked to us about fine tuning it and installation. All before we even agreed to us them as a company! They prices were great and very reasonable compared to other we looked at. They came when they said they were going to and finished the whole job in a few days. The put down sod in the back yard, seeded the front, new beds and retaining walls, planted trees and scrubs. They even had to ground out a stump that our very shady and bad tree service guy just (who said he ground it out) just covered up with wood chips. He didn't charge us for the stump. I look forward to continuing to work with them as we add more landscaping next year.
Beatrice H.
Jun 2011
The project was carried out efficiently. I have no complaints with the work.
Response from The Yard Crew
"The Yard Crew did provide the proper grass seed as requested. It was not a matter of quality, rather the germination process of new seed that led to the different color initially. Newly germinating seed with display a different texture and color. As this member pointed out, the newly planted seed did blend in and match the established grass. Patrick Jones President"
ALICIA P.
Jun 2011
We were pretty specific with the landscapers we talked to about what we wanted done in our backyard. We wanted a Japanese-influenced area with many evergreens and for the area to be fenced, to have an arbor and for a small tea house to be built. We also had a gravel path laid between several raised vegetable beds out to the alley and for bushes and a tree to be installed in a different area of the yard. We interviewed other well-established landscaping companies and either didn't receive bids or received designs that didn't incorporate what we wanted done in the yard and instead rehashed designs that we'd seen installed in neighbors' yards. We loved Patrick's design for the serenity garden and his ideas for the rest of the yard. The price he quoted was comparable to slightly less than the bid submitted by another company and we felt he really listened to what we wanted and incorporated our wishes into his design. He also provided a referral for the carpenter to do the work on the arbor, fence and tea house, which turned out beautifully. As for the installation, Patrick and his crew were extremely professional and punctual. We indicated that we were having a party in our backyard and needed for the installation to be done by a specific time on the day of the party. His crew made that deadline and left the yard in perfect condition. We didn't need to do any clean up to prepare for our party. We received many compliments on the yard and recommend The Yard Crew highly. We will definitely use Patrick again for any future landscaping work.
Response from The Yard Crew
"This member was a lot of fun to work with. As a project, an Asian evergreen inspired serenity garden with a custom built Tea House gave me the opportunity to design an outdoor living area that most designers dream of creating. It was very fulfilling professionally to see such a design implemented! Thank you to the member for being so creative to request such a project and Angie's list for bringing us together. Patrick Jones President"
Amy K.
Mar 2011
Project went well and on schedule. Crew was very professional.
Vicky S.
Oct 2010
Called to request service on mowing lawn at two houses. They were supposed to call back to schedule service. To our surprise, they showed up and did the lawn without a scheduled time. Since I work from home, this was a loud interruption during my work hours. Thus far, I have not been charged for the work. Initial responsiveness was good, follow-through has been confusing
Beatrice H.
Jun 2010
They were one of the few that returned my calls. They were very nice and worked hard. While they were out there I asked them to take out some bushes and tress that had started to grow. They did that and charged me an additional $50 and I thought that was reasonable. The only thing I'm not happy with is that he told me he put in seed and I am not happy with the seed he put in. It grows like hay, it's not like blue grass at all. It grows twice as fast as regular grass. I thought the price was fair. I would use them in the future, but I would talk to them about the seed they use first.
Response from The Yard Crew
"This member wrote a later response in which she points out that the grass blended in and looks the same in it's second year. The texture and color of germinating seed is always different that that of established grass. We did use the seed as requested by this member and perform work always as promised using professional grade materials. Patrick Jones President"
Kara S.
Jun 2010
We were extremely happy with the work. The service was timely. The owner of the company came by to check the work. They also seeded some bare parts of the back yard even though that was not in the contract. They cleaned up after finishing their work. We could not have expected more.
Marc F.
Jul 2009
Patrick came out right away for an estimate. He was a little slow on getting us the estimate. We were having other work being done which had to be finished before the landscaping started so there wasn't any hurry. At that point we had a handshake agreement pending start date. We called a month later with changes. He came right out (now in their busy season) and send us a contract quickly. I was put on the caledar as soon as he received out deposit. They started and finished on the dates agreed upon. The crew cleaned up daily and did excellent work.
Response from The Yard Crew
"Since this project, we have hired an office manager to attend to emails in a more timely manner. We have all three supervisors with Blackberry phones capable of email and use them now constantly. As a company, the slow response to email that this member encountered was part of our growing process that we recognized needed attention. At the time I was running the office, drawing designs, managing the crews and providing estimates. I was a little slow at getting back to emails. I love talking on the phone with clients, but email at this time is probably the most efficient and quickest way to contact The Yard Crew. Patrick Jones President"
Licensing
State Contractor License Requirements
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FAQ
The Yard Crew is currently rated 3.9 overall out of 5.
The Yard Crew accepts the following forms of payment: CreditCard
Yes, The Yard Crew offers free project estimates.
No, The Yard Crew does not offer eco-friendly accreditations.
No, The Yard Crew does not offer a senior discount.
Yes, The Yard Crew offers emergency services.
No, The Yard Crew does not offer warranties.