Quote:
Originally Posted by parmenion
Just got to add my experience to this subject. I have used them for about 3 years and up to last year relatively OK, but not brilliant. Overspill from hoppers never cleaned up and quality of service and end product average. That was until this Spring when the front lawn was found to be full of moss and in a terrible state (images taken),in fact it looked like scrub land. I complained to my local Green Thumb franchise for Willington, Durham area. They came out, treated the lawn, put a note through the letterbox, and that was the last I have heard from them. I also emailed Green Thumb head office without success, not even the courtesy of a reply. End result was that I had to have the front lawn taken up and replaced with new turf. I now carry out the treatment myself. The results are both lawns are now looking great, and I have also saved a few quid, which goes towards the cost of the new lawn.
My advice is be careful in your decission, I have no doubt from some of the previous posts that in other areas you do get a good service and end product, but if it goes wrong, as it did in my case, they walk away leaving you to pick up the pieces.
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**** GREEN THUMB****
I am a greenkeeper and I have worked and studied hard to get my qualifications. I have a LOVE for both the game of golf and GRASS. It's science and how it grows/develops intrests me greatly. I know a few ex-greenkeepers that have gone ot work for greenthumb, but not for very long !!!! The Greenthumb practice, as a few have mentioned here already, is a mass marketing 'One size Fits All' product.
THIS NEXT PART IS VERY VERY IMPORTANT - AND UK LAW !!!!
For anyone to spary chemicals on private gardens/public land they need to be qualified to a minimum of PA1 & PA6.
This is the link to what chemical one of my greenkeeper friends was using in the midlands whilst greenthumb (You can only purcahse this is you have the PA1 & PA6 certificate to produce)
Relay Turf 5L - Professional Selective Weed Killers For Weeds In Turf - Pitchcare Shop
Towards the bottom of the page is a box with VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION about the use of the chemical:-
Safe Use of Pesticides
The last paragraph is of most importance:-
Please be aware that by proceeding you are purchasing a professional pesticide product. You must ensure the end user of these products complies with the DEFRA/HSE Code for the Safe use of Pesticides:
"By law, everyone who uses pesticides professionally must have received adequate training in using pesticides safely and be skilled in the job they are carrying out."
None of hte greenthumb staff he worked with were PA1 or PA6 quailfied. He was disgusted with there handling of the chemical, washing spilt chemical into the land drains, causing possible contamination.
My main bug bear is that greenthumb send out staff to care for customers lawns with no skill/experience, and not qualified, thus they are breaking the law. The machinery (fertiliser spreaders and weedkill sprayers) were not calibrated, so the customer were not getting the optimum treatment (Which is what they were paying for).
Would anybody let someone work on theri gas boiler who wasn't Gas Safe qualfied, or let a mechanic work on their car, who had been a briklayer the week before !!!! Greenthumb work on NUMBERS..... As many gardens treated in a day, regardless of weather condtions. Why spray weedkill when it is raining. Ask any greenkeeper/groundsman if thay would spray in rain ,and they would say 'No' as the rain will just wash the weedkill away, thus not doing it's job.
Sorry for the rant, but it angers me seeing the greenthumb market hold, and how they are breaking the law and ripping people of. From memory, my friend sad that they were not even mixing enough weedkill chemical with the water, so they were applying a weakend soultion, again not doign the job the customer was paying for..... But our British way is not to complain so they get away with it ........ !!!!