High-quality commercial landscaping is a must-have for any business with a brick-and-mortar location. Think of your landscaping as a reflection of your business. The right outdoor details can entice new customers to come in, while an unkempt landscape can reflect poorly on your organization and cause accessibility issues during snow and ice events.
Choosing commercial landscaping services for the first time can be daunting. With so many possible landscaping features and services to choose from, it can be difficult to determine what’s best for your needs. In this article, we’ll dive into everything you need to know about commercial landscaping, including why it’s important and how to choose the right provider.
What is Commercial Landscaping?
Commercial landscaping is a broad category of services focused on outdoor spaces on commercial properties. This includes designing, installing, and maintaining outdoor features like lawns, sidewalks, parking lots, plant beds, and more. Effective commercial landscaping focuses on creating an outdoor environment that is both aesthetically pleasing and sustainable.
Why is Commercial Landscaping Necessary?
Professional landscaping services are highly beneficial for all types of commercial properties. Regardless of the size or location of your property, your business can benefit from a sophisticated outdoor landscaping plan.
One of the biggest benefits of good commercial landscaping services is that it makes a positive impression on your customers. For customer-facing businesses like restaurants and shops, you can use landscaping as a way to make your property look more welcoming and enticing. For office parks and other commercial spaces, landscaping will make your property look more professional and sophisticated.
Another advantage of using commercial landscaping on your property is that it makes your property more sustainable. You can work with your professional landscaping team to implement irrigation systems and lighting solutions that conserve resources and can help you reduce your overall impact on the environment. In most cases, it’s far more difficult to find and implement effective sustainability strategies on your own.
A professional team can also help you choose plants and other design features that are appropriate for your local climate. In a world where natural resources are limited, landscaping can serve as an important part of your brand’s sustainability strategy.
Finally, having a professional landscaping strategy and working with a professional landscaper helps take these tasks off your hands so you can focus on running your business effectively.
Popular Commercial Landscaping Features
There are a variety of landscaping features and projects that are popular for commercial properties. Here are some commercial landscaping features to consider including on your property.
Lawns, Gardens, and Planters
One of the biggest components of any commercial landscaping plan is greenery. Depending on the scale of your property, this could include a large lawn or garden, or small planters.
If you have the space for a lawn, it can make your property feel very lush and welcoming. While a lawn does require regular maintenance, many businesses find it to be worthwhile. Having a lawn gives your staff and customers a place to enjoy the sunshine when the weather is warm.
Since lawns require ongoing maintenance and space, they won’t be a viable option for every business. However, you can still incorporate greenery on your property by planting gardens. Gardens are an excellent commercial landscaping option because they can be tailored to your space and your climate. The most sustainable gardens use plants that are native to your area, as they require less water and fertilizer to maintain.
Commercial buildings can also incorporate greenery in unexpected places. One way to do this is by placing indoor and outdoor planters strategically throughout your space. Planters are a particularly great option if you don’t have space for larger landscaping options. Psychologically, spending time around plants can actually increase your happiness, so adding them to your property can be hugely beneficial for both your team and your customers.
Another way to incorporate unexpected greenery on your property is to build a garden on your roof or terrace. This option is particularly effective for multi-story office buildings in urban areas. An elevated garden area is the perfect place for your team to socialize or host a relaxed meeting with clients.
Hardscapes
Hardscapes are another essential component of commercial landscaping. Hardscapes are a broad category of non-living landscaping elements that add structure to your outdoor space.
The most essential hardscape for any commercial property is outdoor walking paths. Walking paths help your staff and customers navigate your property comfortably. They’re also essential for safety, as walking through uneven terrain could be dangerous in some circumstances. In some cases, walking paths may also be necessary to meet ADA requirements.
Many businesses opt for simple concrete sidewalks as part of their landscaping strategy. However, you can also use stone pavers or wooden planks to make the path more aesthetically pleasing. The most effective paths balance safety and style for the best results.
Another important component of hardscape design is patios, decks, and seating areas. Incorporating these hardscapes into your space is particularly effective because it creates a welcoming atmosphere where people can relax and socialize. For restaurants and event spaces, adding an outdoor patio can even help you expand your business and serve more customers.
One way to make your patio areas even more fun and engaging is to add a fire pit. Fire pits create warm and cozy ambiance that encourages socialization. They can also help you make use of your patio in cooler weather.
For some commercial properties, fencing is an essential part of the hardscaping strategy. While many people think of fencing purely as a security measure, it can also be used for aesthetic purposes. Adding a fence to your property can help break up a large yard and separate public spaces from private ones.
