Turfgrass, with its extensive below ground root system and its above-ground network of plant material, offers under-appreciated environmental benefits, such as removing dust and pollutants, reducing soil erosion, and filtering water.

When turf and commercial lawns are new, maintenance is basic: mowing, fertilizing, and irrigation, with little need for weed control or other management practices. However, as turf areas age, growth patterns change and roots from maturing trees encroach on lawn areas, competing for available water and nutrients.  Heavily-used areas become compacted, leading to thin turf and exposed soil.

To counteract the effects that compaction, insufficient water, heat, and age have on the health of turf and commercial lawns, ELM recommends core aeration, a process performed in early fall, followed by overseeding – broadcasting new grass seed throughout the turf with a spreader – and fertilization. This 3-step protocol will improve soil, bring in air, water and micro-nutrients, allow turf seed to germinate during cooler weather, and boost root growth for healthier landscapes overall.

Step One:  Aeration.

ELM uses specialized equipment to add air and space in your lawn.  The aerator pulls out plugs of soil (cores) from the turf, approximately ¾ inches in diameter and up to 4 inches deep, about 2-3 inches apart across the turf area treated.

Aerating, double aerating – even triple aerating – in different directions opens up clumps of grass, which creates an explosion in growth at the crown and introduces oxygen, water, and fertilizer straight into the root zone via a core aeration. The plugs will breakdown naturally and the holes will start to fill in with new roots, indicating that soil and root health is already improving.

Step Two: Overseeding.

ELM uses region-friendly, cool season grass blends that contain tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, and perennial ryegrass and other fine and chewing fescues, depending on soil and light conditions.

Advancements in turf science allow us to provide our customers with good options. Tall fescue is by far the most durable grass type on the market especially with the different cultivars they have created over the years. It is a deep rooting turf grass with very good insect resistance and drought tolerance. Some of the newer cultivars that we are experimenting with contain endophytes in their roots which actually help with relieve grub damage. An annual overseeding with ELMs premium grass seed blend custom spec’d and ordered will allow roots to establish before next summer.

Step Three: Top Dressing.

ELM uses a wide array of soil amendments, fertilizers, and soil conditioners, to soil improve turf health and growth. The right mix will improve soil structure, balance soil pH, supply nutrients, and reinvigorate root health. ELM’s compost and organic matter used as a top dressing will also increase beneficial microbial activity. Gypsum, a naturally occurring mineral, and a source of calcium and sulfur, is often added when soil stability and improved filtration is needed, and is excellent for root growth and a healthier soil profile. Synthetic fertilizers kill off the soil flora and can create more problems down the road.

Scheduling:

ELM recommends aerating turf once a year, in the fall, although depending on soil health and use patterns, turf may need more or less frequent aeration. The service is typically performed early morning before commercial properties begin their business day in order to minimize any disruption.

For information on repairing turf areas suffering from summer stress or how this program can provide value to your property, contact your Area Manager or ELM’s Turf Care Specialist, Charles Andrianus at 203-316-5433.

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Photo:  Mill River Park, a 12-acre urban park located in Stamford, CN and a habitat restoration project of the Mill River Collaborative, was awarded a 2015 Design Honor Award from the American Society of Landscape Architects for OLIN Studios. ELM considers it an honor and a privilege to care for this urban sanctuary and all of its riparian plantings. The park’s heavily used lawn is annually aerated and overseeded by ELM to keep the turf healthy and hearty for the public to enjoy all year long

Compliance with building and safety codes, duty to maintenance and repairs, and minimizing risk and liability are among the top five responsibilities of commercial landlords, property managers, and facility engineers.

Upgrades in landscape budgets that address these objectives may often seem daunting, but hardscape projects – structural elements in the landscape such as pavements, pathways, retaining walls, drainage systems, and other architectural features – are important safety and outdoor infrastructure priorities.

For institutions and commercial properties seeking LEED® certification or working to be greener, repairs and renovation to landscape enhancements that add to the site’s sustainability, and enhance functionality and curb appeal can also contribute to the site as a more profitable and environmentally-responsible asset value.

