It’s time to boost the appeal of your commercial property with the fresh new amenities that have everybody talking.
Do you have a dog park, a fire pit and permeable pavers? No? How about a mini golf course, a rain garden or a smart irrigation controller?
How can your commercial property benefit from some of the latest innovative landscaping trends? Let’s take a look at the options, including:
1. Technology Tops Commercial Landscaping Trends
Technology is a hot topic when it comes to commercial landscaping trends in Washington DC, as innovations continue to streamline the landscaping industry:
- Robotic mowers bustle around the lawn completely on their own, running on a battery charge quietly, efficiently mowing the lawn. Their reduced noise and zero emissions are a big bonus for the environment and allow human crews to focus on details like pruning, trimming and weeding.
- Cameras installed on commercial properties give us live winter views for snow management strategy, even showing us the temperature of the pavement.
- Sophisticated software lets landscaping account managers pin locations of problem areas on your property, alerting you with photos and launching a plan of action.
- Landscape designers use high-tech software to create designs for your property on the computer.They activate a camera feature that offers an actual walk-through of a commercial landscape design, wowing customers and giving them a realistic sense of what their improved property will look and feel like. See exactly what your property will look like, transformed.
2. Bustling Community Hot Spots
Property managers at every place from shopping centers to mixed-use developments are encouraging people to gather around.
These green and welcoming community gathering spots feature fresh sod lawns, stage areas, and planting beds packed with cheerful plants and flowers. At night, twinkling lights sparkle overhead.
What happens here? All kinds of stuff:
Farmers markets. Family movie nights. Outdoor fitness classes. Lawn games. Live music and comedy. Wine tastings. Art classes.
The goal: attract as many people as possible. The more people milling about having fun, the easier it is to attract tenants. It makes a property more desirable, to shoppers and tenants, making these lively spots popular for commercial landscaping in Washington DC.
People will come for the events, then stay to shop, dine, and spend.
3. Sustainability and Green Initiatives
Going green is here to stay. Sustainable features are huge in commercial landscaping in Washington DC, from permeable pavers that redirect stormwater to rain gardens that filter oil, grease, and other pollutants before slowly releasing the cleaner water into the water table.
Green roofs provide a lush, relaxing space in the midst of urban bustle, but they also absorb rainwater, provide insulation, create a habitat for wildlife, and even help to lower urban air temperatures.
Green roofs are especially beneficial in cities like Washington DC, where so much area is taken up by rooftops.
Permeable pavers are increasingly popular as sustainability continues to top the trends that are here to stay.
This sustainable landscape solution allows rainwater to seep through your hardscape, rather than pool and flood your property.
Pollutants build up on solid surfaces like concrete and asphalt. Petroleum products, chemicals, fertilizers, and other contaminants accumulate on the surface. Then, when it rains, these pollutants wash off and enter the stormwater system and the environment.
Permeable pavers reduce the overall run-off of storm water on your property.
Bonus: in many counties and municipalities, commercial property owners can apply for a credit to their property taxes if they implement stormwater management techniques like permeable pavers or rain gardens.
Here at Level Green Landscaping, several team members are certified by the Interlocking Concrete Pavers Institute, specifically trained in installing permeable pavers that redirect stormwater.
Several Level Green team members have also earned the Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional certification, which focuses on ways to create and maintain landscaping practices that keep pollutants out of the Chesapeake Bay.
The landscaping certification is administered by the Chesapeake Conservation Landscaping Council, a non-profit dedicated to conservation landscaping to protect the Chesapeake Bay.
The training includes learning how to install and maintain rain gardens, designed to filter pollution from urban and suburban stormwater.
4. The Convenience of Smart Irrigation Controllers
A smart irrigation controller takes charge of efficient, weather-based watering that makes sure your turf gets exactly the water it needs, with no waste. It’s a huge boost to your sustainability efforts.
You save water because your smart controller is monitoring weather conditions all the time. If it’s raining, it won’t turn on. If it’s too cold, and the water might freeze, it won’t turn on.
But a smart controller is super convenient, too. It senses if there’s a problem with your irrigation system, then it alerts you — and the irrigation pros at your landscaping company — so they can fix it right away.
If there’s an electrical issue, a leak, or if anything isn’t quite right, you and your landscaping company find out about it, and can initiate repairs, before your grass has a chance to dry up and die, or you waste valuable water.
Without a smart controller, your broken irrigation system could be spewing water for days or even weeks without anybody knowing about it.
