Good, reliable and professional landscapers are SO HARD to find. John's Landscaping is one such company. I have now had them clean/mulch, remove dead arbs and replant with arbs and dogwood, and prune unruly Rose of Sharons. With EACH job, the timing was fast, the job was clean, the workers were nice and respectful. Just beautiful work all around. (I should mention I'm a crazy green thumb and typically do all the yardwork and smaller landscaping myself-- I'm not picky about the job, but I am picky about timeframes for getting a job done so I can keep up with the rest of my yardwork). Here's more of the story... I hired a fantastic company to do a big job in my back yard 3-4 years ago. By the next season they had retired (probably from my job hah hah). I talked to all sorts of neighbors and locals I knew: any good landscapers? I need mulching, I need some pruning, and I need some replacement work on older shrubs/trees. I called 4 companies referred to me by friends. No call backs. I then got a referral from my arborist. The company was Another Level Landscaping-- really nice people, but a very small outfit and while they really want to please everyone and take the work (they are very nice), it was hard to get any call backs and even harder to pin down a date for the jobs. After four months I finally got a nice pruning and mulching done. Then back to square one: it was impossible to get a call back or a booking. Then I found John's Landscaping. WOW. I left a message, they called me back the next day. John came down to survey all my needs-- very professional, very nice. We had a conversation-- usually landscapers try to tell me what I want, but John asked ME what I wanted and how I use the land. He also asked me what I like and didn't like. The next day I got a quote with the three options we discussed, and the prices were competitive and reasonable. I selected an option and asked if we could change a few things, and he did it-- no problem. Two days later his designer was over the house to take pictures and make sure they selected the right size trees and shrubs for growth and optimal planting. Four days later I had two dead arbs removed and a new arb and dogwood planted by the most respectful workers I think we've every had working in our yard. It was two weeks from my initial call. Next was mulching. Same experience (though I recommend you talk to them about the kind of mulch you prefer, which I didn't do-- still it was beautiful). Next was pruning our unruly Rose of Sharons. The flowers drop like crazy in the summer months. I really wanted them thinned and cut back in a very specific design, and the job they did was amazing. Just amazing. It was like art-- AND then were careful to cut around two different nests in two of the trees. I can't say enough about how they operate and the people who work for them. I rest easy from Spring to Fall knowing if I need some work I can get it accomplished usually within 2-3 weeks from my ask. BIG difference from all previous experiences. read more

A horrible company. Did not follow any of the requests from the property owner. Very rude and harassing. Please do NOT work with this company ever read more

Would give them 0 stars if I could !!.. Horrible customer service and no accountability at all. From the top down "John" has no sense of responsibility for what they claim to do. read more

terrible- they hacked at my evergreen- did not weed properly and, though they asked me to mark a bush- then cropped other bushes. The moving was patchy and everything looks like a horrible haircut. Owner thinks this is a POV issue- but tis not. Never again- read more

They showed up unannounced and started work without discussing what I wanted, despite a specific request to walk the property with me. Did a terrible job, hacking apart the bushes unevenly and leaving them damaged, and then charged more than twice what was quoted. read more

The slew of one star reviews don't do this place justice. My encounter with one of their employees was terrible. The young male was full of rage so much so that I had to start recording his behavior. I'd give 0 stars if possible. read more

Terrible ! They messed up my garden and lawn. Person on phone rude and hangs up when I complained.

What really gets me is that even with all of these complaints, which I completely believe, how is this guy still in business? Probably because his signs are on just about every other house's lawns, people see them, and figure "well, if he does this many lawns, he's got to be good". He's good alright, REALLY good at robbing people. read more

