Landscaping Education 

All About Landscaping

The Schill team has a over century of combined experience in the landscaping industry, which means that we've amassed a lot of great information about lawn care. Over the years, we've enjoyed sharing that knowledge with property managers and owners alike. Below, we've listed our most helpful resources about landscape maintenance.

 

Table of Contents: (About A 6 Minute Read)

Keep Turf Healthy

Fertilizer: Feeding Your Lawn from the Soil Up

Make sure your landscape Changes With The Seasons

Irrigation And Watering

Understanding Landscaping Contracts

Sustainable Landscaping

Enhancements: Upgrades That Make Your Landscape POP

 

Keep Turf Healthy

Keeping your turf healthy is a difficult job that requires different methods of care for every season.

Below are some of our favorite resources to keep your grass looking great.

 

When NOT to mow your Turf If you want grass that's healthy from root to blade, you need to know that there are times when it's best NOT to mow it.

 

 

Turf damage is often inevitable, but letting it persist is a choice. Drought, excessive rain, and common diseases each affect turf differently, and we different use strategies to combat the problems they bring. Read our guide to salvaging damaged turf.

 

 

Here at Schill, we like to focus on proper maintenance to preserve your turf rather than  having to replace damaged lawns. But, occasionally, we do come across properties where it's better to start from scratch with new turf installation.   If you know that new turf is something you need, we have a guide to walk you through how much your investment is going to cost.

 

Fertilizer:

Feeding your landscape from the soil up

 

 

A healthy landscape starts with healthy soil. Several times during the growing season, the Schill team uses organic fertilizer to make sure that the soil  The Schill team are stewards of the earth, and that means providing nutrients for theApplying fertilizer is one of the most important services we 

 

Everything you need to know about plant nutrition. Here at Schill we primarily use organic fertilizers to give turf, flowers, trees, and shrubs the nutrients they need. But in order for you to make an informed decision about which product to use on your property, you'll first need to know the difference between organic and synthetic fertilizer.

 

Still not sure about organic fertilizer? This post on the effects of synthetic fertilizer should help to convince you to reduce your use of synthetics. Doing so can help protect your pets, your family, and the planet.

 

 

Make sure your landscaping changes with the seasons

Every season comes with its own set of complications and issues for your landscape. Luckily, the Schill team has a ton of documentation on how winter, spring, summer, and fall each uniquely affect your property and what to do to keep things looking great.

Spring is the time for addressing any damage your plants have taken during winter. Replant any trees or shrubs that may have died and install perennials and annual flowers.

In summer, make sure to water plants and turf thouroughly to keep them from drying out. Summer is also the time to monitor your landscape for common problems like plant and lawn diseases and pests, as these issues thrive in warm, damp environments. 

Fall is the ideal time for planting due to its warm days cool nights, and generous amounts of rainfall. Consider installing bulbs or perennials during this time, or add some seasonal color with popular annuals like mums and violas. During this time we also look ahead to the next season, winterizing plants to protect them from frost. Doing this not only keeps plants from getting damage, but it  can also save our customers thousands in tree and shrub replacements.

We spend most of winter preparing for the upcoming spring. This means dormant pruning so that trees and shrubs look great once warmer weather hits and planting bulbs before the ground freezes so that plants like tulips and crocuses bloom in early spring.

 

Here are some of our favorite articles to help you maintain your landscape all year round:

 

4 Spring Add-On Services That Increase The Value Of Your Commercial Property	Watering Plants in summer: Myths and Misconceptions That Will Kill Your Landscape	4 Colorful Fall Landscaping Ideas  Schill's Fall Planting Guide	5 Commercial Landscape Maintenance Musts For Winter Curb Appeal

 

Want even more seasonal lawn care tips? Download our FREE guides below:

 

 

Summer Landscaping Checklist This shorter guide is a great go-to resource that will help you make sure that your landscape can handle the year's hottest, driest weather.	Fall Landscaping Checklist Curious about what plants thrive in the fall? Want to make sure your landscape is ready for winter? Download our checklist today!

