LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — Working in the dirt under the sunshine in 47-degree weather is not something the workers at Green Valley Landscaping in Plains Township normally see in December.
"December was normally, you know, snow, cold weather, the ground freezes up, and we can't do a lot of work as far as the landscaping end of it goes. But this year is a lot different. The weather's been great. I mean, went back into 50-degree temperatures, 60 on Saturday. And with that being said, we are able to do some work right now still," Jerry Natishan said.
Natishan, the president and owner of Green Valley Landscaping, says the sunshine allows for a lot of work but not everything they may do in warm weather.
"Retaining walls, they can be things like patios, bluestone patios, paver patios, projects like that," Natishan said. "Those are the kind of projects we can still do."
"Usually by mid-December, the trucks at Green Valley are outfitted with a salt spreader in the back and a plow in the front. But Natishan said not all the trucks can be switched over because they have to be prepared for warm weather projects.
"I would rather any day be doing landscaping projects than snow removal or cold. The snow is hard on the vehicles, hard on the trucks."
It also helps employees.
"Some of our workers are seasonal summer, full time, or summer seasonal. So at this time, it's nice to put a couple extra paychecks in their pocket, especially right around Christmas. So it benefits everybody right now."
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