Schill Grounds Management Blog

January 19^th, 2018 marked 25 years that Schill has been in business. On that date in 1993, three brothers set out with the simple mission to make Northeast Ohio landscapes look their best. Since then, the business has changed drastically, and we know that we wouldn’t have made it to where we are without our customers, our rockstar crews, and the community this business operates within.

So, over the course of 2018, we’re going to be unveiling a variety of projects and charitable giving to show the people and communities who have had the biggest impact on our success just how much we appreciate them.

Here’s what we have planned:

If you manage a commercial property, your concerns for your landscape go far beyond what the average homeowner has to think about. You have to balance the competing demands of keeping expenses under budget and creating memorable experiences for tenants, customers, and employees. And sometimes you might be doing all this for multiple properties at the same time.

The staff here at Schill Grounds Management has well over a century of combined experience in helping property managers and owners meet their goals and build landscapes that allow people to create meaningful memories. In this article, we thought we’d share some of the biggest landscaping trends we see commercial property managers adopting.

As the weather turns colder and the days grow shorter, holiday lighting and decorations will soon start popping up on commercial properties throughout Cleveland and beyond.

Here at Schill Grounds Management, we’ve installed holiday décor everywhere from major retail parks to senior living facilities, so we know what it takes to make landscapes and buildings look their best in a safe and festive manner. Because we love to spread holiday cheer, we wrote this article to help you avoid some common mistakes that people make when decorating for the holidays and to let you know what you might be missing if you decide not to use professionals for your installation.

Here at Schill, we’ve worked on hundreds of properties that are visually breathtaking. There are countless factors that are involved in making a landscape look great, from plant choice to hardscapes and architectural features. But why should the best parts of your landscape be visible to potential customers, and tenants only during half of the day?

Landscape maintenance contracts can be notoriously complex. With different companies charging different prices for different services, many contractors profit by keeping customers in the dark about the services they provide. Here at Schill Grounds Management, we pride ourselves on transparency and educating our potential clients about what we do so they can make informed decisions. That’s why our Landscape Maintenance hiring guide is one of our most circulated resources.

So, in that same spirit of education, we set out to write this article on the cost of landscape maintenance because we know it can be difficult to make accurate comparisons across different providers. But before we get into prices, here are some caveats:

Understanding commercial landscaping contracts can be difficult, whether you’re looking for corporate landscaping, HOA landscape maintenance, or apartment landscaping. In fact, that’s why our guide to Landscape Maintenance Pricing is our most popular free resource.

Never ones to shy away from tough questions, we created an outline of all the services that can be potentially included in every contract so that property managers might understand them better.

According to the Census Bureau’s annual Survey of Construction, vinyl siding is the most popular choice for exterior wall coverings. As one of the largest providers of commercial landscape maintenance to condos, apartments, and HOA’s in Northeast Ohio, the Schill team deals a lot with these types of properties.

The fact that the material is low maintenance and budget friendly makes it a clear favorite among the properties we service, but homeowners should be aware that it is susceptible to damage.

What causes siding damage?

For many, the percussive notes a sprinkler head makes as it sprays water is one of the most striking sounds of spring and summer. It’s a sign of warmer weather to come, which generally means more fun. Everyone loves the type of landscapes those irrigation systems allow: lush seasonal color, perfectly green turf, and shrubs that stand at attention. But many people don’t realize just how much money those systems can waste, let alone how to prevent any problems that arise.

Here at Schill, we’ve serviced hundreds of properties with irrigation systems, and we know that it’s a very important feature for a lot of commercial landscapes. For example, annuals require daily watering, which means you won’t be able to enjoy them on your property if you don’t have irrigation installed.

Spring is over and most plants are in full bloom. Annuals are being planted, making landscapes sing with pops of color. Trees that were bare just weeks ago now have tufts of bright green foliage, and many perennial shrubs are sprouting lush flowers. Or… at least that’s how it should be. You may now be noticing that some of the trees and shrubs on your property aren’t in the best of health. These plants may have partial foliage or none at all, and, if not handled, they can greatly diminish the curb appeal of your landscape.

Mulch is a key step in preparing your Northeast Ohio property for the growing season. Now is the time to add a fresh layer of mulch to enhance your landscape’s appearance and improve plant health. You might be wondering, is mulch really necessary every year? Is mulch an “extra” or a must-have? (Some property managers ask this, especially as they are reviewing spring cleanup to-dos and landscape enhancements.)