There are many different materials you can use for fencing, including wood, vinyl, metal, and more. The material and design details you choose for your fence can add to the overall appeal of your landscaping. One particularly interesting fencing option is the trellis. A trellis is a great way to add more greenery to your outdoor space with vines and hanging plants.
Finally, driveways are another crucial hardscape to add to your property, particularly if you’re located in a car-dependent area. Large parking lots are a necessity for many businesses, but they often feel drab and soulless. You can make your parking lot or driveway feel more welcoming by using pavers instead of concrete, or by strategically adding planters to make things feel more lively.
Retaining Walls
If your property is located in a hilly area, you may need to install retaining walls to bring your landscaping vision to life. A retaining wall is installed to keep soil in place on a slope. The area below the retaining wall is usually a flat surface. Retaining walls can be made from a variety of different materials, including large boulders, wood planks, bricks, poured concrete, and more.
By installing retaining walls, you can turn a large, steep hill into a set of flat terraces. This makes a large sloper safer and easier to navigate. In some cases, retaining walls may be necessary to adhere to ADA regulations. Additionally, retaining walls can add some visual interest and aesthetic appeal to a sloped yard.
Retaining walls serve another essential purpose: preventing erosion. Without a retaining wall, soil can erode and change shape over time, especially in areas that see frequent rainfall or snowfall. This erosion could result in damage to your lawns and gardens. By installing retaining walls where necessary, you can preserve your landscaping for years to come.
Water Features
Water features are another exciting feature to add to your commercial landscaping design. Popular water features include fountains, ponds, streams, and waterfalls. You can even create custom water features based on your property’s size and terrain.
Adding a water feature to your property is a great way to create a peaceful and serene atmosphere. Water features naturally add some movement and visual interest to your property. Since humans are psychologically drawn to water, these features also create a natural gathering place. To emphasize this, you can put benches near your water features.
Water features can also support wildlife in your area. Depending on your climate and the size of your water feature, you can use it to house fish and other aquatic wildlife native to your area. Local birds will also use ponds and fountains as a place to drink and bathe. To ensure that your water features are sustainable, look for options that can use rainwater to minimize water waste.
In addition to being visually appealing, water features also create a nice, relaxing sound. This can be hugely beneficial if you live in an area with noise pollution. A bubbling fountain or rushing waterfall can cancel out unpleasant sounds and make your landscape a more relaxing place to be.
Lighting
Lighting is another key component of any commercial landscape design. The right lighting system makes your property safe to navigate, particularly at night or early in the morning. You can also use lighting to highlight features of your property that you’d like to show off, such as unique architectural details.
There are many different types of lighting you can implement in your landscaping features. For example, you can use small ground-level lights to illuminate sidewalks and staircases throughout your property. You can also use flood lights to brighten up patios or highlight signage. If you want to make your space more charming and cozy, you can add string lights to trees or fences for an added glow.
You’ll have many decisions to make when choosing lighting features for your landscape. Low-voltage options tend to be the best choice for commercial properties. They are safe to install, very cost-effective, and consume less energy. To make your lighting features even more sustainable, it may help to install a timer to turn them on and off based on sunrise and sunset times. This will help you prevent energy waste.
Color is another important consideration when choosing lights for your landscape. Cool-toned lights can be very bright, but they also tend to feel harsh. Warmer tones create a softer glow that feels more welcoming and cozy. Another exciting option is color-changing lights, which allow you to switch the color of the bulb to suit your preferences. This way, you can adjust the colors of your lighting for holidays or promotional campaigns.
Irrigation Systems
To keep your greenery looking fresh and healthy, you’ll need an efficient way to water it. Most commercial properties are too large to water manually, which is where an irrigation system comes in. An irrigation system keeps your soil water using features like underground tubes, sprinklers, and pumps.
When selecting an irrigation system for your landscape, you’ll need to keep sustainability and your local climate in mind. Some plants will require more water than others in order to thrive. Your system will need to be customized for each plant to prevent over-watering. You may also need to irrigate more frequently in some seasons than others. A professional landscaper can help you configure an irrigation system that works for your needs.
Tips for Successful Commercial Landscapes
Landscaping plays a very important role in any commercial property. Your outdoor space is one of the first things that clients will notice when they visit you in person, so you’ll want to make a great first impression. Here are five tips to make your commercial landscapes more impactful.
1. Consider how people will use the space.
When designing your outdoor space, don’t just think about how it looks — think about how you want people to use it. Do you want to use your outdoor space to impress customers? Do you want to give your employees a place to relax and recharge? Do you want to integrate your property with the surrounding land?
