Commercial real estate managers spend a lot of time doing cost benefit analysis. How can investing now reduce future expense? Decisions often boil down to the price of the investment relative to its savings potential. Rarely do opportunities come along that offer expense reduction without an up-front investment. Replacing some or all of your landscape’s annuals with perennials offers this very economic benefit and a few others.
Planting perennials is better for your bottom line, the environment, and your customers.
Perennials are a good investment
Herbaceous perennials persist for many growing seasons. Unlike annuals, which complete their life cycle in one season, perennials die back to the ground but regenerate from their root system the following spring. By investing once, you can reap the benefit for years. Your perennial investment can earn dividends too. When divided, perennials can be transplanted to new locations in your garden for only the cost of labor. Learn more aboutThe Benefits of Dividing Perennials.
Perennials provide for pollinators and improve soil
A landscape should be measured in more ways than curb appeal. Perennial plants provide necessary habitat for pollinators and song birds including pollen, nectar, and seed. Some perennials and grasses are known for their ability to reduce soil erosion and improve soil quality. Perennial grasses with deep tap roots aerate the soil and access nutrients found deep below the surface. These perennials can assist other plants by brining those nutrients closer to the surface where they can be accessed.
Perennials introduce new forms, colors and textures
Perennials have a longer growing season and produce color at various times throughout the year. This is different from annuals which tend to bloom during the summer. With good planning and design, a Kentucky landscape with perennials can offer provide color as early as February and continue through November. And the interest perennials can provide doesn’t stop at floral blooms. Many herbaceous perennials produce striking form, beautiful seed heads, and even add sound to the landscape.
The maintenance budgets of commercial facilities are shrinking. So is natural habitat. Our communities need high quality outdoor spaces that improve our mental health and well-being. Commercial real estate managers need smart landscaping that leverages the benefits perennials provide to address all of these needs.