For its part, ELM considers landscape budgeting to be a collaborative process and works with property and facility managers to plan for contingencies, like winter, extreme weather and drought.

ELM recommends looking several years ahead to address capital investment goals for long-term and long-overdue projects, such as environmental compliance, addressing site-specific continuity, and optimizing functionality.

Shorter-term priorities should address improving the look and feel of the landscape, creating a safer property environment that benefits tenants, implementing conservation-based upgrades to optimize water and eliminate waste, addressing standards of care and environmental safety, and updating outdated structural elements.

A strategic option to offset drought concerns would be to substitute rock slabs, stepping stones, decorative gravel, or porous alternatives on pathways to direct rainfall and irrigation water back into the ground, constructing bioswales and drainage systems, and converting underutilized turf to perennial alternatives.

All ELM landscape projects incorporate sustainable practices, low impact development strategies and opportunities for utilization of green practices.

To learn more about making profitable landscape improvements, managing soil erosion, increasing storm water efficiency, and improving the long-term health and viability of your site, contact Bruce Moore, Jr., Vice President, Operations at 203-316-5433.

Photo: ELM’s hardscape solution for a storm water retention basin at Stamford Hospital, Stamford, CN combined quality materials and design-driven construction with careful consideration of technical and sustainable requirements. The drainage improvement project will carry runoff and improve water quality by infiltrating storm flow. The project was completed end of June, 2017. ©ELM2017

Experts are predicting an over-abundance of ticks and mosquitoes this summer due to an unseasonably warm winter.

Of concern to commercial property and facility managers in the greater Fairfield and Westchester County areas are protective measures to reduce the risk of the diseases they transmit, including the potentially debilitating tick-borne Lyme disease and the mosquito-carried West Nile, Zika, and Eastern Equine Encephalitis, among others.

ELM has an established vector management program based on the understanding of the particular insect’s habitat in the landscape and the expertise and confidence of ELM’s well-trained technical team to use safe, environmentally sound, and effective control measures.

“Our main focus is preventative: to eliminate mosquito breeding areas and proactively treat tick habitats,” says Area Manager Charles Andrianus, ELM’s licensed pest control supervisor and director of its pest management program, “This is especially important for businesses serving vulnerable demographics, such as senior living facilities, hospitals and schools,” he added.

ELM offers both chemical repellent products that have been registered and tested for efficacy and human safety, and natural organic solutions to treat mosquitos and ticks, and other biting insects, such as black flies, and parasites, such as fleas.

ELM’s mosquito and tick service begins in June for existing landscape maintenance customers. It is also available as a stand-alone or enhanced service for property and facility managers interested in securing an extra layer of protection. The service consists of three treatments at one-month intervals. Landscape and habitat modifications that can diminish vector habitats are recommended in cases where it can maximize protection and are delivered separately.

Mosquito Prevention Basics:
• Ensure adequate protection during times of day when mosquitoes are most active.
• Eliminate standing water where mosquitoes can breed.
• Keep properties debris-free. 
• Identify areas that might develop and harbor mosquitoes and treat. 
• Address both larval and adult mosquito control.
• Use approved, safe, and safely-applied diverse control measures to reduce mosquito populations.
• Modify landscape plantings to introduce beneficial insects and mosquito-repelling plants, such as marigolds and ageratum.

Tick Prevention Basics:
• Introduce deer-resistant plants such as sages and ornamental salvias, and tick resistant plants, such as rosemary and citronella.
• Select the least toxic chemical control applications and apply along wood lines and walking trails.
• Make landscape modifications in areas adjacent to woods, stonewalls, or ornamental plantings to create a tick-free zone.
• Design buffer areas using gravel to deter ticks from crossing onto lawns from wooded areas.
• Alter landscape’s shady areas to increase sunlight.
• Change landscape practices to create areas less hospitable to ticks.
• Identify areas that might develop and harbor ticks and treat.
• Cut back the wood lines to create a wider buffer zone between plant material ticks hide in and public pedestrian areas.
• Keep brush piles and tall grass cleaned-up and mowed.
• Stay on marked, walking trails; never follow a deer trail.
• Shower and wash thoroughly if you’ve been hiking and check for ticks.
• Wear adequate protection and clothing with insect repellents that utilize DEET, or alternative organic products, such as botanical oil-based products, such as cedar, which is lethal to ticks, or organic neem oil.
 
