Loaders, excavators top landscapers’ Christmas wish lists

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What do you want for Christmas? It’s a question that friends, family and the mall Santa Claus have asked many a time. As people grow older, they often want less and less, but that doesn’t mean that wish lists are completely out the door.

Total Landscape Care talked with several landscapers around the country to ask them what toys they wanted most this Christmas.

Jerry Merrill, owner of Merrill Quality Landscapes, would like a piece of equipment that would never break down, is cheap and capable of doing a variety of things. Such a machine may be available in a perfect world, but until then he said he would settle for a mini excavator that could handle a lot of weight and is low maintenance.

At Bailey Construction and Landscape Group, they too wanted a new excavator and added that a new dump truck would also be nice. Brand isn’t a concern for them.

“We shop around and do all the auctions like everyone else,” said Vicki Smith, office manager fro Bailey Construction and Landscape Group.

Others chose equipment that they felt would help get the most done. For Connie Emmerson, president of Royal Landscape Nursery, a new front-end loader would be ideal because “it can carry all the big stuff.”

For Todd Bangs, operations manager for Windswept Gardens, finding a mini track loader under the tree would be ideal, as “the size and versatility make them must-haves on any landscape job.”

Charlie, owner of Distinctive Landscaping, asked us not to use his last name. He says his company already has everything it needs, although he was sure he could come up with something he’d love to have.

Because Christmas isn’t all about receiving, we also asked the landscapers what they would like to give to their employees if they could choose anything.

Bangs and Smith both wanted to give their employees something that the whole family could enjoy, such as an all-expense-paid vacation, to let them relax.

Emmerson wished she could give her employees each a new car, while Charlie kept things simple with just a big bonus.

“Probably the best thing would be the prospect of improved wages and benefits for them for the future,” Merrill said.

Lastly, we asked the landscapers what non-material thing they would want for Christmas.

Most of their answers ended up revolving around time. For Bangs, he wished he had more time to spend with his family. Smith wished for more time to be creative. Merrill wanted time to do more things better.

Emmerson wanted more time to do new bids, but she’d settle for one architect to do all the blueprints in one way. Charlie wanted to be a figurehead so he wouldn’t have to do any work.

“Been my goal for the last 30 years,” he said.

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