Environmental Insights

Ask any landscape contractor, big or small, if they have a safety plan and they’ll inevitably say, “Oh yes, of course we do!” But what does that really mean?

With unemployment at a nearly fifty year low, this is the most difficult labor market I can ever recall in my entire 29 years in business.  Finding competent, hardworking people who want landscaping jobs in the numbers we need is just plain tough right now.

We just can’t get enough of our new Phantom 4 drone. As we explained in our last post,  we purchased it as a safety and efficiency solution for a commercial construction project. And it is proving to be an absolute workhorse on commercial construction and civil engineering jobs.

But that’s turning out to be just the tip of the iceberg. We’re finding that the drone has applications for virtually everything we do here at T.Lake. Today, let’s take a look at what a drone can bring to commercial landscape maintenance projects.

While outside temperatures in Georgia may still be sweltering at the end of summer, before long most business owners’ thoughts will turn to planning and budgeting for next season. As a commercial property owner or manager, you’re concerned with making every budget dollar count.

It's inevitable. Every summer, the central Georgia heat and humidity promote out-of-control grass (and weed) growth. It really seems like an impossible task to keep your property looking well-maintained during the summer months. Even if you do manage to keep up with the growth, you still have to deal with the mountains of clippings that pile up and drift across your sidewalks and driveways. Plus, you often feel guilty about inflating your carbon footprint with all the constant mowing.

Whether it’s to do right by the environment or to protect the health of people and pets, more and more people in Georgia and elsewhere are becoming interested in living a less toxic lifestyle. It’s a choice that can impact just about every aspect of life—including lawn care.  

Here at T.Lake, we get it.  We’re outside people.  We like to go barefoot with the children and roll around in the grass with the dog. Their health, and ours, matters to us—a lot. So we certainly want to avoid unnecessary chemical use. But “Can you do organic lawn care?” is not a simple question for us to answer.

Of course, the easy reply is, “of course we can.” But the truth is, a 100% organic approach may not make you 100% happy. Here’s why.

“What does tree trimming cost?”

Like many pricing questions, this one has no simple answer. Instead, let me give you the lowdown on what goes into tree trimming cost estimation, so you can better understand the bids you receive.

Here’s a question that comes up a lot: “Will my landscape project qualify as a capital improvement?”

Whether the improvements are made to a home or business, all capital improvement projects are tax deductible. However, repair and maintenance projects are not. For larger projects especially, it’s a good idea to determine in advance whether or not a landscape project is a capital improvement.

We’ll be the first to admit it: T. Lake is not the biggest guy on the block. We’re a local company with local roots and local values. We like it that way.

But, that doesn’t mean we can’t play nice with the giants.

In a recent post, we discussed 5 compelling reasons for commercial real estate developers to feel comfortable working with T.Lake. But not all developers play in the same ballpark. When you start talking the biggest of the big, you’ve got to up the ante.

Very large, national and international contracting companies have unique concerns as well as a more corporate approach to doing business that doesn’t always mesh with the way small business operates. Does T. Lake have what it takes to work successfully with them?

As a matter of fact, we do.

A commercial landscape should look beautiful and inviting. However its benefits go deeper than mere aesthetics. A well-designed commercial landscape also offers many benefits related to safety and security,  cost control, sustainability, compliance with government regulations, and other areas.

In the same way, a good commercial landscape provider is one whose expertise encompasses far more than simply the ability to create an aesthetically pleasing landscape. When choosing a commercial landscaper to work with, it pays to look deeper into the company in question and find out what else they’re made of.

If you are a commercial landscape developer, here are a few reasons to consider working with T.Lake: