Sure, you want your lawn healthy and mowed, your beds weeded, and your trees pruned, but these days, there’s another item on the landscaping checklist: protecting the earth.
After all, we only have one earth.
But there are plenty of sustainable landscape solutions.
Here’s a look at a few for your earth-friendly commercial property, from attractive hard-working gardens to innovative robots that’ll make you the cool company on the block.
1. Electric Equipment
When you think about the gas emissions from the landscaping blowers and mowers on your property, it might not seem like a big deal.
Then multiply that by all the landscapers around the world.
Whoa.
When your commercial landscaping company makes the switch to electric equipment, you’re making a real impact.
Electric equipment puts out fewer emissions and is quieter than its noisy gas counterparts.
And the quality of work is the same, with less environmental impact.
It’s a double win.
This sustainable landscape solution is the right thing for the environment, and for our customers.
2. Robotic Mowers
Robot mowers win the prize for the coolest sustainable landscape services.
Robotic lawn mowers bustle around the lawn completely on their own, running on a battery charge quietly, efficiently mowing the lawn.
A boundary guide wire installed underground around a property keeps the mower contained, sort of like invisible fencing for dogs.
When they’re done mowing, they head back to their charging stations and get ready for the next day’s work — all without earth-damaging emissions.
3. Soil Sensors
And the cool factor continues.
Innovative technology can tell us exactly when your flowers and plants need water. And, maybe more importantly, when they don’t.
Sensors tucked into your planter’s soil tell us instantly — from our offices miles away — the moisture content of your plants’ soil. Then, we only send watering crews out when your plants actually need it.
This sustainable landscape solution saves valuable water, and money. It also reduces landscaping company vehicle use, which means fewer emissions on the road.
Bonus: When you water correctly, your plants are healthier.
4. Smart Irrigation
Careless irrigation wastes water.
These days, there’s no excuse, with the latest in landscape irrigation technology. On tap: water-saving valves and nozzles; rain sensors so irrigation systems don’t water unnecessarily; smarter controllers that adapt to weather conditions; and drip irrigation that targets water at the roots specifically where plants need it.
Beyond that, take advantage of regular irrigation system checkups where irrigation pros look for broken sprinkler heads, clogged lines, or other problems that can waste water.
5. Rain Gardens
This double-duty solution might be the prettiest sustainable landscaping solution.
A rain garden is a shallow depression that’s planted with deep-rooted native plants and grasses. It encourages stormwater to soak slowly into the ground — not rush into the nearest storm drain.
A rain garden’s soil filters oil, grease, and other pollutants before slowly releasing the cleaner water into the water table.
Plant this sustainable landscape solution near a water runoff source like a downspout, roof, or driveway and water soaks into the garden rather than gushing straight into the stormwater system.
It also helps your budget, by preventing flooding that can cause costly damage to your property.
Bioswales are beneficial in the same ways. They’re landscape elements that provide a path for water to run through slowly, rather than rushing off into a storm sewer or local waterway.
6. Green Roofs
Who wouldn’t want a garden on their roof?
Creating a garden on your roof saves energy, minimizes stormwater runoff, helps cool the city, and offers a bit of beautiful green calm.
It’s a great sustainable landscape solution because the soil in green roof systems acts like a sponge and absorbs excess rain water. The plants naturally filter pollution out before returning it to the groundwater system.
They also soak up annoying noise. Plants, soil, and air trapped in the soil are great acoustic insulators. Tests show that green roofs can reduce indoor sound by as much as 40 decibels — a great perk for city dwellers bombarded by noise from airports, industry, trains and traffic.
Bonus: they save you money. A green roof cuts down on your utility bills by providing more insulation, so you’re not losing heat through the roof.
Installing a green roof is easier than you might think. Level Green is certified as an installer by LiveRoof, a leading manufacturer of green roof systems. There are only a few such certified installers in the Washington D.C. metro area.
7. Permeable Pavers
This sustainable landscape solution allows rainwater to seep through your hardscape, rather than pool and flood your property.
Pollutants build up on solid surfaces like concrete and asphalt. Petroleum products, chemicals, fertilizers, and other contaminants accumulate on the surface. Then, when it rains, these pollutants wash off and enter the stormwater system and the environment.
Permeable pavers reduce the overall run-off of storm water on your property.
Bonus: in many counties and municipalities, commercial property owners can apply for a credit to their property taxes if they implement stormwater management techniques like permeable pavers.
Here at Level Green Landscaping, several team members are certified by the Interlocking Concrete Pavers Institute, specifically trained in installing these permeable pavers that redirect stormwater.
Bring Sustainable Landscape Solutions To Your Property with Level Green
Robots to rain gardens to roofs with blooms, sustainable landscape solutions make your property look great — and your conscience feel great.
When you look for a commercial landscape maintenance company for your commercial property, ask about their sustainable landscaping services.
We know sustainability is a top priority for our customers, and we incorporate green practices into all of our projects.
Beyond the sustainable landscape solutions listed above, there are lots of other ways our crews offer sustainability, from using mowing techniques that reduce the need for spray chemicals to recycling our green waste.
We provide commercial property maintenance for properties throughout Washington DC, Maryland and parts of Virginia. Level Green Landscaping services commercial properties like office buildings, homeowner associations (HOAs), mixed use, condominiums, retail, institutions and government entities.
Contact us today at 202-544-0968 or by filling out our form online to see how we can transform your landscape into a beautiful, sustainable space. You can also schedule a free consultation with one of our team members.
We’d love to hear from you.
