The fleet contains 36 trucks; these are some of the pickups. One…
The fleet contains 36 trucks; these are some of the pickups. One of Litzenburger’s goals is to have one of every body style. Auto body styles change every few years. The cycle is longer for trucks, where body styles might change every 12 to 20 years.
Litzenburger Landscape
These are some of the larger trucks. Originally configured any n…
These are some of the larger trucks. Originally configured any number of ways, they have since been converted to stake beds that can dump.
Litzenburger Landscape
Many trucks come into the fleet in pretty rough shape. This 1955…
Many trucks come into the fleet in pretty rough shape. This 1955 GMC was originally a residential trash truck, the kind that is open in back and uses a hydraulic ram to compact the trash. Shown here in the early stages of being rebuilt, it will eventually look as good as any truck in the fleet.
Litzenburger Landscape
Gow Litzenburger poses with his oldest truck, “Pixie”, a 193…
Gow Litzenburger poses with his oldest truck, “Pixie”, a 1934 Chevrolet JC series one-ton pickup.
Litzenburger Landscape
“Wooly Mammoth" is a 1946 4500 series Chevrolet. Like man…
“Wooly Mammoth" is a 1946 4500 series Chevrolet. Like many of the trucks in the fleet, it’s a 1 1/2-ton model—which is a size that works well for the company.
Litzenburger Landscape
“Tree-ceritops” (from Triceratops) is a 1957 GMC. The larges…
“Tree-ceritops” (from Triceratops) is a 1957 GMC. The largest truck in the fleet, it’s equipped with a tree spade for planting big trees.
Litzenburger Landscape
“Sea Monkey” is a 2-ton 1951 GMC. Like most of the larger tr…
“Sea Monkey” is a 2-ton 1951 GMC. Like most of the larger trucks in the fleet it has been fitted out with a stake bed that dumps.
Litzenburger Landscape
“Pinocchio” is Litzenburger’s favorite, a rare 1947 GMC lo…
“Pinocchio” is Litzenburger’s favorite, a rare 1947 GMC longnose. Big and powerful, most of these trucks were used in the mountains out west. This one was originally equipped with a Detroit 610 marine diesel engine. The hood is aluminum; if you look closely you’ll see it was assembled with rivets, the same as an airplane. The trim around the windows is stainless steel—a detail that was normally reserved for luxury autos. This was an expensive truck, which may explain why it was produced for only 2 1/2 years and sold in the hundreds rather than thousands. Maybe 20 of these are still in existence.
Litzenburger Landscape
“The Penguin” is a 1953 Chevy that spent its entire life on …
“The Penguin” is a 1953 Chevy that spent its entire life on a golf course. Litzenburger has the original bill of sale and when he got the truck it had only a few thousand miles on it. It has never been more than a dozen miles from “home”.
Litzenburger Landscape
Quick, what’s on the hood of every Mack truck? You’re right,…
Quick, what’s on the hood of every Mack truck? You’re right, a hood ornament shaped like a bulldog. Originally owned by a freight company in New York, “The Bulldog” is a 1965 B Model Mack, one of the most stylish trucks ever built. One of Litzenburger’s clients is a very straight-laced elderly woman who upon seeing the vehicle surprised him by saying “Now that’s the sexiest truck I’ve ever seen!”
Litzenburger Landscape
Some of the larger trucks here—from left to right: Flora, Pork…
Some of the larger trucks here—from left to right: Flora, Pork Chop, Bulldog, Lady Liberty, and Wooly Mammoth.
Litzenburger Landscape
This is “Aardvark,” a 1948 GMC longnose road tractor, as it …
This is “Aardvark,” a 1948 GMC longnose road tractor, as it is being reconstructed. Several of the people who work for Litzenburger Landscaping are skilled mechanics who spend the winter rebuilding trucks and repairing the company’s heavy equipment. When rebuilding a truck, they typically install a crate motor—which is essentially complete and need only be bolted in and connected. They also retrofit power steering and brakes, hydraulics, auto transmissions, and other modern systems.