Keeping these priorities in mind will help you design a space that’s both functional and aesthetically pleasing. Before committing to any specific landscaping features, keep practical considerations in mind. This will help you choose features that are most useful for your team and customers.
For example, if your property is in a dense urban area, you may not need a driveway or parking lot, but you will need easily-accessible sidewalks that connect to the city nearby. If most of your team works remotely, you may not need a large gathering space, but you can still use your landscaping strategy to enhance the property and make it look more professional.
2. Keep landscaping consistent with your brand identity.
Ideally, your landscaping strategy should serve as a reflection of your brand identity. This helps create a more positive experience for anyone visiting your property.
When designing your space, refer back to your brand’s values and other defining characteristics. Is your brand sleek and professional? Creative and quirky? Serene and comforting? One of the best things about commercial landscaping is that you can really be creative and incorporate these characteristics into your designs.
For example, if your brand identity is very vibrant and energetic, you can use bold plants and colored lighting to convey that. If your brand is more sleek and upscale, you can convey these characteristics with features like running water and sophisticated florals. Your commercial landscaping provider can work with you to identify the features that will best suit your brand.
3. Make sure your landscaping is appropriate for your climate.
Climate will be a deciding factor when choosing your landscaping features. Factors like temperature and humidity will limit the types of plants you can use on your property. While you may love tropical plants, they won’t work for properties in a climate with all four seasons.
If you choose the wrong plants for your climate, they will be very difficult and expensive to maintain. Your plants could even end up dying unexpectedly, which could reflect negatively on your business.
You’ll also need to consider local water availability when putting together your landscape design. If you live in an arid climate that doesn’t get much rain, you may want to stick to cacti and other desert plants that can thrive without much water.
Snow is another important consideration — if you live in a climate with harsh winters, opt for hardy plants that can survive low temperatures. You’ll also want to plan ahead for snow shoveling. While sidewalks are necessary for most properties, a complex network of paths could be very time-consuming to shovel.
4. Consider how landscaping will affect your property values.
Just like residential properties, commercial properties can also increase in value with good landscaping. This is important for every property owner to consider, regardless of if you’re planning to sell. Even if you’re not planning to sell your property for decades, investing in good landscaping now could be hugely beneficial to your business.
5. Be proactive when scheduling maintenance.
One of the most challenging things about landscaping a commercial property is the maintenance. Commercial properties are significantly larger than residential ones, and even simple tasks like mowing or aerating a lawn can be very time-consuming.
To prevent landscaping tasks from piling up, you’ll need to work closely with your commercial landscaping provider to schedule maintenance ahead of time at the beginning of the year. Proactive maintenance can help you prevent landscaping emergencies and keep your property consistently looking great.
How to Choose a Commercial Landscaping Provider
There are many factors to consider when choosing a commercial landscaping provider for your property. Here’s what to keep in mind when making the decision:
- Relevant experience: Does the provider have experience working with properties that are similar to yours? Ask to see a portfolio of past projects or testimonials from past clients. The more relevant experience a provider has, the easier it will be for them to assist you.
- Your budget: Finances are another key consideration when choosing a commercial landscaping provider. You’ll need to choose a provider that you can realistically afford — not just for the initial installation, but for ongoing maintenance as well. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that you should choose the cheapest provider on the market. Instead, look for someone that can provide a good balance of quality and price. Repairs on hardscape work done incorrectly can be extremely costly, often exceeding the initial cost of installation.
- Insurance coverage: Commercial landscaping providers should carry a wide range of insurance, including liability, worker’s compensation, commercial car insurance, and more. Before partnering with a landscaping provider, check to make sure they have the appropriate insurance policies. This will ensure that you are not held liable if a member of the landscaping team is hurt on your property.
- Provider availability: Your landscaping provider should have enough schedule availability to meet your needs. They should be able to stick to a planned schedule when installing new landscaping features and be available to support you with your maintenance needs as they arise.
- Customer support: When looking for a commercial landscaping provider, take note of their customer service. Ideally, they should be responsive, friendly, and available to answer any questions you may have. Avoid working with providers who aren’t able to respond to you informatively or in a timely manner, as this could cause frustrating communication issues later on.
- Maintenance experience: Ask potential landscaping providers what their experience is with landscape maintenance and design. Ideally, they should be familiar with the latest landscaping technologies and be able to help you implement them.
Book Your Commercial Landscaping Services With Lawn Escapes
Ready to get started with your commercial landscaping project? Lawn Escapes is here to help. Lawn Escapes offers a wide range of commercial landscaping services throughout Bergen, Rockland, Westchester, and Fairfield counties. Get in touch with our team today to get a quote or learn more about our commercial landscaping packages.