The ski resort Whistler Mountain is almost as busy in the summer as it is in the winter. As the weather gets warmer, people shed their skis, snowboards and snowshoes and hike, bike and climb over the hills.
With the growing popularity of year-round sport, more and more people are deciding to live up in the mountain village. Part of Whistler's appeal is its spectacular setting, its chalet-style architecture and its beautiful landscaping.
Trish Fielkowich is a landscaping contractor. She has had the opportunity to work in the village. "I worked on an 11-unit condo in Whistler," she explains. "A lot of the landscaping was already established, but the owner wanted to redo a lot of what was there."
By selecting plants appropriate to the mountain climate and by creating new rock walls, Fielkowich was able to help make the condo mesh with the Whistler design. She adds that some of the work was simply taking out weeds and covering up unsightly features.
"One of the things that needed to be done was to cover an electrical box," she says. "I put in appropriate plants that would soften the look. It's important up there to use what is natural and what fits in and goes with what is happening at Whistler."
Fielkowich enjoys working by contract so that she can choose how much she wants to work. "You negotiate the time and are your own boss," she says. "In a case like this, it was arranged so that I stayed in one of the condos while I was working. That was nice."
The landscape around the condo is vastly improved. Fielkowich hopes that with time, it will only look better. "It's the best feeling when you go back and everything is growing and doing well," she says.
Rick Doesburg is a landscape contractor in Cincinnati. He says he enjoys that same feeling when a project is completed. "It's great to drive past something the next year or even 20 years later to see what has come to fruition."
Doesburg keeps his eye on some green spaces he created more than 20 years ago. "You look out at the trees you planted long ago and see what has become of them."
He also says it's wonderful to see how the spaces evolve and are used by people.
"In essence, you're creating spaces for people to use," he says. "They can be parks, visual spaces or plantings or fences to hide or screen spaces. The variety is endless."
Once Doesburg has finished up one job, he knows one thing for certain: The next task will be different. "I enjoy the variability of every day," he says. "Every home is a new challenge. It's definitely not the same-old, same-old."
Doesburg could be building an archway, looking after drainage, supervising the digging for a swimming pool or going over color schemes for a garden. The constant change can make the work difficult. "It's a challenge, but that's what I like about it," he says.
Not only do the daily tasks change, but so do the materials. New types of wood products and stonework become available. Even the plant types vary from year to year.
"Plants that weren't available the year before may suddenly be on the market," says Doesburg. Begonias may be available in new colors or roses may come with new scents. And the hardiness of the plants may change.
"Some of the older-style plants may be prone to disease or insects that newer varieties are resistant to," he says.
Also, people's tastes change. One year, lilacs and forsythia may be in style. The next year, people plant rhododendrons. "It's just like anything else. The old-fashioned flowers come in style again at some point."
Working on landscapes requires working with other people's tastes. If clients love ornamental grasses, you most likely will have to accommodate their wishes. Fielkowich says that working with a variety of people makes the work interesting because you are exposed to different tastes.
"You meet so many different people," she says. "It's a really nice part of the job."
In addition to clients, landscape contractors deal with landscape workers, equipment rental shops and material suppliers. "Just coordinating the backhoe to come in, you can meet people who are very helpful."
In many cities across North America, not just in mountain towns like Whistler, works stops during the winter months. But Doesburg says that this is a chance for landscape contractors to plan.
"The downtime in December through to late-February is actually welcome," he says. "It gives us a chance to plan, to go to meetings and to do administrative things and fix up the office. There isn't a part of this job that I don't enjoy."