When composing the landscaping maintenance contract for the sales model complex, the builder should include the possibility of contingencies difficult to predict such as snails, ants, and gophers.
Activities such as fertilizing and trimming, however, should be included within the landscape contract rather than spelled out as extras, because these activities are predictable.
Gopher abatement is less arbitrary to anticipate and plan for than ants or snails, and can be handled through an agreed-upon fixed monthly amount. The builder can budget some dollar amount for this landscaping activity.
Snail and ant problems are more difficult to predict, with ants being completely unpredictable from one year to the next. One year no ants are on the project, and the next year the sales models complex can be overrun with ants.
The builder should be aware of these potential abatement costs, and have some money set aside as a contingency line-item based upon discussions with the landscaping contractor.
From Lessons-Learned for Builders, Architects, and Interior Designers in Housing Construction, Book 6.
The Cross in the Christian Life 