Return to Articles

Senior Discounts for Lawn and Garden
Including Discounts for local Nurseries and Hardware Stores, and Lawn and Yard Preparation, Care and Maintenance
Author: David Smidt, SeniorDiscounts

Garden and Yard Preparation

Summer is officially here and most of us have already put our green thumb to work getting the yard and those plants ready for the warmer weather. But before you get your hands too dirty, take a look at some of the locally owned nurseries, hardware stores and yard care services for discounts that could save you money while providing greater customer service.

Every summer many of us seem to find ourselves in one of the garden or home centers looking for potting soil, those spring flowers or a new pair of gloves. Most of us probably visit one of the large home center chains because they seem to have everything you need at reasonable prices, but they probably do not offer a senior discount and if you have questions, you may have to wait to speak to someone.

Try going to one of the local garden or home centers. Many local and regional stores provide discounts for older customers and with these discounts the prices can be comparable to those of larger chains. Smaller stores also rely on their attention to customer’s needs in order to compete with the larger stores. This translates to a staff that is generally more available and knowledgeable for your gardening questions.

In the current economy, we are finding that many of the local nurseries are introducing senior discounts to lure the mature market away from the larger chains. These local businesses realize that by providing competitive pricing, better customer service and a higher quality product, they can attract a loyal demographic.

While Ace Hardware stores may seem like a large retail chain, most of the stores are owned by local business people as franchises. This translates to many of the Ace Hardware locations across the country offering a discount to their older customers. While they may not have everything a large retailer has, one can find most everything you would need for the garden.

Senior discounts at the local stores and at Ace Hardware stores are typically 10%, but could be higher depending on the location. Garden center discounts are usually available to people 55 years of age and older while home improvement centers, like Ace Hardware, may start at 60 or 62 years of age. It is also common for these discounts to only be available on certain days of the week, usually a Tuesday or Wednesday, as they try to increase sales on their slower days.

It is always a good idea to call your local home or garden center to inquire about its discounts policy ahead of time. Most of these stores will not advertise the discount in the store or on its web site, but its staff should be able to tell you if one is available over the phone.

If you need some ground cover for your yard, many local municipalities will provide free mulch as long as you know to ask for it. For instance, the city of Chicago provides free mulch as long as it is available, and they even deliver. Check with your local Forestry or Sanitation department. You will most likely have to pick up your own mulch, as most places will not deliver.

Lawn and Yard Care and Maintenance

Once you have purchased all of your plants and garden supplies for your spring preparations, you may now need some help with upkeep and maintenance over the summer. Or maybe you just need some help with the planting of those spring supplies you have just purchased. Either way, discounts can be found on yard maintenance as well as preparation work.

There are only a couple of national chains that provide general lawn and yard care, tree maintenance, and landscaping services. The most notable are Scotts Lawn Care and TruGreen Lawn Care and Landscaping. Neither of these national companies provides a senior discount on a national basis. Their local branches are typically franchised, and as such, is up to the individual franchisee to determine if it would like to offer a senior discount. After some extensive online searching, only a few of locations provided a senior discount of 10%, but just because they are not advertised does not mean they do not exist. Try calling you local office to see if they offer a senior discount.

Local companies more often offer deals for the over 50 population. The standard discount in this industry is 10% and does not vary much from one place to another. Age requirements for these discounts vary, but many businesses tell us that if you know to ask for the senior discount, they will give it to you without inquiring about your age.

There are some local businesses that offer these types of discounts listed on the SeniorDiscounts’ web site, but if you can not find it there, you may want to try your local yellow pages or newspapers. Some businesses will advertise their senior discounts in their printed yellow pages ads, but look closely; they are usually in small print and hard to locate. You may also want to try your local paper’s online classified ads or Craigslist, as many businesses will advertise their senior discounts online.

One thing to be aware of while researching senior discounts for these types of services, is that price is very subjective. This means that businesses are providing estimates and the price of the job can increase very easily. Before asking about a senior discount, be sure to ask for a price quote first, then ask if they have senior special. This prevents the company from adding 10% to the estimate and then providing the discount to the inflated rate, thus canceling out the savings you would have received.

Have a great time sprucing up your yard and garden.

© SeniorDiscounts

Return to Articles



Home Newsletter Businesses About Us
SeniorDiscounts.com, 4811A Hardware Drive NE, Suite 4, Albuquerque, NM 87109
© 2000 - 2024 SeniorDiscounts.com, Inc.