In the landscape industry we like to say we have always been in the ‘green’ industry. While this is true, it also has a kind of double meaning.
At Outdoor Craftsmen we actively work on behalf of all our clients to implement practices that can make a difference in reducing carbon in the atmosphere. We make a conscious effort to help our clients, through their Outdoor Craftsmen landscapes, to contribute to the health of the planet. Read on to learn more about how Outdoor Craftsmen works to nurture the earth.
Plant shade trees. You can reduce air-conditioning needs of your house by up to 50% by creating shade to cool the house. Not only can you reduce your energy needs in the summer, but trees can effectively reduce carbon by absorbing and emitting, in return, oxygen to the atmosphere. We make sure to properly site the trees for best effect, but also to choose trees that work well in our climate and soils. Outdoor Craftsmen designers like using well-branched, hardwood, and at least medium growth rate trees such as Autumn Blaze Maple, Autumn Purple Ash, Ohio Buckeye, Ornamental Pears, Sweet Gum, or London Planetree. Trees we avoid would be Willow, Cottonwoods, or Silver Maples.
Reduce water needs of your landscape. There are numerous areas of your yard where we can implement drought-tolerant plantings, reduction of bluegrass lawn, proper soil preparation prior to planting, and upgrading or raising the efficiency of your sprinkler system. We’ll take out unusable areas of grass and use more drought-tolerant groundcovers or inert materials such as gravel or wood mulches. We’ll add plantings that are more adapted to our region in terms of water needs, and soil requirements.
Our professional landscape designers will create a beautiful, four season landscape that requires less water, but adds texture, movement, and color to an otherwise drab yard. We’ll do an audit of your sprinkler system to determine how to be more efficient in your watering. We provide instruction on when to water, amount the plants’ need, and how to deliver that water most efficiently.
Reduce, recycle, and reuse. Outdoor Craftsmen focuses on what elements in your landscape contribute to the structure and beauty of the yard, what elements are costing more time and money than they add to the yard, and what can be done to renovate with the least amount of energy use while still upgrading your landscape to a newer, more current look and feel. We’ll design and plan your landscape to incorporate materials that are locally produced, and or recycled, while still providing for the needs of your lifestyle and space. Importantly, we always consider the regional climate and soils when planning and constructing so that maintenance products and time are reduced to a minimum to save money and energy costs.
Natural landscapes are an excellent investment. We try to act preventively in your landscape construction and maintenance projects to avoid reactive situations that would require use of fertilizers and pesticides that may be unnecessary otherwise. If watering is more efficient, for example, at the right time with the right amount of water, your plants will remain robust and healthy, thus not requiring fertilizing or pesticide applications to protect them.
Start with a caring philosophy towards the land, plan well, implement great design, and achieve green!