Mosquitos and ticks are more than a summer nuisance. The diseases they can carry are serious. General protective and control measures work.

For more information on ELM’s pest control program and mosquito and tick treatment services, contact Bruce Moore, Jr., vice president, operations, at 203-316-5433.

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(Photo: CDC © Aedes aegypti mosquito, carrier of Zika virus).

Like all living things, your landscape has a life cycle. With proper care and maintenance, horticulturists can extend its life. But ultimately, all plants will reach the end of their life cycle and decline.

Grasses, trees and shrubs have separate and distinct life cycles. For example, annual flowers have a life expectancy of approximately one year; perennial plants live for several growing seasons. Many keep their leaves year-round and make attractive borders, groundcovers and meadow plantings. Perennials common in the northeast are cold hardy enough to survive winter temperatures. Some perennials, such as forage grasses, die back each winter but revive in the spring.

How landscape lifecycle affects cost:

1) Budget – Replacing plant material can be expensive, especially if large quantities of landscape materials are on the same life cycle and need to be replaced at the same time.

2) Schedule – Scheduling can be difficult in terms of ordering lead times and finding material that is the right size and variety. Scheduling seasonal upgrades, replanting, freshening and improvements to existing areas is critical, especially when the landscape is an important part of the property’s overall marketability, such as on commercial and educational sites.

3) Maintenance – A good landscape management program can ensure that the plant material gets the horticultural care it needs. The right level of care and best management practice will promote the plant’s proper growth and development of the landscape, and prevent damage or early decline. When the landscape ages and begins to lose its luster, we believe it’s often better and cheaper to replace plants in decline than to artificially extend their life using products that might cause potential harm to groundwater, beneficial insects, and sensitive habitats, or result in unnecessary cost to the owner.

4) Function – Plants have three roles to play: aesthetic, structural and utilitarian. They can be visually pleasing, organize and define space, create barriers for privacy and safety, and create comfort by modifying light, temperature and humidity. How plants are used, and to what extent they contribute to site habitat or microclimate, or how they are used for security or energy efficiency, is essential when considering how long each of these plants, trees and shrubs will be able to do its job.

5) Trends – Commercial landscaping reflects the needs of the environment as much as it follows consumer trends. If you want your property value to stay ahead of the curve, it’s a good idea to take stock of your landscape to stay relevant and appealing. Overall, landscapes are more sustainably focused. Traditional lawn areas are being re-imagined, natural materials are in demand, and digital technologies that control landscape and irrigation systems are fueling an opportunity for enhanced next-generation resource management.

6) Water – As Connecticut enters year three of a statewide drought, irrigation becomes a matter of water management. Property owners and managers concerned about the impact of restricted watering on their plants and trees are justifiably concerned. Options for keeping landscapes healthy as the weather heats up include turf aeration, to improve water and nutrient absorption; soil amendments, to improve soil health; mulching, to improve hydration and moisture retention; converting underutilized turf or tired borders to perennial meadows or less thirsty plantings; and retrofitting outdated sprinkler systems with water conserving technologies.

How can ELM help?

ELM’s team of professional horticulturists are knowledgeable about which plants, flowers, grasses and trees are right for the site; how they will perform over time, and how their unique characteristics will contribute to the overall health, longevity, and value of the landscape.

We provide both short- and long-term cost analysis, maintenance priorities, water and resource conservation strategies, and, more importantly, as all-season service provides, make sure that every site we care for is safe and hazard-free, even in winter.

For more information on optimizing your landscape life cycle and creating a landscape management strategy that begins with the end in mind, contact Bruce Moore at 203-316-5433.