TOP LANDSCAPE
Tips for Fall
If you want your spring landscape to ‘Stand Apart’ next year, then getting started during the fall is a pre-requisite. Your seasonal flowers, fruits, vegetables and plush green grass won’t flourish into the bright colors, ripe succulents or desired “carpet-like feel” without partaking in steps to refresh and revitalize your landscape before the winter months.
Tips for Your Garden and Plants
Take A Walk: Walk around your landscape to inspect how each area of your yard has progressed during the past year. Take notice of plants or tress that may have disease, are overgrown or dead. Make a mental note of spaces where plants have flourished and places they haven’t so you can find the correct type of plant for that area.
Trim Dead Branches and Plants: Large, dead branches can be dangerous, especially during the winter months. Protect smaller trees from damage by trimming diseased branches close to (but not flush with) the trunk. For large trees, call a certified professional to assess the situation. Trees add value to a property (some real-estate experts say as much as $15,000) so don’t shy away from quality maintenance.
Gardens and Beds: Snails and slugs tend to feed on annuals left to decompose in gardens. Take time to remove the annuals and snails/slugs so that your spring beds will be healthier. Plant bulbs and mark them with a small stick so that they are not disrupted during spring planting. Trim perennial foliage down to the ground; this sends energy to the roots for next season. Every three years, divide crowded plants to make room for more flowers to bloom.
Mulch Young Plants: Till decomposed mulch or compost into your soil to give plants fresh and vital nutrients for the winter. After a light frost, but before the ground freezes, place a 2-4 inch layer of mulch around the plants you’ve tilled to give them warmth and protection during cold weather.
Tips for Your Lawn Care
Collect Those Leaves: Save the leaves collected from gutters and lawn to create a compost bin. A variety of materials can be used to contain compost, but something as simple as chicken wire will do the trick. Transport leaves to your compost pile via a large plastic tarp to make the job a little easier. Flip the leaves in your compost weekly to ensure they will be ready to “feed” next year’s beds and lawn.
Mow: For the last cut of the season, take your turf down to 1¼ inches. Less leaves will get caught in your lawn if it’s shorter and disease will have a difficult time latching on. Grass receives most of its nutrients from the upper parts of its blade. Cutting your lawn shorter than the recommended height may result in its inability to grow.
Fertilize: Grass roots keep growing until the temperature gets to about 40 degrees, so fall is a perfect time to apply high phosphorus mixes to encourage root growth. Your your lawn will be that bright green you want in the spring.
Aerate: Aerating your lawn is a good practice to follow for anyone trying to maintain a healthy landscape but especially for homeowners who have rainfall pools on their grass, high traffic areas, or a lot of shade. The technique of aerating allows water and nutrients to reach the roots by pulling out plugs of compressed soil. You can use a garden fork for smaller areas but for larger sections a walk-behind aerator is more efficient.
Preparing your landscape during the fall is essential to its ability to produce in the spring. Maximize your landscape’s potential now and reap the rewards this spring.
Bronze Sponsor for the ASLA-NY Annual President’s Dinner Gala
We proudly announce our sponsorship of the ASLA-NY 2016 President’s Dinner which will be held on November 10th at Tribeca 360 in NYC. This year’s event focuses on forecasting the next 100 years of landscape architecture and will honor Senator Kristen Gillibrand, Mary Alice Lee & Melissa Potter of TPL’s NYC Playgrounds Program and Brad McKee the Editor of Landscape Architecture Magazine. In addition to honoring these prominent community leaders and the growth of NY’s green space designs, there will also be an online raffle of materials to utilize in your very own outdoor space. Proceeds from the raffle will benefit the ASLA-NY, NY Center for Landscape Architecture and available scholarships.
As Seen in REAL DEAL Magazine
Our landmark projects throughout NYC such as West Village Residences, World Trade Center, Carnegie Hall, 1 Hotel Central Park, Barclays Center, Whitney Museum, 215 E. 68th Street are now featured in Real Deal Magazine, the number one magazine in NYC for Real Estate Developers, Investors and Construction Firms.
Commercial Project
World Trade Center – Liberty Park – Living Wall, NYC
Developer: NY/NJ Port Authority
General Contractor: TB Penick & Sons
Architect: Joseph E. Brown
Project Description: Over 22,000 plants were used to create the living wall located on Liberty Street in New York City across from the 9/11 Memorial. The 336 foot long wall stands at 25 feet high and will serve as a grand welcome to the people who visit the area of Liberty Park and the underground vehicle security center at the World Trade Center.
826 panels were installed to hold the six different varieties of plants utilized to make up this artful structure. The steel panels, placed on the wall, were secured in place by highly-qualified professionals utilizing a scissor lift and teamwork. The six varieties of plants were used in the living wall installation. The assortment of plant species, combined with a staggered panel design, allows the living wall to have a dynamic appeal full of textures, colors, and continual new growth.
All plants on the living wall were first cultivated horizontally to ensure that their roots were anchored firmly into the soil. Irrigation tubes with small weep holes were strategically placed throughout the wall to ensure the plants stay healthy and thrive.
PROJECT
Project: Residential Landscape Design,
Glen Ridge, NJ
Sponzilli Managers: Aaron Van Duyne IV & Andrew Lastella
Project Description:
During the summer of 2015, this expansive property upgraded its outdoor living area by adding a spacious raised terrace to connect the two modes of egress from the home. Since the home has a classic Georgian style, the raised terrace was built using brick to match the home, along with bluestone accents and design patterns throughout for added detail.
The entire terrace was surrounded by raised walls to provide ample seating for dining, or use of the natural gas fire pit. In early spring 2016, the homeowners decided to upgrade their space again by adding to their outdoor entertaining area and incorporating a large rough concrete shelled pool. A mini excavator was used to dig an underground drywell with solid PVC drain pipes which were connected to the home’s downspouts.
The excavator was also utilized to design a low wall near the pool, made of large boulders. Colorful lush greenery and flowers were planted throughout the landscape to create a ‘Stand Apart’ look.
SPOTLIGHT
CONNECT…
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