Sorry but that sounds a little prejudgemental.
Is your truck sign better? Does that make your work better?

I agree with you, Creatrix! That sign indicates to me that the person is not taking either profession very seriously. Rightly or wrongly, it reminds me that ANYbody with a truck and a shovel can go into the landscaping business!

Some of the funniest combo signs that I have ever seen have to do with tree companies. The kind of tree companies you don't want to hire, by the way! 'TREE SURGERY AND FURNITURE MOVING', 'ACE TREE AND POWERWASHING', etc.

I have been thinking about getting a sign for my truck and will keep this in mind if I ever get around to it. I just want to advertise the nursery though not the landscaping part. I was thinking just the business name as it's web address and Tropical Plant Nursery, what it is.

ilima

Best truck sign I've ever seen was in El Rito, NM on a honey wagon owned by a local firm called Al's Outflow Technicians: "Your sh*t is our bread and butter"

Except that honey isn't bee sh*t...

I don't have a truck sign yet. Heck, I don't even have a truck yet!

I knew I sounded a bit judgemental. I think I was after the difference between lawn care/mowing service and landscape care- pruning knowledge, plant pest and disease knowledge. Though I don't have an applicator's license, I do let my clients know if there is a problem that should be treated, or evaluated by someone with more knowledge than I have.

There's nothing wrong with providing either or both services. I was musing on the term 'landscaping' and how it's used to cover a lot of ground.

I don't think you can do it with a sign on the truck. You are correct that 'landscaping' is not very specific. In the beginning you need the 'phone to ring ,later you can sort out the details.

Here's what I think one of the progressions is...
--person with a mower/blower and trailer
--gets several mait. jobs around town
--Buys truck and more equipment from another landscaper
--Paints sign on truck so cops don't ticket
--Mrs. Brown asks to replace a dead shrub
--next season gets more mait., some shrub replacements, business is good and buys a new truck
--new sign says 'Landscape Contractor: Design & Maitainence'
--learns that 5-10 plant varieties will do well and not need replacement--uses those on all jobs in all conditions--this is their 'design' service.

Many homeowners don't want more than this. And that's a lot of the reason why suburban landscapes look the same!

I have watched that progression continue to very well skilled high quality landscape company in many cases. I have seen it stagnate somewhere else on that progression more often than not.

What I can not figure out here is where the rest of us come from. Are we born high end designers? I don't hear a lot of people on this forum talking about education much more than the Master Gardeners Program, a few courses at an area college, or an online program.

I started out with a rust bucket pickup and the tools from my father's garage long before I went to school.

It is a diverse field. We live with the big "box" landscapers, the great designers, the lawn jockies, the lowballers, and everything else. There is no reason to be insecure about anyone one else unless we are insecure ourselves. I always say that we declare our own assessment of ourselves by who we identify as our competition. When we look at who we see as our competition, we look in the mirror. What do you see?

I'm not sure just our perception of ourselves and how we perceive our "competition" are the only factors in play here. How John Q. Public views the industry has a whole lot more impact on me and my business than any kind of professional competition. Even in an area as rich in nurseries, designers, other landscape professionals and avid home gardeners as my neck of the woods, lack of public understanding of the industry and how it differs from individual to individual and task to task is huge. Many (not all) homeowners new to hiring any landscape professional have the perception that this is a pretty much unskilled field with a small amount of specific applied knowledge and value it accordingly. Business advertising like the subject sign on truck doesn't do a whole lot to dispell this premise.

One of the basic tenets of the business classes offered in conjunction to my horticultural education (and yes, I have a bit more extensive education than a MG course or a couple of night classes) was that the more professional one was in their demeanor and how they presented and conducted their business, the more seriously and professionally they would be received by potential clients. And in my book, professionalism, together with education/training and skill set equals increased value.

