A beautiful landscape offers great value and appeals to home, business and property owners looking to add a little something extra to the complete yard. When a landscape is well managed, it is beautiful and inviting to everyone who steps foot on the grounds.
Experienced landscape design technicians and specialists have the knowledge and understanding to know which warning signs to look for that could make your property potentially dangerous to pedestrians. With their expertise and precision, they can fix those problem areas and create a beautiful, safe space for everyone to enjoy.
Here are five potential problem areas that professional landscape designers will look for that you, too, should pay attention to:
Trees make for a beautiful addition to any commercial property. They provide useful shade and add elements of depth and texture to the landscape. Studies have even shown that properties surrounded by ample tree cover experience decreased crime as well. But, they can also be hazardous liabilities if your trees are not maintained properly. Inspections and maintenance should be routinely done to ensure the trees are healthy.
If dead branches and limbs are not trimmed back when necessary, they could fall down, creating dangerous situations for pedestrians and bystanders. Any surrounding trees should also be observed for signs of insect damage or disease. A tree that is damaged or dead could be at risk of falling or splitting during severe winds or storms. When trees aren’t healthy and well-maintained, the safety of everyone on the ground is at risk.
In case you don’t know what this means, hardscapes are those added areas within a landscape that are not covered by greens and plant life. These are areas such as patios, paver sidewalks, retaining walls and other similar structures within an outdoor space.
Landscapers will monitor to ensure all patios and sidewalks are level and their foundations are firm. Loose bricks and paver stones could create tripping hazards for pedestrians walking around the grounds. Including such hardscapes into areas that previously were bare will create safe, clear, visual footpaths for pedestrians to walk on. This makes moving around the property safe and easy for everyone. You won’t have to worry about people tripping over divots, holes, and uneven spaces in the yard.
Rainwater is great. It moistens the soil, provides needed water to trees, plants, and grass, and leaves the outdoors smelling clean and fresh after a storm. Water is also a very powerful force and has the potential to cause significant damage to any landscape. Without proper drainage solutions in place, standing water and flooding can develop in low lying areas after a heavy rainstorm.
Improper drainage could also lead to excessive soil erosion around sidewalks and patios, compromising their foundations. Landscape design experts who also have a skilled understanding of landscape drainage solutions will know what signs to look for to determine if a property has drainage problems. Proper lawn grading, downspouts, and gutters trenching and even retaining walls all play important roles in controlling the flow of water through a landscape. The experts will know exactly which drainage solutions are ideal for your property and needs.
Irrigation and sprinkler systems can fall under a similar category to drainage. Commercial property owners don’t want their sprinkler systems to inexplicably soak pedestrians, create slippery-when-wet conditions on sidewalks or add to any standing water problems currently existing on the property.
It takes an expert who really understands the ins-and-outs of landscape drainage to create the ideal balance necessary for healthy plant growth and pedestrian safety.
It’s easy to forget that outdoor lighting is just as important to creating a sate, beautiful landscape as the actual plant life and architectural designs are. But, when you think about it, the safety benefits are rather obvious. Proper and efficient lighting offers safety and security in a variety of ways.
Installing adequate lighting in an outdoor space will make navigating around the grounds much easier for pedestrian visitors, especially during those early morning hours or evening meetings. Sufficient lighting will help minimize the likelihood of preventable trips, collisions and falls with surrounding objects outdoors. When guests are on your property, you want (and need) them to be able to see where they’re walking.
Lighting also adds an added level of security to your entire property. Security lights not only showcase the beauty of nature in those darker hours of the day, but they also shine a light directly on key areas of the property. Lighting helps to discourage criminal activity that typically likes to hide in the dark shadows surrounding the property.
Does it seem like there is that one place on your outdoor lawn where visitors always seem to stand around and/or gather? Maybe that doesn’t bother you or appear to cause you any headaches currently, but there will be times where you’ll feel the need to direct pedestrians away from specific areas of your property.
Permanent hardscapes like patios or sidewalk that also feature benches or seating help to create natural gathering spaces that visitors’ eyes will gravitate toward. Such spaces will draw pedestrians’ attention to your preferred gathering spots while they wait outside, keeping them away from the sections of the property that they shouldn’t linger in.
Need help creating a space that aims to keep your outdoor guests and nearby pedestrians exactly where you want them to remain, all while also adding the aesthetic appeal of your brick-and-mortar building? Our team of experts at Twin Oak Landscape can get the job done.
With a comprehensive team of fully trained experts, we can get the job done right so you can spend your time caring about the people and things that matter most to you. We know that safety is always an important aspect to consider, and our landscaping teams want to get the job done right, fair and square so that you and your guests can confidently walk around the property day or night. Call Twin Oaks Landscape today at 734-213-6911 for more information or to request a quote.
