Chris DeMato, owner
Expertise: Landscape Design & Installation

Lately there is one common piece of advice that everyone in the home improvement industry keeps mentioning: Don't wait.

Time is not on a homeowner's side if they want something done within reason, and the longer they wait to make calls for certain projects, the further away the completion date. Chris DeMato, owner of Rock Bottom Landscaping & Fencing, says, "We live in a very different environment than two years ago where materials are difficult to locate. We never know what may be around the corner in terms of price increases so if you are considering a project, I would recommend sooner rather than later."

As a landscape contractor, DeMato says spring cleanups are an important part of maintaining your investment. "Now that it's April, spring cleanups should be scheduled, maintenance plans should be underway and any other larger projects you're considering should be in motion."

DeMato spoke with House & Home about the differences between lawn services and full-service landscaping companies and why continuing education matters.

What are the major differences in the various lawn and landscaping services out there?
There is a difference between a lawn cutting service and a full-service landscaping company. A lawn cutting company generally cuts grass all week and will fill their open time with a brick, planting or cleanup job in between their schedule. Most of the time they will start a project and have to come back the following week when they have an open day after their grass cutting is through.

We are a full-service landscaping company and most full-service companies will start a project and stay on that project until completion because they have separate, dedicated divisions. They are not sending that same crew out the following day to cut grass or start another job just to keep the customer happy.

What makes Rock Bottom equipped to handle any aspect of landscape design and maintenance?
We believe in being over-equipped and overstaffed for the work that we contract. We also have different divisions, which means we have a staff that is doing a specific task every day. For example, we have a lawn division that takes care of the grass cutting, trimming, cleanup and general maintenance aspects of landscaping. We have a hardscaping division that will be doing brick, stone and cement work every day. We have a plant installation division handling planting and mulching daily, and we have a fence division. This ensures when you hire Rock Bottom Landscaping you are getting experience in whatever aspect of landscaping you need.

How does employing the services of a landscaping company benefit homeowners?
With technology today most people will go online and Google and get as much information as they can and this is all great, however, there is nothing that compares to on-the-job experience. For example, picking the right plants for your property is very important particularly with the deer problem today. There are many lists of deer-resistant plants on the internet but these lists are not always accurate. How often have you spent that weekend busting your butt working in your yard and planting new flowers and shrubs only to find a week later they were all chewed down to the nubs? You have to know your geographic area.

Is continuing education important in your industry?
Definitely. I started my business 32 years ago and I'm constantly learning about new products and installation processes that may go with them. We work hand-in-hand with the distributors and manufacturers of these products. Brick, fence and stone manufacturers will generally hold classes throughout the winter months to teach installation of their product. ... I think years of experience also play an important part. I am certainly better today at what I do than I was 10 years ago.

Rock Bottom Landscaping & Fencing
Belle Mead, N.J. | (732) 873-6780 | RockBottomLandscaping.net

Published (and copyrighted) in House & Home, Volume 22, Issue 7 (April 2022). 
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