Natural Stone Projects

One of my favorite products to use in the Landscape industry is stone. Each piece is totally unique unto itself, with varying colors, shapes, sizes and textures. If you want a timeless landscape that will never fade in its glory, I beg of you to use stone. Stone character grows with age and when installed properly, it will last a lifetime.

Here are just a few stone projects that we have recently designed and Built:

Field Stone Wall. Woburn, MA.

 Irregular Bluestone Patio. Lexington, MA.

 Blue Mountain Wall with Granite Posts. Burlington, MA.

Blue Mountain Fire pit with Bluestone Cap. Burlington, MA.

 Dimensional cut Bluestone Steps. Lynnfield, MA.

Dimensional cut Bluestone Walkway. Lynnfield, MA.

 Tan & Brown Rounds Stone Wall. Bedford, MA.

 Thermal Bluestone Treads. Bedford, MA.

 Granite Landing and Steps. Lexington, MA.

New England Field Stone Walkway. Meredith, NH.

Granite Belgian Block Walkway. Burlington, MA.

Granite Belgian Block Walkway. Burlington, MA.

For help creating beautiful stone art in your Landscape...

Contact Ryan Wikman, the owner of WikWorks, Inc, also visit our contact page or visit our website



3d Landscapes as artwork

3D Landscape Design

Many landscape designers consider the plans they present to clients to be beautiful and creative works of art.

 Do I?

First of all, I have never been known for my handywork with a paintbrush, pencil, pen or any of the like. I even had to take a special class in 3rd or 4th grade to help me with my penmanship. To be honest, it didn't help. So, now that you know how great my penmanship is, you may also be glad to know that I do not create my landscape designs in pen or pencil. All my designs are done with the program Dynascape Design and Sketch3d. And yes, I do consider my designs to be works of art..... just computer aided works of art (for those of us who are drawing impaired).

If I were to tell you that you could see almost exactly how your landscape would look like after the following design is implemented. Would you tell me "no thanks, I have seen enough with the 2d model."

My guess is "certainly not."

You Decide

Here's a basic black & white

Heres the design in color

Here is what the property actually looks like right now

Now for the 3D Modeling

Want to see your potential landscape in 3D?.....

Contact Ryan Wikman, the owner of WikWorks, Inc, also visit our contact page or visit our website



Looking for a job in Landscaping? Well, we are hiring.

WikWorks, Inc is now Hiring for the upcoming season.

We are looking to hire 2-3 new employees for the spring, summer and fall season.

Job Description/Requirements:

Preferred Qualifications:
Carpentry & Masonry skills.
Experience in driving a dump truck and/ van with a clean driving record.
Experience in operating equipment. (mini-excavator, power tools, etc.)
Prompt, hardworking and take pride in his/ her work.

Required Qualifications:
Minimum High School diploma and/ or industry certification.
Must possess a valid Massachusetts Drivers License and U.S. Citizenship.
2+ year experience in all types/ phases of landscape construction.
Capable of lifting 80+ lbs. and performing routine physical labor.
Willing to work outside regardless of weather conditions.
Consistent attendance and prompt arrival in the morning.
Strong communication skills, both written and verbal.
Basic reasoning and time management abilities to effectively complete tasks.
Must provide minimum (2) professional references and pass a basic background check.

Please respond to this Ad with your resume and cover letter (including hourly wage expectations)

You will be working on the Maintenance of Properties as well as Installation of Walls, patios, walkways, plantings, irrigation, lighting and more.

Experience in these fields is a bonus, not a must.

You must be a team player, self motivated, energetic and have the stamina to work 10 -12 hour days.

All new hire recieve performance reviews in first year as follows:

After 1st day, after 1st week, after 1st month, after 6 months and after 1 year.

Continued employment is determined by each review.

WikWorks, Inc employs all correctly documented and legalized citizens of the United States.

Looking for employment?.....

Contact Ryan Wikman, the owner of WikWorks, Inc, also visit our contact page or visit our website

Trees Leaves....Take a guess and Win!!!

If you can name the genus/common name of each leaf that I have pictured below, you will win a company sweatshirt (see previous blog regarding sweatshirts).

  Each tree is used only once. All must be correct for a sweatshirt to be won. Write your answers in the comment section for a chance to win.

