Keep Your Property Looking Perfect Through Winter

Palm trees with green lush lawn. Grasshoppers talks about ways to keep your Orlando FL commercial property looking perfect through winter.

Palm trees with green lush lawn. Grasshoppers talks about ways to keep your Orlando FL commercial property looking perfect through winter.While winters in Florida are mild, plants and trees still go dormant. But this doesn’t mean you should ignore your landscaping. There are several things you can do to keep your property looking perfect this winter.

Prune

We recommend you have your trees, shrubs, and plants pruned in late winter or early spring. Because they’re dormant during this time of year, this will help prevent any stress to your plants and it doesn’t disrupt fruiting, flowering or the growing cycle.

Mulch

After pruning you should have your flower beds fertilized and re-mulched. This new layer of mulch not only improves the look of your property but it will also help maintain moisture and ensure the fertilizer stays put.

Plant

Depending on your location, you may experience colder winters. If you do, you’ll want to plant annuals that are tolerant to cold weather. This includes amaryllis, petunias, pansies, and snapdragons. Just make sure your flower beds have a good layer of mulch for temperature protection. Adding these winter-hardy flowers to your landscape design will keep it looking beautiful and vibrant year-round.

If you have palm trees on your property, keep in mind they can suffer damage in cold weather. This includes sudden drops of temperature and frost. If you notice dead branches or leaf tissue, have them treated.

Add Hardscaping

Adding hardscaping during the winter is a great way to rejuvenate a dull or stale area. Hardscaping includes rock formations, pavers, sidewalks, water fountains, and retainer walls. Hardscaping not only adds curb appeal but it also provides functionality — whether it’s providing entertainment space or creating a path for visitors.

A great looking lawn and landscape design adds curb appeal and helps make your business more inviting. Fortunately with Florida’s climate, you don’t have to stop enhancing your commercial landscaping. These tips will help keep your property looking vibrant and well-kept through winter.

The Risks of DIY Landscaping Design

Beautifully landscaped lawn with pavers. Grasshoppers talks about the risks of DIY landscaping design for people in the Orlando FL area.

Beautifully landscaped lawn with pavers. Grasshoppers talks about the risks of DIY landscaping design for people in the Orlando FL area.

You’re interested in beautifying your property but you’re on a budget. While “do-it-yourself” methods are fun and make you feel more empowered, DIY is risky when it comes to landscape design. It’s not as simple as adding a few plants here and there. With landscaping, several variables come into play and if performed incorrectly your DIY landscaping may end up costing you more in both time and money.

Risk 1: Improper Planning

Planning is a big part of landscape design. Not only do you need to properly create a cohesive design, but you also need to have all the tools necessary and have time to do it. Oftentimes people will start a project and not see it through to completion. This can lead to an incomplete project or one that is just quickly thrown together, lacking beauty and continuity. Professional landscapers have creative minds. They’ll work with their clients, take their concept and create beautiful landscape architecture. At Grasshoppers we take it even further, creating a digital design prior. This ensures our final design goes off without a hitch.

Risk 2: Haphazard Planting

Plants, trees, and shrubs all perform differently under different circumstances. Some bloom all year-round while some need more shade. Professional landscape designers like us perform a full site analysis before curating a design. During this analysis, we look at soil quality, shade, your existing landscaping, the season, and more because not every plant will work.

Risk 3: Not Taking Function into Account

Great landscaping should incorporate function and form in its design. Professional landscapers will consider how the space is used and keep in mind irrigation, lighting, and traffic.

Risk 4: Neglecting Your Indoor View

With DIY landscaping, small details can often go forgotten. Sure your design looks great from afar, but what if a tree is placed right in front of your picture window or there is too much spacing in between plants? Landscape designers will address potential issues like this during the planning phase.

Risk 5: Going Over Budget

One problem with DIY landscape design is that if you mess up, you’ll spend more time and money trying to fix your mistakes. These costs can quickly add up, causing you to exceed your budget.

Contact a Landscaping Company

Why take the chance of ruining your property? Contact a professional landscape designer. They know high-end designs inside and out and will help impact your commercial property.

How Lighting Can Affect Your Business

Lights illuminating path at night. Grasshoppers talks about the benefits exterior lighting can add to your Orlando FL business

Lights illuminating path at night. Grasshoppers talks about the benefits exterior lighting can add to your Orlando FL business

Lighting doesn’t just illuminate a room, it can make your business inviting, and even affect a person’s mood, completely changing your customer’s experience. In this blog post, we’ll discuss more ways lighting can help improve your business.

Attracts Customers

Customers like places that are well-lit. So if you have a dark storefront people will think your store is closed. Outdoor lighting shows people that your business is open and that you are ready to provide service. It also shows that you care about your company’s brand which is both beneficial to new and existing customers.

Increases Visibility

The way you have your lighting arranged can also help people find their way to your location. Whether your location is tucked away somewhere or it’s wintertime when the days are shorter and you want to make sure customers know you are open long after dusk, lighting helps increase your business’ visibility.

Creates Safety

If you’re open in the evening, there’s a high possibility a customer may come into your business after they get off work when it’s dark outside. You can make it more comfortable for them by installing exterior lighting. Whether you install lighting around the perimeter of your property or just near the entrance, the added light will provide your customers with some peace of mind.

A well-lit business can also help stave off potential criminals for your business. And surrounding businesses as well, creating an overall safer area.

Highlights Deals

If you have the right kind of lighting, you can also highlight deals and promotions you have going on in your business. The lights will attract people nearby and potentially send them into your store.

Provides a Luxury Experience

If you own a restaurant and would like to expand seating to your outdoor patio, you can with the help of exterior lights. Exterior lights can even be soft or dimmed down to set a mood providing an unforgettable experience to patrons.

How you light your property could help dramatically. It can attract more customers, make your business safer, and provide curb appeal. If you’re interested in professional exterior lighting on your commercial property, contact a professional. They’ll inspect your property, come up with a design and professional install exterior lighting that works with your needs and your budget! If you have any questions about commercial exterior lighting, contact us.