While I concede there is probably room in this industry for a wide range of approaches and backgrounds, I think it behooves us all to approach our chosen profession with as much dignity and professionalism as possible. I'm not sure it matters so much if one's skill set is derived from a formal education or a practical, hands-on approach as it is the presentation we offer to the public. While small engine repair may be a perfectly reasonable way to carry one through the off-season, combining this with landscaping "services" lowers the expectations down to more of a handyman status, like the many services I see in my area that advertise in handpainted letters on the side of the truck "gutter cleaning, hauling, and landscaping". Sorry, but I just do not see myself reflected in that type of competition, nor do I want to.

Is there a show called "What not to wear for Landscapers"? If there is someone needs to turn me in to them for a wardrobe makeover. Most of the time I look like I have rolled around on the floor of a small engine repair shop. The sap from many plants, banana and croton are the worst, act like dye and when you wash the clothes it only accentuates the spot. I get two days max out of a clean shirt before it looks like it is covered in oil.

Good thing I have a sparkling personality.

ilima

Just what Gardengal said!

There is an anecdote in the book "Blind Eye" by James Stewart about a quirky M.D. who drove a pickup truck emblazoned with the following sign:

DR. ____ - NEUROSURGERY AND LIGHT HAULING

Well, I guess I fall into the 'couple of night classes' category. I did stick it out for an Assoc. degree. Wish I could go to a four year program, but it's not possible right now.

Interestingly, the program head did tell us he would accept the small engine repair class as an elective towards a horticulture degree. That guy may have been a classmate of mine, now that I think about it.

Maybe I'm a bit touchy about terms since I am/was a RN. Lots of people get called 'nurse' who are not real nurses. I guess I'll battle this by getting certified in my new career and trying to dress and act professionally when possible. (I did not look very professional when I slipped on wet grass and landed on my behind!)

What I was trying to say was this. You are not going to change how the industry as a whole is perceived. You are in control how you are perceived. When you stand next to the "landscape and engine repair" guy is there a comparison? I hope not. If there is not, there is nothing to worry about. If there is ......

So what does it matter?

You could just as easily wonder if it was better to go to the singles bar with a group of ugly friends and stand out as the good looking one, or head out with the beautiful people and be the duckling. Once you get into the general population you are no more or less beautiful.

Pam says it.
Your truck and the clothes you wear and the way you conduct yourself should be considered 'livery'.
When you get home you can post a message here and those that have been there and done that will understand and you can temper swear words with an asterix.
You sound like one of the 'Good Guys' creatrix and slipping on wet grass is always a plus in my book.
As an aside, Gertrude Jekyll who is one of the most influential people in the history of garden design thought of herself as a simple gardener.

At a recent party of designers, artists and gardeners , one of the men had a t-shirt on that read , " I make stuff up " .

If I had signage on my truck, those are the words that I would choose.

The Doyenne of Dirt and Design.
I make stuff up.

mich- maybe you could get a part time job writing plant catalogs!

"Reliably perennial" (as long as the summer isn't too hot and the winter isn't too wet)

"Dwarf selection" (8' instead of 12')

"Holds color through the summer" (as long as it's in the precise amount of shade/sun)

I've been building some doors for the greenhouse. Dowels and glue and clamps. The doors aren't square and neither is the jamb. I've had to customize each one to fit.

Be wary of the guy who has "I do custom work." as the tag line on his sign.

jb

Creatrix--Let's not forget 'vigorous' (invasive, spreading thug that you'll never get rid of and regret planting forever)

Junior that cracked me up. I must do a lot of custom work tooÂ
Our sign at the entrance to the nursery is getting a bit tattered. Does that bug me, Yes. Does that keep customers from coming in? No.
It's not the sign that makes our nursery. It's not the sign on the truck that makes him or her what they are.
Working in the yard and diggin in the dirt will always be considered "menial task". That's why we get hired to do the work that others can't or don't want to do. And thatÂs fine by me.

Laag hit it on the head. Don't worry about it and you'll stand above it.

BTW: New letters are on there way to fix the entrance sign.