Oh my, GrammaChar, my heart sank reading!! I admire your positive attitude about the whole thing.

After thinking about it, I wanted to delete that post. But I didn't know how. It makes me sound like a whiner. I had never dealt with a yard service before, but when my husband became ill I knew I needed help. I shouldn't complain about the results. The workers were always polite and helpful - and I'm sure they do a great job on suburban yards with sidewalks, curbs, and well-defined flower beds. They just didn't know what to do with my "natural setting" where many of the plants have jumped out of the beds and into the paths. Guess that's why they call them "wild flowers". They don't like to be caged.

So true about wildflowers, they have a mind of their own. I don't think you sounded like a whiner at all, more the opposite, way too nice! It's just sad that more people aren't concerned or aware of how important our natural habitat is! I guess you don't blame them since you didn't explain why you wanted to be there when they did the yard work, in that regard I suppose I would think the same. Actually, I do it all the time with my dh (dear husband) who is a maniac when he gets on that riding mower, everything is subject to getting mowed down!

If you ever want to delete a post here's what you do:

At the bottom right side of your post you will see options, next to the green-thumbs-up button.
Click on "Edit" and you can erase, change any of the contents of the post.

Problem with yard service? Yes, it's really difficult after you've been taking care of everything yourself. YOU know where things are, then someone comes along and it only takes a second. I can relate. I don't know what happened because the post isn't there, but I can tell you that I learned to go out when they arrived, explained exactly where to do what, then they would do it. I think they appreciated the fact I was nice but direct, so they knew ahead of time exactly what to work on and what to leave. It also took me three times to find a really good service, so keep that in mind. Once you get a good one, they remember each time they come, and then it becomes a stress reliever that someone else is working in the yard!

Side story- A friend of mine in California has a pretty tree outside her balcony, with a hummingbird nest. She lives in a development where the HOA hires the landscapers, so she has no control over what they are asked to do. The landscapers really like to trim trees- every week. So she and her husband actually schedule their work (because they can) around the time the landscapers come each week, and watch and make sure the hummingbird nest isn't disturbed. Now that's dedication...