Landscaping Your Commercial Property

With concern for climate change reaching an all-time high, "green" is the word on everyone's lips these days. As environmental legislation and the number of businesses launching their own green initiatives expands, now is an excellent time for commercial real estate professionals to join the discussion. One way to "greenify" your commercial property is by incorporating sustainable landscaping techniques into your grounds maintenance routine. In addition to preserving the planet, many environmentally-friendly measures can actually generate serious cost savings in the long run, and maintaining an attractive landscape will help ensure that your property retains its maximum value. As you work with a trusted landscape contractor, consider the following advice on how to turn your commercial property landscape green.

Water Conservation
Wasted water is wasted money and with water demands rising and frequent droughts posing threats to supplies, responsible water use is a smart business practice and an essential component of environmentalism. Irrigation audits are one way to ensure that your commercial real estate property is realizing the maximum benefits of its irrigation system. After assessing the current system and identifying any inefficiencies, a qualified landscape professional will consider area size, local climate, sun exposure and specific plant varieties to determine the most appropriate and cost-effective irrigation program for your property. With tailored systems cutting annual water costs by up to 40% (irrigation.org) and some systems qualifying for tax credits, an irrigation audit and proper system implementation are effective ways to maintain a beautiful landscape without draining unnecessary natural and fiscal resources.
Aside from monitoring the health of your irrigation system, one of the most effective ways to conserve water is to monitor the health of your turf and beds through periodic soil testing. Knowing the state of your soil will allow your contractor to make appropriate amendments that can enhance long-term soil quality, stabilize soil pH and enrich soil with essential macro and micro nutrients. The improvements to the soil's physical structure ultimately enhance drought resistance, water utilization and water dispersion. In addition to conserving water, the health of the soil will contribute to the health and appearance of your plants, meaning reduced spending on maintenance and replacement.

Recycling, Reusing, Renewing
Some view organic landscape waste as an expensive hassle—you pay a fee to have the waste transported to landfills where it takes up valuable space and never fully degrades. But for those with a little vision, organic landscape waste can be turned into an advantage. Recycling waste like grass clippings, leaves, branches and woodchips not only reduces transport costs and dumping fees, but it also helps create garden-ready topsoil and nutrient-rich mulch and fertilizer at no extra cost. This translates into savings on synthetic soil amendments, all the while helping to alleviate the growing problem of landfill overcrowding. Check with your landscape contractor to see if using composted materials is feasible on your property. Another way to save is to have your landscape contractor "keep the grass in the grass"; that is, use mulching mowers that return clippings into the grass, where it continues to break down and provide valuable nutrients back into the ground. This packs a double punch, not only helping keep your turf's soil healthy, but saving in removal and dumping fees at landfills.

Energy Efficient Landscape Design
While it's an important element, beauty isn't everything when it comes to landscaping. It is equally important for a landscape to be intelligently designed, which means taking energy efficiency into consideration as you work with your landscape contractor to develop a landscape plan. Energy efficiency is good for both the environment and the bottom line, as a thoughtfullydesigned landscape can reduce cooling costs by 15% to 50% and heating bills by 25% to 40% according to EPA statistics.
For example, evergreen trees located on the west and northwest sides of a property relieve air conditioning costs by blocking the powerful rays of the setting summer sun and reduce heating costs by protecting the building from harsh winds in the colder months. Likewise, deciduous trees on the east and south sides of a property provide cool shade in the summer, but warm sunlight is able to penetrate the trees' branches when they drop their leaves in the winter. Energy efficient landscaping is also an effective way to reduce noise and air pollution. While it may require some initial capital, an energy-efficient landscape can provide enough energy savings to return the initial investment in an average of eight years (pioneerthinking.com). Your landscape contractor should be able to recommend the most energy-efficient options for your commercial real estate property.

Native Landscaping
Plant selection is a critical element of sustainable gardening. Native plants are accustomed to the climate and soil conditions at-hand, which allow them to flourish with minimal care and assistance. This reduces water, fertilizer and pesticide needs and contains associated labor costs. Using a wide variety of native species in your landscape design will reduce the risk of widespread plant loss to a single disease, and opting for perennials over annuals when possible will also reduce material and maintenance costs. The ecosystem will benefit from native landscaping as well, since birds, butterflies and other local fauna can thrive in the natural sanctuary.

Limiting Turf
With its need for incessant maintenance and ready watering, turf can be a huge drain on resources. Frequent mowing means money spent on equipment, gas and labor. Furthermore, turf's shallow root-system prevents efficient irrigation and storm-water absorption, which can cause run-off that results in flooding, erosion and pollution. Considering that turf requires three times the water as a sustainable mixed landscape (eartheasy.com), reducing turf area in favor of expanding your sustainable bed size is an attractive way to lower water costs. For remaining turf areas, native grass blends will require less water and maintenance than ornamental grass, and low-growing varieties will reduce the required frequency of mowing. Turf should not be over hydrated, and it should only be watered during the coolest hours of the day to prevent evaporation. As mentioned earlier, an irrigation audit will help determine how much and how often your property grounds should be watered.

In addition to reducing negative environmental impact, working with a qualified landscape contractor to incorporate green practices into your grounds maintenance is a practical way to conserve water and energy, reduce labor and material costs and keep your commercial real estate property looking its best. Greening can also do wonders for your brand, since the importance of protecting the environment is something that employees, community members and shareholders alike can generally agree upon.