Hydroseeding Ethics

© 2002 Wendy Dager

When landscaping is about more than just money
If you visit the Web site of the San Diego Chapter of the California Landscape Contractors Association, http://www.clcasandiego.org, you will see a "Member Code of Ethics."

                "Each member has an obligation to serve the public and serve the association," says the site. "Thus enriching the overall landscape industry through dedication and service."

                It goes on to list a number of principles involved in providing this dedication and service, including: "To practice honesty as the foundation of all my endeavors, realizing that the first and foremost responsibility is to my client in rendering professional landscape services."

        Whether you're a member of the CLCA or another group, or even if you don't belong to any professional organization at all, ethical conduct should be a given. Lately, however, there's been a slight deviation from the Golden Rule when it comes to certain aspects of hydroseeding.

        Seems that there are some landscapers who make inexpensive substitutions-particularly in the case of costly or difficult-to-find native plants-and fail to inform the customer. Or, the customer is informed, but the agency providing the contract requirements is left out of the loop. In either case, a code of ethics has been breached, and a substitution is used simply for the sake of saving a few bucks.

        "It happens a lot," says S&S Seeds' Paul Albright. "If the owner or architect allows the change, but doesn't amend his permit, it's a violation, both contractually and ethically. For instance, in some cases, the permitting agency is expecting a certain type of plant-usually a native-to be used on a job site. So, if a contractor uses the less expensive nonnative without obtaining a change order, then the permit is violated."

According to Paul, city and county permitting agencies have stringent specifications about permanent ground cover.

        "Generally, when it's just a Best Management Practice cover (See the Best of the Leaf-let: "Why Best Management Practice Doesn't Always Work," http://www.albrightseed.com/bmp.htm.), agencies aren't too concerned about the type of seed being used, as long as it holds soil in place," said Paul. "But when the job calls for a permanent reseeding cover or a perennial grass for either a long-term grading plan, or because of environmental concerns, a landscaper should never just put in a low-cost, nonnative substitution without informing the customer or permitting agency."

        Experts believe this practice will ultimately contribute to fewer jobs for hydroseeding industry professionals.

Getting What You Pay For

        In his aticle "Hydroseeding: Getting All That You Paid For" in Hydroseed Journal, Michael G. Mellon, former market account executive for Weyerhaeuser, wrote: "In tough economic times, it's often difficult to maintain prices and quality in the face of stiff competition. In an industry such as ours where there are few absolute standards and the customer is not particularly well-informed about our processes and techniques, the possibility for abuse is always present.

        "Poor quality work hurts all of us. Too often, it is not the poor contractor that gets blamed for the job, it is the techniques. Pretty soon, you'll see less hydraulic planting specified in favor of some other technique, and then where will each of us be?"

        Landscapers who continue the practice of surreptitiously substituting seed to save money should remember that alternative planting methods are certainly not as cost-effective as hydroseeding.

        "Substitutions undermine hydroseeding," said Paul. "If the owner or architect expect a certain bunch of plants, but the landscaper never put the correct seed in, it eventually has to be replaced with a more expensive method, like sod or rooted cuttings or container plants."

        In fact, re-establishment of native vegetation is best performed via direct seeding, according to "Revegetating With Native Plants at Drastically Disturbed Sites" (http://www.forester.net/ec_0003_revegetating.html), by John Steinbacher.

        "The seeding process is perhaps the single most important component of a revegetation plan to establish native plants on roadway slopes following disturbance," said Steinbacher.

        Not only is a landscaper required to use the best methods when doing a job, he's also obligated to inform the customer if aspects of the contract-such as seed requirements-cannot be fulfilled.

        "If a specified seed variety is not available," said Steinbacher, "the contractor should be required to consult with the operator prior to any substitutions."

        And that's where other ethics violations may occur, such as unfair bidding practices.

Better Bidders

        "If a contractor or supplier offers an acceptable apparent low bid using an alternate item, then all of a job's original bidders need a chance to re-bid the project," said Paul. "Since we're talking about ethics here, it's only fair that an owner or architect gives all other bidders the opportunity to quote the job using the substitution, rather than simply giving the job to whoever suggested the lower-cost subsititution. It's also important to make sure all parties involved-the owner, contractor, and permitting agency-are aware a substitution is being considered and that the bid amount is adjusted accordingly."

        If S&S customers need assistance in re-bidding a job using a permitted substitution, we are more than happy to offer alternatives.

        "Just call us at (805) 684-0436 to ask about substitutes and we'll make sure they conform to the contract," said Paul. "With our knowledge base and years of experience, we'll be able to give the best advice so you won't have to go back to the job, tear it out, and start over again. Getting it right the first time is the most cost-effective-and ethical-way to go."
        
 

Buy Seeds Now

Download the Albright Seed Catalog as an Acrobat PDF file now
pdf catalog download (55K) (requires Acrobat Reader)