Here are the trees you can choose from:

Acer/Maple, Betula/Birch, Fagus/Beech, Fraxinus/Ash & Quercus/Oak

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Contest will run until 5 winners have been chosen.

Need help with the answers?.....

Contact Ryan Wikman, the owner of WikWorks, Inc, also visit our contact page or visit our website

Landscaping,Logos,Marketing and Sweatshirts....What?

What in the world does Landscaping, Logos, Marketing and Sweatshirts have to do with each other? Well, let me explain. Ever since the company began, I have always searched for ways in which I could differentiate my company from others. One of the ways that I have accomplished this goal of mine was by tying together Landscaping, Logos, Marketing and Sweatshirts. First we have "Landscaping" and basically that's the type of work my company does. Next are Logos. Most companies have a single logo and when designed properly for your industry it's priceless (make it memorable). So when it comes to branding/marketing, having a recognizable and memorable logo that clients, whether existing or potential, will not forget.   

Do I have that?...... You be the Judge.

Now that I had my logo, I wanted everyone to see it. I had my trucks, signs & equipment lettered. I then realized how unprofessional I looked without WikWorks logo attire. Now is where the fun begins. I had t-shirts, long sleeve shirts and sweatshirts printed up and created my uniforms.

Here's how my mind works..... I have an idea (actually many of them pop up in my mind everyday, must mean my mind is working or something) and the hardest part is trying to decipher whether that idea will work for my company. The ideas are usually marketing related, so let me tie this all together. Now that I have my logo, another idea "popped up."

Here it is:

Since I work in the "green" industry and we are required to work with, around and through each changing season, (thus our slogan "Work with the Earth") why not have a logo for each corresponding season.

Here they are......

Now that I have my seasonal logos, what am I to do? Change all my lettering every season for each truck and piece of equipment? No way!!! much to difficult. How do we use each logo? We have seasonal uniforms. Each season, all employees of WikWorks,Inc. change their uniforms. They have winter, spring, summer and fall uniforms. Our summer logo is our permanent logo, but for uniforms, websites and signage, we seasonally change.

Let me bring it all together now.

Because I work in the landscaping industry, am able to have seasonal logos and print them on our uniforms (see sweatshirts above and sorry for poor photos), I now needed a way to market each logo.

Simple.... After each job, I offer free sweatshirts to all our clients. You choose your favorite season & size and I supply the sweatshirt. Kids sizes will be available this spring

If you didn't know about our sweatshirt promotion, contact me and I'll hook you up.

Contact Ryan Wikman, the owner of WikWorks, Inc, also visit our contact page or visit our website

A variety for every shade garden

I have always been a fan of the Hosta, a tough, shade-loving perennial that produces lush mounds of handsome, often variegated leaves and racems of trumpet-shaped flowers. There are roughly 70 species and over 4,000 varieties or cultivars. Leaves range from heart shaped, nearly round to a lance shape. The most amazing aspect to this perennial is the huge variations in shades of greens, blues yellows and whites. The hosta is one of the hardiest of all perennials when planted in the correct location. Plant in light to full shade with rich, evenly moist soil. Morning sunlight to afternoon shade is best.

                  

                                           

                                                                                  
                                                   


For help placing Hosta in your Landscape...

Contact Ryan Wikman, the owner of WikWorks, Inc, also visit our contact page or visit our website

The Art of Working with Stone

Designing with Stones

This was the title of the seminar that I attended today by Lew French, an amazing stone artisan and naturalist. I would have to say that he is a purist (that which I am striving to be) when it comes to working with the beauty of natural stone. Lew's philosophy is to use stone in its natural form keeping any cutting or hammering to an absolute minimum.

Lew searched throughout New England's abandoned quarries to find the magnificent, majestic and colossal granite pillars that he used on the above project. The way he integrates the large stone with the smaller field stone is superb. If you can't already tell, I love this guys work. 

 

 I am just amazed at how he so intricately works with such varying sizes of stone to create such layers and depth. Lew hand selects his stone and when possible, uses stone from on site.

 Lew's design eye is amazing, his love for stone is undeniable and his passion to educate others is impeccable. Check out his book, Stone by Design to see more of his amazing work.

For help creating beautiful stone art in your Landscape...

Contact Ryan Wikman, the owner of WikWorks, Inc, also visit our contact page or visit our website