Facility managers know that maintaining the beautification of their property’s grounds is just as important as the safety and well-being of their building’s tenants. In fact, a facility’s curb appeal is often one of the most important – and overlooked – facets of facility management. You may be wondering whether winter landscaping is truly worth the investment. Here’s why landscaping during the chilly winter months is necessary, plus the different types of landscaping services you can research and how each can benefit your facility.

Why Is It Still Critical to Landscape During Winter?

At first glance, landscaping in the winter might seem like a line item your budget could do without. After all, if you live in a cold, snowy, or icy environment, aren’t most of your flora going to be dead or damaged when winter weather arrives? On the contrary – winter landscaping is crucial to maintaining safe and beautiful grounds throughout the winter and for the rest of the year.

Knowledgeable and experienced landscaping teams will be able to provide an extensive range of commercial landscape solutions, including turf management, renovation design and installation, fertilization and pest management, soil testing, snow and ice removal, and water management. While some of these things might be dependent on warmer weather, many of these projects can and should be executed even during cold winter months.

Planting new flora, in particular, can often take place during winter months. Why? Well, often the overwhelming amount of sunshine and hot heat of summer and early fall is enough to wilt or even kill plants that haven’t fully taken root. Plus, many plants go dormant during colder winter months, which means that transferring them from pot to soil is actually best done during this time. This way, they can “wake up” to spring while fully planted in the environment they’ll be getting used to throughout the year. By planting during winter, you can actually save time, money, effort, and the health of your landscaping. Here are some other landscaping services to consider during the chillier winter months.

Snow and Ice Removal

Let’s start with the most obvious – and for some facilities, depending on where they’re located – most necessary landscaping services hired during the winter. To keep your landscape winter-proofed, you’ll want to ensure that snow and ice accumulation on your property is kept to a minimum.

When it comes to timely snow removal, having a company on call before the next big snowfall is key. This is because the biggest issues related to snow and ice are acces­si­bil­i­ty, safe­ty, and cleanliness. When heavy snow buildup blocks exits and entry­ways, cus­tomers, guests, and employ­ees may have a hard time get­ting into the facil­i­ty – or out, in the event of an emergency. Even if the snow isn’t deep enough to pre­vent cars from get­ting into the park­ing lot, snow can cov­er up the lines sig­ni­fy­ing park­ing spots – which can prove to be an ADA compliance liability.

Factor in auto collisions and falls from your pedestrian traffic as snow freezes into ice, cre­at­ing slip­pery con­di­tions that make dri­ving and walk­ing haz­ardous. You’ll see why prompt removing snow and ice via shovels, snow plows, and salting is absolutely critical during winter months.

Commercial Installation

You’ll want to choose your landscaping services wisely, and this means planting new flora at the most optimal times. If you’re in a location that regularly sees snow, ice, hail, or other harsh elements during winter months, this is especially important to take into consideration. A general rule of thumb is that you shouldn’t plant anything new when the high temperature doesn’t rise above 35 degrees Fahrenheit. Even a brief freeze can be enough to destroy the delicate roots of your newly planted flora.

Also, you should generally not plant when the ground is frozen to a depth of six inches or more, because those tiny roots simply won’t have a chance to become established when they hit a wall of frozen ground surrounding them. If this is a concern for you, based on where your facility is located, it’s best to wait for average daily temperatures to rise a bit and for the ground to almost completely thaw before installing new plants.

That said, it is possible to do installations during the winter, especially for heartier plants or those that may be dormant during this time. Com­mer­cial instal­la­tions usually refer to any exte­ri­or fea­tures relat­ed to land­scap­ing (whether func­tion­al or aes­thet­ic) that are plant­ed in or affixed to a giv­en sec­tion of land. An instal­la­tion might be as minor as plot­ting a small flower gar­den next to a building’s entrance or as major as con­struct­ing patios, walls, and/​or stairs. The goal of these instal­la­tions is to either enhance land­scap­ing process­es or beau­ti­fy a property’s exterior. Consider utilizing the winter months to install dormant plants, hearty shrubs, or trees from the evergreen family.

Irrigation Installation and Maintenance Services

What’s the best way to ensure your beautiful grounds make it through the winter as unscathed as possible? Hire a knowledgeable landscaping service provider to do the work of keeping up with your irrigation systems. Especially if you are in need of the installation of a new irrigation system, winter could actually be the optimal time to get this infrastructure in place. Irrigation services might include anything from pre­ven­ta­tive main­te­nance to inspection and eval­u­a­tion, or even repair and replacement. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all solu­tion to land­scap­ing.

Your facility’s green spaces will benefit from services like an assess­ment and mea­sure­ment, including consideration of rainfall data and sun expo­sure. A landscaping company can help design and/​or selec­t the optimal irri­ga­tion sys­tem and process for your facility’s needs and guide you through the process of gaining approval from appro­pri­ate gov­ern­ment agen­cies to allow instal­la­tion and oper­a­tion of the system. Further, a landscaping and irrigation installation team should also be able to help monitor, main­tain, and inspec­t the installed irrigation systems to ensure optimal functioning – and replace any faulty parts if necessary.

Irrigation systems must be properly shut down and restarted with seasonal changes. In winter, the water supply must be shut off. Valves, pipes, and pumps must be emptied so prevent freezing. The air should also be turned off after all the excess water has been purged. Then, once the weather warms back up, the system must be inspected, turned back on, and properly configured for optimal watering. Failing to winterize your irrigation system can result in sustained damage that results in costly repairs.

Weed Control and Pest Management

Can weeds grow during winter months? Are pests still active when it’s snowy or icy outside? You bet. A reputable landscape service would never tell you to stop your weed management or pest control protocols during the winter season. While your grounds may appear to the naked eye as snowy and frozen, weeds continue to grow throughout the winter, even if the other plants surrounding them are dormant. Crabgrass and henbit in particular thrive in colder conditions.

Weeds are not only unwanted in your facility’s landscape for aesthetic reasons – they also can pose a threat to a landscape’s turf and beds. Plus, weeds are often the culprits for attracting pests that harm the land­scape and sur­round­ing areas. So, getting your weed control and pest management services in place throughout the winter season and beyond is crucial.

Hire The Budd Group for All Your Winter Landscaping Needs

When researching “landscaping services near me,” you’ll likely come across a wide variety of service providers with varying levels of knowledge and experience. Don’t settle for less. The Budd Group has been serving clients throughout the Southeast United States for over 60 years, and we provide an array of landscaping services to keep your facility’s grounds pristine – even during chillier months! We employ a diverse community of professionals who manage and deliver our services 24 hours a day, seven days a week. When you work with The Budd Group, you can count on hard work, integrity, and outstanding customer service.

Our knowledgeable and friendly team of subject matter experts can confidently complete your landscaping projects, on time and on budget. It’s why we offer a “Make It Right” guarantee, meaning that we promise to provide thorough, professional, and timely service. If we complete a job and you’re unsatisfied in any way, we’ll “make it right.” We serve clients across many industries, including commercial, education, municipal facilities, high-tech labs, medical facilities, religious facilities, restaurants and hospitality buildings, HOAs and apartment complexes, and more.

The Budd Group also specializes in other facility support solutions, from disinfecting to repairs, general maintenance, and custodial and janitorial services. Save yourself the logistical headache of coordinating with many different vendors and service providers for your facility maintenance – we’re your one-stop shop for keeping your facility’s occupants safe and healthy, and your grounds aesthetically pleasing and thriving throughout all the seasons of the year. If you’re located anywhere within the Southeast United States, contact us today to speak to a representative about your landscaping or other facility maintenance needs!