Condo Media - March 2015 - 32

GREEN THUMB
Beautiful, serviceable landscapes
don't happen by accident. They require
careful planning and ongoing attention.
Many communities today are dealing
with the results of poor planning in the
past done by developers, former boards,
or both.
The wrong trees planted in the wrong
places die prematurely, block views, or
spread outsized roots under buildings,
damaging their foundations. Overgrown
shrubs attach themselves to buildings,
creating moisture problems and harboring invasive insects. Untended lawns
make an entire community look shabby
and neglected.
"Boards devote a lot of attention to
day-to-day operations," says Bill Butts,
business developer for ND Landscape
Inc., in Georgetown, Mass. "They plan
for major capital improvements like
swimming pools and roadways." But
they don't recognize that landscaping,
too, requires a long-term planning
perspective.

Planting perennials rather than annuals that have
to be replaced every season is another cost-saving
solution. The right flowers can add the color and
variety of annuals without the yearly expense.
HOW BIG WILL IT GROW?
Just as you have to consider what the
tiny puppy you buy today will weigh
when fully grown, you have to consider
what the saplings and shrubs you acquire will look like when they mature
and where they should be planted. You
don't want to put trees with a large
canopy close to buildings, Butts says.
You want to put them in open spaces
where they will have room to grow.
A landscape plan should have both
near-term goals (what you want to plant
in the spring and fall) and a long-term
vision (what you want the community too
look like five or 10 years from now). Your
landscape plan also should include a bud-

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CONDOMEDIA

get for maintenance, a crucial component
that boards sometimes fail to consider.
Grass has to be mowed, shrubs have to be
trimmed, and trees have to be pruned (to
keep them well-shaped and healthy) and
monitored for signs of disease.
Butts calls regular landscape maintenance "cost avoidance." Like deferred
maintenance on buildings and building
systems, deferred landscape maintenance
will increase your costs. "If you don't
spend $100 to prune that tree today, it may
cost you $3,000 to remove it five years
from now," he says. And if you have to
remove the tree, you will also remove the
shade and the economic value it provides.
PRUDENT PRUNING PAYS
Tony Rosado, president of Rosado and
Sons Inc., in Westborough, Mass., puts
pruning high on his list of essential maintenance. "If it's done consistently, pruning will extend the life of your plants," he
says. If not, you will have to replace them.
Plants and shrubs have to be pruned
not only for their health and appearance
but also for the safety of residents, Butts
notes. Overgrown shrubs can block lines
of sight, making it difficult for drivers
to see pedestrians and for pedestrians
to see oncoming cars. "Safety is a major
point of emphasis for us," Butts says. It
encompasses a community's hardscape
(cracks in sidewalks, potholes in streets),
as well as its landscape.
Most communities budget for mowing, trimming, fertilizing, and irrigating,
says Gregory Progin, office manager for
Rosado, but many omit periodic aeration, which is equally important. Unlike
pruning, which immediately improves
the appearance of shrubs and trees, the
benefits of aerating aren't immediately
apparent, which is why some boards
decide it isn't necessary. But the failure
to aerate has long-term consequences.

Condo Media - March 2015

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