Greater Chicago commercial properties are busy places – especially in summer.
People are shopping in outdoor retail centers, attending concerts in outdoor venues, taking their work breaks outside instead of inside, and enjoying some fresh air everywhere they go.
As such, commercial facility managers have a tough job of keeping their site looking good throughout the year, especially during the dog days of summer, when this job might be its toughest. Start with high heat, add a lack of rainfall and drought periods, and then see what those conditions can do to even the hardiest plants, and you can see why maintaining a great aesthetic might be challenging.
Let’s talk about commercial landscape maintenance in summer, so you can get a better understanding of how to stay ahead of any troubles and keep your facility looking its best.
4 Important Summer Landscape Maintenance Tasks
Commercial landscape maintenance is best done using a planned approach for each season – summer included. Summer brings a unique host of challenges for those managing commercial sites in Greater Chicago.
You don’t want the heat and dryness to wilt your flowers, brown your lawn and make your landscape look rough and unkempt. You want color, great visual appeal and professional aesthetics that draw in customers, employees, tenants, shoppers, visitors and guests.
Try these key tasks when keeping your commercial landscape looking tidy and healthy during those summer months.
1. Mow Correctly For Summer
By the time summer comes around, mowing may slow down. You may notice your commercial mowing crews are working every 5 days in spring, but by summer this could lengthen to almost every 10 days.
But proper technique is crucial at this time of year. Keeping your commercial turf mowed to a taller 3- to 4-inch height will help shade out weeds, encourage deeper lawn roots and prevent lawn burning from lack of water and high heat.
Crews should never remove more than one-third of the grass blade at any one time, so your grass isn’t unnecessarily stressed and can survive this already stressful time of year.
Commercial landscape maintenance crews will also use professional equipment with sharpened mower blades to avoid tearing the turf.
2. Adjust Your Irrigation Schedule
Water is important if you want your commercial facility to have a lush, green lawn.
Your established lawn will need at least 1 to 1.5 inches of water weekly.
Make sure your commercial property landscaping services provider adjusts your turf zones accordingly.
3. Let Seasonal Color Shine
Summer can bring a lot of gorgeous blooms to your site, so make sure seasonal color is part of your commercial landscape maintenance services.
Bold and bright annual plant displays can really make your property shine at this time of year when all the flowers are popping.
To do this right, embrace a proactive planning approach so that your color is installed and refreshed to match the changing weather patterns. You also want it cared for so it looks fresh. Summer annuals should be installed in May or June and will need adequate and timely watering.
The best spots for your seasonal color are usually focal points like entrances and common areas where people can enjoy them in your highest-traffic areas.
4. End of Summer Pruning
By summer’s end, you may want to consider tree and shrub pruning as part of your commercial landscape maintenance services.
During this process, your commercial landscape professional will cut away dead, weak or broken branches. This ensures it remains tidy at this time of year and prepares it to look even better come the following spring and summer.
You want your perennials to grow back stronger and look better, and proper pruning will help them do that.
KD Landscape Can Help Your Commercial Property Landscaping Look Great in Summer
As a commercial manager for a property in Greater Chicago, it’s not easy to keep up with your landscape during the busy spring and summer months. You want your site to look great and avoid any of that roughness that can result from the harsh summer conditions. We get it.
Let KD Landscape help. We offer year-round commercial landscape maintenance services – including summer – and will help create a plan with you that fits your property's needs and your budget. Our customized proposal will describe the services we recommend during summer months to keep your commercial property functional, safe, healthy and professional-looking.
Want to learn more about commercial landscape companies and their service offerings for your industrial site? Get started today with a free quote. We’ll review your options together so you can make a great choice.