(Note: I would leave zero stars if I could.) If you want to overpay for mediocre service to a company that completely disregards their customer's requests and performs services you did not request and then makes you pay for them, John's is the perfect landscaping company for you. We had been using John's for spring and fall clean-up for nearly three years. We would contact them a month or so in advance, request a quote for leaf pick up and removal, and basic trimming/pruning, and then approve the services we wanted, and schedule a time for them to come. We specified the week we wanted the clean-up services performed to make sure the last clean-up was done after all of the leaves had fallen. We also never said anything about cutting our lawn and in fact, specifically mentioned to them that we handle that ourselves. The past couple of times John's came for spring/fall clean-up services, they came weeks before the last leaves had fallen, and also tacked on a $90 fee for mowing the lawn. When we emailed Toni to express our dissatisfaction with the timing of the service and the fact we were charged an extra $90 for something we specifically asked not to be done, Toni was rude and blamed John for the timing issue, saying that he added us to the schedule and he's the one that handles that. She also reluctantly removed the $90 charge for mowing after going back and forth over email a few times. Toni also mentioned she would "make a note in our file" that we do not want the lawn cut. We gave them the benefit of the doubt and figured the past issues were misunderstandings, so we reached out to John's for a quote for fall clean-up again recently. And while we were still trying to figure out how we wanted to handle clean-up this fall with our neighbor, they took it upon themselves to show up to our property to mow the lawn, clean up, and remove barely any leaves without our consent or approval. When we contacted Toni to find out why the services were performed without our consent, she sent a rude email, basically blaming us and claiming that we were on "auto renew." Auto renew is not something that was ever discussed or mentioned by anyone ever. We have been requesting a quote and providing approval for services twice a year for more than two years and auto renewal of services was never mentioned. After contacting John about this issue he swore up and down there is no lack of communication and claims that his company "leads the industry in our response to clients." Unfortunately John is severely disconnected from reality, and clearly doesn't pay attention to the feedback he has received from his current and former clients. In addition, John is sorely mistaken if he thinks that responding to a client email within an hour or two means that he is providing quality customer service and that his team has stellar communication. If you don't listen to your customers when they make specific requests, and your scheduler doesn't communicate to your team performing the services about what they should and should not be doing prior to going to a customer's property, that equals poor communication. There are a number of specific examples in this review alone of places where your company failed to communicate internally. Toni's said she made a note in our file about the lawn cutting and yet, our lawn was cut when the team showed up to complete services we did not authorize. More than once, someone on their end screwed up, because of poor internal communication. We are not only getting blamed for it, but they are trying to make us pay for services we did not authorize. I strongly suggest going elsewhere for your landscaping services. Don't waste your time having to deal with John's. read more

This is the worst company ever. Only contact this company if you want to end up being sued in small claims court. We contacted John's Landscape to meet with us to redo a small backyard for a family gathering. We communicated right from the start that we needed to have the work done by a certain date. And that the top end of our budget was $12,000. We asked for a free estimate. A woman met us at the property and we suggested some ideas on patio, grass, and shrubs. Mind you the yard, like most properties just outside Boston, the back yard is postage stamp size. After several emails back and forth with Lisa, she sent us an "estimate" of the cost of the job. It was not an itemized estimate but ranges. The total cost was $17,500!!! We asked for an itemized estimate so we could start eliminating options to reduce the price. We asked for a picture. None was provided. In fact we stated that we could perform some of the work ourselves to save on the final cost. That suggestion was never factored in. We asked what the cost of a particular stone would be the very first meeting and were provided a price. When we were given the "final" estimate the price for the stone was much higher. Because we needed the work to start right away we paid a good faith deposit of $1,000 to be put towards the final cost. We were sent several "plans" from Lisa with some ideas of layouts for the yard. Working with Lisa it became clear that we could not agree upon a plan or a cost. It was not until several weeks of going back and forth with Lisa that the owner John jumped in. His goal was not to please the customer but to make sure he could get as much money out of us as he could! He was antagonistic and very condescending. From our conversations I learned he is not actually educated or trained in the landscape business. He is a business man! He never once came to the property to suggest ideas or attempt a resolution. After much stress and anxiety from this man, we decided to go with another awesome company who did the work and then some for $5,000 less than what John's Landscaping wanted. Happy ending to the story?? Almost! John sued us to keep the $1,000 deposit which he stated was for the cost of the plan Lisa drew up - a plan we did not want! AND we googled landscape plans and there are hundreds of the same plan for FREE on the internet! We spent months in court fighting this charge. Turns out we are not the only customers or potential customers that he has sued in small claims. A search of court records shows at least 25 other people that he dragged into court. Most people settle out of court because it's easier and quicker. Some people who did not settle and defended themselves in court won. No wonder John never came to our house. He is in court so often the court workers are familiar with him. In the end, John gets paid for unsatisfactory work. Long story short do not consult with this company. You will end up paying for a "free estimate"! read more