 

 Irrigation and Watering

 Landscapes need water to remain healthy, but not knowing how factors like the season, weather, and type of plant can affect watering requirements could cause your utility bills to skyrocket. Below are our favorite resources on how to water wisely and keep your irrigation system working like new. 

 

How to save money on irrigation We see clients make irrigation mistakes that could end up costing thousands of dollars every year. So, we wrote an article listing what NOT to do if you want to water your landscape efficiently and cost-effectively.

  

 

Interested in tech upgrades for your irrigation system? Check out our recommendations for smart irrigation upgrades to keep your system running efficiently.

Are you over or under-watering your landscape? Read this article on the biggest watering mistakes people make during the driest part of the year.

 

 

Sometimes, you need the help of an irrigation pro.  Every 3-5 years or so, we recommend that our properties with irrigation systems get a comprehensive irrigation audit to make sure things are running as efficiently as possible.

 

Understanding Landscaping Contracts

Landscape maintenance contracts are notoriously difficult to compare, because each company counts different services as "standard." That's why it's vital for property managers and those looking for landscaping services to understand what services they need to keep their landscape healthy and their property operating safely, and to make sure every bid you solicit is structured the same way.

 

Below are our our best articles for to help people landscaping contracts. We'll teach you what's included in a commercial landscaping contract, how much you can expect to pay for the most common landscaping services, and why contracts in this industry tend to be so different in the first place.

 

 

Need to know what a commercial landscaping contract includes? This post covers just about every type of landscaping service offered from plant and horticultural care to mowing and irrigation services.

 

How much does commercial landscaping cost? Here at Schill, focusing on practices that are not only environmentally by financially sustainable means that we haven't had to raise our prices in five years. Because of that, along with out committment to transparency, we wrote a guide to help people estimate how much their commercial landscape maintenance will cost.

 

Still need to know more about contracts? Here are some more resources that can help:

 

Why are landscaping contracts priced so differently? Anyone who's gotten multiple bids from different landscaping companies knows that they can differ vastly on the type, quality, and frequency of services offered.

How does frequency of service affect price?  Factors like irrigation systems, ponds and water features, and types of plants within a landscape can mean more visits from specialists and basic maintenance providers alike.

 

 

Doing what's best for the environment:
All about sustainable landscaping

Here at Schill, we consider ourselves stewards of the environment, and minimizing our impact on the planet is at the core of every decision we make. You can see it in our use of propane mowers, organic fertilizers, and how we responsibly recycle waste like lawn clippings.

 

Considering LEED certification for your commercial property? Consciencious, envionmentally-focused services like pest and disease management that isn't harmful to other organisms and water efficient landscaping can affect your LEED certification status.

 

 

Focus on the planet with water efficient landscape design. Ornamental grasses are great because they're hearty and can withstand even the harshest drought conditions. This can help you make a low-maintenance landscape, or allow you to incorporate a larger amount of needier plants like annual flowers.

 

Want to learn more about how adopting sustainable policies can help your business?
Don't miss these resources:

 

 

Want to become an expert in corporate sustainability? Download our guide today. We made a FREE downloadable guide for people who want to make sure that their business is performing responsibly towards the environment and the people in it.	how Schill walks the walk. Corporate sustainability is one of our fundamental principles. The Schill team has incorporated environmental impact into all decisions great and small. How does that look day to day?

 

 

Enhancements: Upgrades That Make Your Property POP

 

We use word enhancements as a catch-all term to refer to any optional services that improve your landscape. This can mean any thing from irrigation installation or upgrades, to planting trees and shrubs, to building flower beds and hardscapes.

Here at Schill, we know that every property serves a different purpose and therefore requires different services. Talking with our clients about their goals and providing them with landscaping solutions are what we love to do.

Are you looking to improve employee or tenant engagement? Try installing a community garden on your property.

Encourage outdoor activity by incorporating outdoor workspaces into your landscape's design. This could mean anything adding furniture to conscienciously pruning trees to increase your shaded areas.

 

 

Looking for landscape design upgrades to make your property look amazing? Take a look at these articles:

 

5 Commercial Landscape Designs  for a Memorable Entrance	Need some ideas?  See how we deliver 'WOW' year round with Enancements at St. Mary of the Woods