Local landscaper offers green options for consumers
Though some home and garden businesses might be struggling, one
landscaper has turned to environmentally friendly options to keep
her business busy.
Local landscaper offers green options for consumers
Though some home and garden businesses might be struggling, one landscaper has turned to environmentally friendly options to keep her business busy.
Peggy Churchill has owned Cutting Edge Landscape and Maintenance Company, Inc. for six years. Staff design, install and maintain landscaping.
“We’re feeling the pinch of it as a business, but we’re trying to recreate ourselves this year and take advantage of going green,” Churchill said. “Not going to let it take us down.”
Churchill’s background is in drought-resistant plants.
“People have this thing about wanting [gardens] to look lush,” Churchill said. “There are ways to do that that don’t take a lot of water.”
Churchill uses her business as an opportunity to reeducate people.
“When people want it to look lush and tropical, most of the time we can talk them out of it,” Churchill said.
Churchill uses plants that are native to California or have low water requirements.
“Palms are great if you find the right one for this area,” Churchill said.
Churchill encourages customers to think beyond a lawn.
“Lawns take a lot of water,” Churchill said. “There are a lot of great grasses out there that give that grassy kind of feel.”
She likes meadow grass.
“It’s so cool,” Churchill said. “You don’t have to mow this. The water requirements are a lot less. You can water it once a week, and it’s fine.”
Churchill takes advantage of winter rains.
“Most times, native plants prefer to be planted in the fall,” Churchill said. “Summer is not the best time to plant.”
Cutting Edge staff reuse things on a homeowner’s property in their landscape.
“Things that people think are junk, they look really good in your yard,” Churchill said. “In this one yard they were going to throw away all these bricks. There were three pallets of it. We reused 90 percent of it on her yard.”
Cutting Edge staff use a lot of stones and recycled goods in landscaping..
“Recycled glass, recycled anything,” Churchill said. “There’s a lot of great places in the city where you can buy recycled goods, recycled wood. It’s amazing what’s out there if you do some research.”
It will take several years for the business to be completely “green,” Churchill said.
“The lights are going off in other people’s heads,” Churchill said. “This year we are implementing it into our business.”
This is Churchill’s second landscaping business.
“When I first started doing my own company with my ex-business partner,” Churchill said, “drought-tolerant native plants were my specialty.”
She could not convince anyone in San Benito County to use them. Most of her work was in the Carmel Valley.
“I had to go outside of this area to people who were more concerned about the environment,” Churchill said.
Now, 80 percent of Cutting Edge’s business is based in San Benito County, Churchill said.
“I’m able to bring that in now, whereas before, I couldn’t,” Churchill said. “People are kind of getting forced into rethinking on landscaping. That is helping my business, not hurting my business.”
