Those colorful flowers and plants in the pots way up on the rooftop garden might need water.
Or, they might not.
It’s often tricky to tell.
Until now.
Level Green Landscaping is now using Spiio — the latest soil moisture technology that will tell us instantly if a pot needs water, from miles away.
Level Green business development manager Marion Delano is pretty excited about it.
Here’s why.
Making Watering Smarter
You love how beautiful and vibrant your seasonal planters look when they get regular life-sustaining irrigation all summer.
But it isn’t easy. Watering crews often lug water tanks across miles through city traffic and sometimes up to rooftop gardens. Figuring out when each plant really needs water isn’t an exact science.
New technology from Spiio, Inc. 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 miles away — the moisture content of your plants’ soil.
Water When You Need It
“We have a lot of watering crews who irrigate seasonal color,” Delano says. “Right now it’s mostly by intuition.
Spiio sensors allow us to pinpoint exactly what plants need water. We can measure the moisture level at different sites from our office, without sending crews out.
We can see in real time what the moisture level is on all of our sites, so we’re not sending crews to places that don’t really need watering, but making sure they go to the sites that do.”
“A Smarter, Greener Company”
“It’s all about having control,” says Chris Thorup, chief commercial officer at Spiio, Inc. in Palo Alto, California.
Why should Level Green customers care?
“As a society we waste a lot of water,” Thorup says. “We know, based on our data, when water is needed. That can mean a smaller water bill.”
It also means healthier plants, he says.
“When you water correctly, you have better growth.”
Using Spiio in urban planters the way Level Green is using it is a great application, Thorup says. Plants dry out quickly in these situations, so there’s little time to react if they need water.
More and more, companies care about their environmental impact, from water usage to carbon emissions.
Spiio can save on both, Thorup says, reducing both water usage and landscaping company vehicle use.
“Using Spiio technology makes Level Green a smarter, greener company,” he says. “That helps differentiate them from the competition.”
Keeping Constant Track of Plants
The Spiio sensor is about the size of a soda bottle, Delano says. The black plastic gadget is almost unnoticeable against dark soil, he says, and can even be buried in the soil in high traffic areas.
Each sturdy, weatherproof device includes four sensors: soil moisture, temperature, light, and nutrients.
Meanwhile, Level Green has access to Spiio’s online portal.
It collects soil data every hour and sends it to us every three hours.
Level Green account managers and the operations managers who supervise water crews will check the data regularly, before crews go out, to make sure watering is needed.
“It helps us be a smarter company,” Delano says.
And that benefits our customers.
Spiio’s “big data approach” can track the overall health of a plant over time, Delano says.
“If a certain plant is always struggling, the data can help us understand what plant would do better there instead, and help us create a plan.
“This helps give us a real expert understanding of your landscape,” Delano says. “We’re not just a service provider, but an advisor. We have the data to offer really sound advice.”
Water Wisely With Level Green
Spiio soil moisture sensors help us give your plants precision care during the summer’s drying heat.
Rest easy knowing your plants are getting just the right amount of water — and you’re not paying for more irrigation than you need.
If you’re not already a Level Green Landscaping client, we’d love to add you to our growing list of happy customers.
Our focus is on commercial properties like offices, mixed-use sites, HOAs, municipalities and institutions in Maryland, Washington DC and parts of Virginia.
Contact us at 202-544-0968.
You can also request a free consultation online to meet with us one-on-one.
We’d love to hear from you.
