New Year Landscaping Ideas

Have you let your property’s appearance take an extended vacation over the holiday season? A property’s landscape is often the first thing prospective customers or tenants notice, and an unkempt property can drive away those originally interested individuals. If you’re looking outside your office window and wondering what you can do to increase your property’s curb appeal during 2018, you’ll be happy to know that now is the perfect time to start planning for the year ahead. Here are some simple tips that, alongside regularly scheduled maintenance, will make sure your commercial property look its best in time for spring and for the full year ahead.

• Pruning:
  Instead of replacing trees that are looking a little drab, prune them. Pruning may also be necessary to clean up plant areas near windows and sidewalks that may be overgrown. Pruning is the removal of certain parts of shrubs or trees that are no longer effective, required, or are diseased and weak. Although pruning can leave the shrubs or trees looking a little thin, it’s definitely beneficial in the long run and enables more opportunity for full, even growth for an already successfully rooted plant.

• Mulch:
  Mulch is a great way to retain moisture around your plants, shrubs, and trees during the colder months and protect them from the alternating of freezing and thawing temperatures. Mulch application for winter protection typically needs to be done after the ground starts to freeze but before any significant snowfall. If you placed mulch in the fall, it won’t hurt to refresh it with an additional inch as long as the mulch layer stays less than three inches thick around each plant. Be sure to gently pull mulch away from directly touching the trunks or stems to give plants room to breathe and prevent future disease problems.

• Plant or transplants new trees:
  Now is a good time to plant new trees and/or transplant trees that have outgrown their current location or will serve a better purpose elsewhere within the landscape. By planting now during the colder months, you’ll be ensuring viability as temperatures rise and the trees begin to consume more water. When trees are planted during warmer temperatures, the heat can present a threat. Be sure to water frequently and mulch around all newly planted root areas to keep it well insulated during colder temperatures.

• Apply Pre-emergent Herbicides:
  If you wait to treat weeds when you see them, it’s usually already too late. The best form of weed control is to prevent them before they’re visible. Summer weeds can begin germinating as early as late February in warmer climates such as the coastal regions, and if left unattended, they can invade a landscape area very quickly. To keep weeds from becoming a problem, plan to apply a pre-emergent before the spring season begins, and if desired, follow with a post-emergent later.

Are you ready to make your property stand out in 2018? Landscape Workshop is here to help. Let us know, and we can get started on a free estimate for your property today.