We hired this company for snow removal, expecting that these completely absurd prices would get us quality service. At the first big snowfall I had a plow driven into my house and snow piled onto my walkway rather than removed from it. When I called to let them know what an awful experience it was, I didn't even get an apology, but was told it was my fault I was upset. If you enjoy paying 4 times more than what competitors charge and then being either ignored or treated like an idiot, then this is the company for you. read more

Did $10-12k work with John's about 8 months ago. Gutter drainage has already failed, which I had to dig up and replace myself. They duct taped sections of drain pipe together underground - It was an 8 ft section (!) - Of course that failed. John refused to refund the work even after I asked him to consider negotiating less than the original cost. Outside of this one issue: A few things to know before you consider working with John's: 1) John himself is defensive and argumentative, 2) John didn't even know what was in his own work agreements (I pointed out the details to him myself) and 3) These defects seem to bleed into the experience created for customers. A good analogy is like if you were to have the RMV build your patio, where the people you pay actually resent you. I am a relatively particular customer when it comes to the aesthetic and functionality of my outdoor space. If you are at all particular, or if you want to have the company taking thousands of dollars from you patiently discuss your project details, there are far less stressful alternatives. read more

This landscaping company regularly comes to Cambridge and uses multiple loud tools on a single property for over an hour at a time in the mornings and afternoons. The fumes and dust they kick up with their leaf blowers is awful. We have complained to the company and to the residents, but that's what you get for caring about yourself more than others. Stop using leaf blowers on these small properties when you know you have a lot of neighbors. Where is your common courtesy and thoughtfulness for the environment? read more

To say he is overpriced is an understatement. I had no idea until I talked with a few of my friends who told me what they pay for snow removal....about 1/4 of what John's charges. They were shocked when I discussed his prices. As far as $500 for a driveway as someone else stated, a much better price can be found for a driveway. As low as $100.....or less. Live and learn....like I did. read more

We hired John's Landscape to mow our lawn one season. John had promised "the highest level of service and professionalism" but we got the opposite. I called one day to say that I was unhappy about how the lawn looked, they had missed several spots. They did return the next day and re-cut it and it looked fine. Then a week or two later, the same thing. I called again and they came out and re-cut it again. Then we had problems with the workers throwing their cigarette buts in the lawn as they worked. Overall the quality was terrible and when I complained, John called me and told me that we were paying the minimum for the service so that is what we were getting for serivce. The following year we hired a different company who was working out quite well. But then we got a notice that John's had bought out the company we were using and was going to take over for the remainder of the season. I contacted them and cancelled the service right away. There had been several people in my neighborhood that had used John's that same season as well and everyone has gotten rid of them. read more

John's was a decent price but they came and started working before 7am and it was a surprise to us as we were still asleep and were sad to be woken by a company that was supposed to be serving us, and they also upset my neighbors. They aren't rude people but they deliver a rude service. read more

In the Spring we had our garden beds mulched by John's Landscape. I had heard great reviews from neighbors who use their service, however, I was not very impressed by the attitude of the foreman on the day of service. He was very unpleasant and had the attitude that he just wanted to do the job and get out of there-maybe he had a bad night. I have to compliment his team though, they did the job and seemed much more pleasant then their manager that day. Overall, they did a good job but based on attitude of the foreman alone-I dont know that I would pay for their service again. read more

John's Landscaping was very professional and prompt. John showed up on time and had some really creative ideas for a design. His design team does a great job and worked with us through multiple revisions of the project. The install was done on time and in a professional manner and the yard looks great. Would recommend and work with again! read more

We used John's Landscaping Service for a substantial project at our home in Belmont which entailed stonework, landscaping, irrigation, some carpentry, lighting, tree trimming, paving, and wrought iron railing work. We are extremely happy with the final product and with the entire process. John's network of contractors and employees are professional - they show up when the say they will, are courteous and careful, and collaborative in solving problems. His designers and project managers, Lisa and Chip, understood the look we wanted, and with their experience and skill, helped us achieve something truly exceptional! read more