Smart controllers also let your irrigation technicians make helpful adjustments to your system remotely, without an on-site visit. We can increase your watering schedule during a drought or arrange for your system to shut off during a rainy period — all done remotely without a visit to your property.
5. Fun and Games
Another landscaping trend? Bring on the fun. You’ll see more fun spots where shoppers, residents, and tenants can take a break to play corn hole, bocce ball, or mini golf at shopping centers, high-end apartments, and mixed-use developments.
Grown-ups love to play, too, so bring on the putting green, a chance to set workday worries aside and have a little fun.
These game spots invite lingering and work up a thirst, which means more time spent at your coffee shops, restaurants, and bars.
6. Plant Growth Regulator
These handy products slow a plant’s growth to keep it tidier and under control, saving time and improving plant health.
A plant growth regulator blocks the plant hormones that stimulate growth. Sprayed on a plant right after it’s been trimmed, it reduces regrowth.
When you slow the growth of a shrub or hedge, it doesn’t need pruning as often, maintaining its neat, attractive shape longer.
A shrub looks best right after it’s trimmed, right? Plant growth regulators keep that tidy, attractive look longer. Reducing the amount of pruning or trimming saves resources and keeps uneven new growth under control, so shrubs don’t cover your windows, provide hiding spots for intruders and block lines of sight on your property.
Meanwhile, shrubs treated with growth regulators direct their energy elsewhere — to growing bigger, stronger roots. Sturdier roots result in a healthier, more robust plant.
A treated shrub can also send more of its energy to its existing leaves, making them healthier and greener.
7. Going to the Dogs
Dog parks are a great commercial landscaping idea. Dog ownership has always been big, but during the pandemic even more homeowners brought home furry friends to love.
It means more places than ever are dog friendly, offering fun and convenience for pets and their owners.
Dog parks are popping up at mixed-use developments and HOAs, where furry friends find a welcoming open space to run, romp and meet new pals, as well as enjoy water stations and toys.
A couple nice additions: benches where dog owners can relax while their dogs play, and a high/low water fountain so both people and dogs can get a drink.
Many include jungle-gym type set-ups where dogs love to play.
Installing waste stations is a nice touch, making it convenient to dispose of waste.
8. Planters That Pack a Punch
Planters are big. Literally.
Everybody wants bold, oversized pots packed with unique, intriguing blooms that are outside the norm. It’s among the top commercial landscaping trends in Washington DC.
A mixed-use community can have as many as 200 or more big planters.
Think tropical-themed planters featuring exotic palms, colorful coleus, bright begonias, striking blue ageratum, and new varieties of salvia in fuchsia and midnight blue.
Instagram-worthy, they’re designed to wow.
9. Fire Features
More and more, property managers realize the fun doesn’t stop after dark. In fact, it gets better.
Fire pits are having a moment, showing up all over the place as among the hot landscaping ideas for commercial properties.
People love celebrating the after-hours ambience with a flickering fire pit. Surround it with seating, add some festive string lights and watch people show up.
Then, pile on events featuring toasty s’mores, simmering cocoa, seasonal cider or wine tastings. Add a big screen for fireside movies.
Instant hot spot.
10. Pollinator Gardens
Be kind to bees. They need our help.
Actually, all types of pollinators – insects, birds and bats – are in trouble due to habitat loss, diseases and pesticide use.
Fill your property with plants they love: Virginia sweetspire. Bee balm. Cardinal flower.
You don’t need a lot of space for a pollinator garden. Even a few planters can make a difference.
Need Innovative Commercial Landscaping Ideas? Trust Level Green
The first step to jumping on the latest commercial landscaping trends is finding the right landscaping company partner.
At Level Green Landscaping, our mission is to help you create a beautiful, functional landscape perfectly suited to your property.
Our experienced team can install multi-use entertainment areas, dog parks, rooftop gardens, green roofs, and more to enhance your property, incorporating the most innovative commercial landscaping trends in Washington DC.
And once everything is finished, we can keep it looking fresh with regular commercial landscape maintenance services, from turf care to seasonal flower rotations to water-saving irrigation maintenance.
If you’re not already a Level Green Landscaping client, we’d love to add you to our growing list of happy customers.
Our focus is on commercial properties like offices, mixed-use sites, HOAs, municipalities and institutions in Maryland, Washington DC and parts of Virginia.
Contact us at 202-544-0968.
You can also request a free consultation online to meet with us one-on-one.
We’d love to hear from you.