Litzenburger Landscape
This is “Pinocchio” (a 1947 GMC longnose) hauling a skid ste…
This is “Pinocchio” (a 1947 GMC longnose) hauling a skid steer. Litzenburger says he can run the business using vintage trucks because the basic design—or layout—of stake beds and pickups has improved very little since trucks were invented. The machines used for landscaping are a completely different matter, and for that he uses only modern equipment.
Litzenburger Landscape
“Snuffleupagus” is a 1937 GMC named after a Sesame Street ch…
“Snuffleupagus” is a 1937 GMC named after a Sesame Street character. The truck has an interesting history; Litzenburger bought it from a Montana rancher who pulled it out of a river after it was washed away in a flood and got hung up on some logs. Obviously, it took a lot of restoring.
Litzenburger Landscape
“Chuck Williams,” a 1941 Chevy, is named after a friend of L…
“Chuck Williams,” a 1941 Chevy, is named after a friend of Litzenburger’s. The truck was purchased from a farmer and originally had a grain body—a flatbed with very tall sides. It was extremely rusty when he got it, and if Litzenburger had known what it would take to restore the vehicle, he might not have bothered. Chuck Williams is not completely happy with his depiction on the fender and claims he is far more handsome in real life. I for one love this truck and would kill to own one like it—even if it meant having my ugly mug on the fender.
Left to right: Pinocchio, The Penguin, and Yosemite Sam. You’v…
Left to right: Pinocchio, The Penguin, and Yosemite Sam. You’ve seen the first two before; Yosemite is a 1949 Chevy 4500 1 1/2-ton that has been retrofitted with a stake bed that dumps.
Litzenburger Landscape
From a different angle: Flora, Pork Chop, Bulldog, Lady Liberty,…
From a different angle: Flora, Pork Chop, Bulldog, Lady Liberty, and Wooly Mammoth. Two Macks, two GMCs, and a Chevy.
Litzenburger Landscape
“Aardvark” is one of two rare GMC longnose trucks owned by t…
“Aardvark” is one of two rare GMC longnose trucks owned by the company. This one is a 1948 model.
Litzenburger Landscape
Gow Litzenburger with “Sea Monkey,” a 2-ton 51 GMC. The truc…
Gow Litzenburger with “Sea Monkey,” a 2-ton 51 GMC. The truck to the left is “Bulldog,” a 1965 B Model Mack.
Gow Litzenburger was a busy guy in high school; when he wasn’t in class he was restoring a junked 1939 Chevy pickup and starting a landscaping business in Harbor Springs, Mich. Little did he know that 30 years later, the truck would belong to a fleet of vintage vehicles used by a company that employs 13 people year-round and 60 in summer.
At last count, Litzenburger Landscape had 36 trucks—all of them vintage and lovingly restored. The fleet includes trucks built between 1934 and 2001; a few are from Mack but most are GM or Chevy. The bodies and frames are more or less original but mechanical parts such as engines and transmissions have been replaced with modern components. In most cases, power steering, power brakes, and hydraulics were added. And of course all of the trucks are painted the company colors—green with white accents.
To keep track of the vehicles, Litzenburger gives each a name, which is painted on back and represented by images on the front fenders. Among the many trucks used in the business are Yosemite Sam, Bulldog, Lady Liberty, and Pinocchio.
Having a fleet of distinctive trucks sets the company apart from the competition, but that’s not why Litzenburger began using vintage vehicles; he used them at first because that’s what he had. His original 1939 Chevy pickup (“Mule”) was restored to factory condition and people couldn’t believe it when they saw him throw a wheel barrow and tools in the bed. But it was a work truck and had to earn its keep—the same as the rest of the trucks in Litzenburger’s fleet. “Mule” has since been rebuilt and repainted a couple of times.
Click on the slideshow to see some of the individual vehicles in Litzenburger’s fleet. Be sure to read the captions, as they explain what the vehicles are.