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If you have a flat yard, lots of $, and low expectations hire them. Our experience was this: Edged 2/3 of the garden and left the rest untouched. it looked so weird, why would they do that? Cut own the perennials when using the trimmer to cut the grass. Our uneven sloped yard was cut with a big mower so in some spots the grass was 1/2 inch high and in other spots it was 6 inches high. They left tire tracks through mud in the yard - mud was where grass was 1/2 inch high. Often didn't even cut the whole yard, skipped cutting along the neighbors fence and around our shed. Spend no more than 20 minutes on our yard each week. Sprayed/fertilized but didn't fill in the tag for how long we couldn't use the yard. Moved lawn furniture to cut grass but never put it back. We really wanted to like them but it just wasn't going to happen. Our yard is till in recovery. read more

John's created a ground cover front garden for us with a beautiful stone walking path. They also installed an irrigation system to our front and rear yard and did a soil amendment for a raised planting bed to prepare for vegetable planting. The work was beautiful, reasonably priced and very professional. We highly recommend John's Landscape Service! read more

JLS did another stellar job for us. It is rare to find a company that places finding solutions for their customers over everything else. His design team was available and responsive throughout our project handling every issue promptly. I have used his maintenance team and have always received compliments from our guests. My property has become a cornerstone for the neighborhood and John is now serving many of the houses in our area. I highly recommend JLS without reservation. read more

Way overpriced. Sent us a contract for 3 yards of mulch and then charged us an extra 150.00 for 4 yards of mulch and never said anything. Refused to take it off the bill. Very unresponsive when I've called. Do not use this company. read more

John's Landscaping has spent many, many more hours mailing, emailing, texting, calling and filing claims against me than he did doing any sort of yard work at our house. It's just baffling the time he has put into hounding me to pay for work he simply did not do. This guy is a true thief. His method seems to be endless harassment, including filing claims in court until you get so frustrated that you pay him off just so he goes away. His persistence shows me that unfortunately it often must work for him. It's not going to work this time however, I'm choosing to bite the bullet and fight this one in court. read more

I hired John's Landscaping to mow my lawn and the job they did on that was fine. I have a small driveway (20 ft by 35 ft). Usually I shovel it myself but with this Nemo storm it was too much for me. So I called John. He gave me a price of $500 to plow the driveway! That is about 4 times what the price should have been. That is how he treats his existing customers. So I am looking for a new landscaper! Stay away from John's Landscaping. read more

I couldn't agree more with Anna. Inflated prices and highly exaggerated hours worked.

Two years ago John's Landscaping created a beautiful garden for me. Their service was excellent. During the winter a representative came and planned. Before spring, the plans were presented for my approval. They came exactly when they said they would---in time for my garden party---and did a superb job. Everyone was prompt, respectful, hard-working, and took great care in the quality of the service. Now two years later, all the plants are thriving and my garden looks gorgeous. I couldn't be happier with the outcome. Never a bad moment. read more

I used John's Landscaping to help me remove the jungle that was growing at my house. John made me feel very comfortable and listened to what I wanted as well as shared ideas. Their work was reasonable and they went beyond my expectations. i know have a green yard and front lawn! read more

A big thanks to Lisa and John and the staff in the office. They did a complete make over of my back patio in South Boston and I now have a magnificent backyard and patio to enjoy daily. There work was professional and precisely what Lisa designed. I can't say enough on how pleased I am with the job. read more

We couldn't be happier with the quality of service or the customer service that we received throughout the process. The crew was outstanding and far exceeded our expectations! read more

These are guys are thieves disguising themselves as landscapers and now they are hounding me for payment for services never rendered. I'm embarrassed that I didn't do better due diligence on these guys.. read more

This summer I let go the mid-summer maintenance around my house. During this period, weeds of all kinds and varieties grew everywhere in great abundance--in my shrub beds in front and around the house including the back yard; in mulched areas around trees in my front yard. My bushers had overgrown. It alll looked like a real mess and very unsightful. I called John's service since he had been doing my spring and fall cleanups, and in one day his crew performed what I might call a real miracles. I came home one evening and I couldn't believe my eyes. It was as if a magic wand had been waved over my yard. All weeds had, I mean every weed had been removed; mulching had been done; bushes trimmed and edging competed in all areas and including cleaning up and regraveling a walkway into a wooded area next to my side yard on the left side of the house. A super effort and absolutely a first class result. read more