Are year-round landscaping maintenance contracts worth it in NB?

Year-round landscaping maintenance contracts are worth it for most New Brunswick homeowners, offering better pricing, guaranteed service availability, and consistent care that prevents the costly neglect cycles that NB's extreme seasonal demands create. The value proposition is strongest for homeowners who travel frequently, have large properties, or simply prefer to spend their limited free time on something other than lawn and garden work during NB's short but intense growing season.

A typical year-round NB maintenance contract covers all four seasons and includes: spring cleanup and bed preparation (April-May), weekly mowing and garden maintenance (May-October), fall cleanup and winterization (October-November), and winter snow removal (November-April). Comprehensive contracts run $3,000-6,000 annually for a standard residential property, which breaks down to roughly $250-500 per month. When you compare this to hiring individual services separately — spring cleanup ($200-500), seasonal mowing ($800-2,000), fall cleanup ($250-600), winterization ($200-500), and snow removal ($600-1,500) — the bundled contract typically saves 15-25%.

The financial savings are real but aren't the biggest benefit. The true value of a year-round contract is consistency and timing. NB's landscape maintenance has tight windows — pre-emergent herbicide must go down when forsythia blooms in early May, fall fertilizer needs to be applied in September, irrigation winterization must happen before the first freeze in late October. Miss these windows and you're dealing with consequences (crabgrass infestations, winterkill, burst pipes) that cost far more to fix than the maintenance would have cost to do. A professional under contract doesn't miss these windows because your property is built into their seasonal schedule.

Contract quality varies significantly across NB's landscaping market, so evaluate carefully. Ask exactly what's included in each seasonal phase — some contracts are genuinely comprehensive while others cover only basic mowing and snow removal, leaving expensive tasks like fertilization, aeration, winterization, and pruning as add-on charges. Get a detailed written scope of work for each season, including specific frequencies (weekly mowing? biweekly?), materials included (fertilizer types, mulch quantities), and seasonal transition tasks.

Look for contracts with built-in flexibility. NB's weather is unpredictable — some years spring arrives two weeks early, other years winter lingers into late April. A good contract company adjusts their schedule to actual conditions rather than rigid calendar dates. Ask how they handle unusual seasons and whether additional snow events or extra mowing visits during wet summers incur surcharges.

The contract may not be worth it if your property is small and you enjoy yard work. A homeowner with a small city lot in Moncton or Fredericton who finds gardening relaxing can maintain their own property for $300-600 annually in materials, with the main investment being time — roughly 3-5 hours per week during the growing season and occasional half-day projects for seasonal transitions. But for properties over a quarter acre, for homeowners with physical limitations, or for anyone who values their weekends too much to spend them mowing and raking, the professional contract delivers excellent value and protects an investment that typically represents 10-15% of your home's total property value.

---

Find a Landscaping Contractor

New Brunswick Landscaping connects you with experienced contractors through the https://newbrunswickconstructionnetwork.com:

• Urban Landscaping Ltd ✓
• Leger Steel Roofing ✓
• Hickory Dickory Decks Moncton ✓