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Property owners who’ve gotten a jump on lawns andlandscaping will not only have some of the mostattractive apartment communities, but will also lay the groundwork for opportunities to attract new residents. Beautiful flowers, healthy trees

and shrubbery and lush lawns make any community inviting.

A key to a long-lasting, healthy landscape is maintaining agreen thumb throughout the year, not just in optimal weatherconditions. Planting, pruning, fertilizing and watering are ayear-round effort and should be included in any lawn and land-scape maintenance plan.

Spring is the most popular time for landscaping becausethat’s typically the most colorful time of the year; however, toreap Mother Nature’s rewards, advance planning and prepara-tion should take place long before the first blooms arrive.

Everything from weed control, lawn feeding, watering andpruning should be addressed.

Following are six general tips to maintaining a healthy land-scape at any apartment community.

1. Apply a Pre-EmergentA pre-emergent fertilizer/weed control product should be used

on grassy areas to promote healthy lawn growth in both thespring and fall. A pre-emergent is designed to stop new weedseeds from germinating. The idea is to target the application justprior to the spring or fall germination, which varies from year toyear depending on weather patterns.

Because it forms a barrier on the top layer of the soil, a pre-emergent is most effective on established lawns. If that soil is notcovered by grass and is heavily disturbed by foot traffic, rain orwind, the barrier is broken down. As that soil gets moved, thechemical form of the barrier breaks down and creates opportuni-ties for weeds to develop.

Six tips for moving beyond garden-variety landscaping with year-round grounds management.

BY CHRIS LEE

Cultivating a

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2. Fertilize By NumberDepending on your area, fertilizer needs to be applied in

the early stages of lawn and plant activity and following a pre-emergent application. Applications are most common in the spring, but feedings should take place throughout the year as conditions dictate. Avoid applying high-nitrogen fertilizers tosome grasses in summertime’s extreme heat. A fall feeding isalways a good idea to supply nutrients even though the grass orplant may be dormant.

What do the three numbers on the fertilizer bag mean? Theyrepresent the percentage of nitrogen, potash and potassium in eachpound of fertilizer. A commonly recommended ratio is 3:1:2: thefirst number is three times the second number and the third isdouble the second. Check with a local garden center to find out therecommended ratio for your particular region and landscape.

Fertilization is typically a factor of how many pounds of nitro-gen per 1,000 square feet that you’re trying to put down, and

applying the correct amount is essential. Follow recommendedspreader settings and make adjustments as necessary to get to thedesired application rate.

3. IrrigationSpring is a good time to prepare irrigation systems. Do a fire-up to

ensure everything is functioning properly, identifying any cloggedheads, nozzles and any lateral line damage from the winter. Handsprinklers should be properly lubricated and turning properly.

It’s also a great time of year—especially in regions withdrought—to get lawns and plants used to longer, less-frequentwatering cycles. Watering longer and less often encourages theroots to stretch deeper and promotes a heartier plant that canwithstand dry spells.

It’s best to water in the early morning, allowing water to filterdown through the soil before the evaporation rate increases withthe mid-afternoon sun. Avoid watering at night, as moisture leftsitting on plants can promote the growth of fungal diseases.

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Field of Green

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4. SeedingSpring and fall are great times to seed. Depending on the

variety of grass, the ground needs to be at a certain temperaturebefore seeds will germinate. For example, seeding Bermudagrass—a fast-growing and hardy species found in warm cli-mates—should be done about mid-May in a place like Texas. If you seed too early, the seed won’t germinate and could getwashed away with heavy rains.

5. Stress ReductionStress is just as much a part of life for a plant as it is for a

person, and summer heat can stress a lawn. Just as a doctordoesn’t want to operate on somebody who has high blood pres-sure, a lawn-care specialist doesn’t want to do anything in thesummer that would create stress on the landscape, such ashard pruning. Pruning should be done in the fall or beforespring when plants are dormant. Remember, plants are living,breathing organisms.

6. Know When to Prune Winter is a good time to cut back perennials, prune crape

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Coming Up Roses

Diana Pittro, Executive Vice President of RMK ManagementCompany, not only understands the importance of curb

appeal—she knows how to do it well. In 2011, her Chicago-based company won the Chicagoland

Apartment Marketing and Management Excellence (CAMME)award for curb appeal at its Versailles on the Lakes communi-ty in Schaumburg, Ill. (above).

Following are seven landscaping tips from Pittro—whosecompany spends approximately $25,000 a year per commu-nity (with 300+ units) for lawn maintenance and $18,000 ayear for flowers.

1 Don’t buy undersized plants, because it will take a yearto achieve full visual impact. If your budget is limited,

choose two or three key areas to make a big splash with lotsof plants and color, rather than spreading your plantings outso much that they look sparse.

2 Landscaping should be bright, clean and eye-catching. I use vibrant colors in mixtures and blend annuals and

perennials to keep costs down, as perennials come back eachyear.

3 I use the same color schemes in the landscaping at allof our RMK communities. It simplifies our landscaping

planning, and it’s also something memorable to a prospectwho might be visiting several of our locations.

4 If you are planning to move from annuals to perennialsin your landscape program, make the transition over

the course of several years so that it is not noticeable to yourresidents and prospects. As your new perennials mature, con-tinue to use annuals to fill in empty space around them.

5 Planting pots are a great, cost-effective way to create abig visual impact at door entries, pools and other areas

where you want to make a great impression.

6 They may seem like curb appeal basics, but don’tunderestimate the power of a nicely manicured lawn

and tidy flower beds. Uplights on signs, flags and plantingbeds are also an important part of curb appeal, so keep themin good working order.

7 Make sure to focus your landscaping and curb appealefforts on the areas that prospective renters are most

likely to see on a property tour, like the leasing center andclubhouse.

8 Consider moving toward green landscaping. We areusing recycled rain water, green fertilizers, natural

mulch and more environmentally friendly plantings in ournatural areas, such as wildflowers, lily pads and cattails.

myrtles, trim dormant ornamental trees, remove seed pods andreduce rose bushes or other flowering shrubs that shouldn’t bepared down during the growing season. Any ground covers thatare showing any damage typically should be cut back or mowedin late winter or early spring to promote new, green growth.

A total landscape care program should be inclusive of all sixphases discussed above. It makes the rest of the program lesseffective when facets like fertilization or pre-emergent applica-tion are overlooked. Plant life functions in cycles, and so tooshould caring and maintaining a landscape. Ensure that aproperty lives up to its aesthetic potential year-round, attractingprospective residents to your community like bees drawn tobright blooms.

Chris Lee is President of Dallas-based Earthworks,which specializes in multifamily housing landscaping.This article originally ran on the rental-housing blogpropertymanagementinsider.com.

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