Whether you’re managing properties, making decisions for your HOA community, or in charge of a commercial business, landscaping plays a significant role in your curb appeal, resident and visitor happiness, budget, and more.

Most people in these positions strive to build a relationship with a reputable commercial landscaping company. This allows them to entrust their property to a local expert who can keep it healthy, visually appealing, and functional. When you find such a partnership, it creates an opportunity for you to turn your time and attention to other, more pressing topics.

However, this dream scenario is not always the reality. Sometimes, the landscaping company that was intended to be a solution to your property’s needs becomes the problem itself.

Learning how to read bad landscaping company signs can save you from a world of frustration, expense, and letdown. Read on for the common landscaping contractor red flags you should watch for with vigilance.

What's Inside This Commercial Landscaping Guide

• Poor Landscaping Service Signs
• Landscaping Contractor Red Flags
• How to Avoid Commercial Landscaping Company Problems
• Poor Commercial Landscaping Service FAQs
• How the Right Commercial Landscaping Partner Makes All the Difference

Commercial Landscaping Company Problems: The Property Maintenance Warning Signs to Watch For

Great commercial landscaping requires more than routine mowing and the occasional seasonal cleanup. Even when the basic services included in a commercial landscaping contract are performed adequately, your property can suffer, and along with it, your residents, clients, budget, and future.

Isolated mistakes can wreak havoc on a landscape, certainly, but the larger and more common problem is underperforming commercial landscaping that causes a cumulative deterioration of your property. Because this accumulation of shortcuts and shortcomings occurs over a prolonged time, it can be easy to overlook.

That’s why evaluating your current commercial landscaping provider is important. Routinely checking in on your landscaping and the work your contractor performs is essential.

Poor Landscaping Service Signs

The beauty of a healthy professional relationship with a commercial landscape service provider is the ability to turn your attention toward your HOA board duties, property management responsibilities, and industrial facility tasks. In other words, it frees your energy and resources to be allocated to other important aspects of your job.

When you find that dynamic no longer exists, you should seriously consider the possibility of changing to a different commercial landscaping company. Some of the most obvious signs of poor landscaping service include continually “chasing” your contractor, fielding the same complaints from residents, uncovering problems on your own, and watching conditions on your property gradually decline.

Do not accept any of these warning signs as normal. It is better to face the problem head-on than allow it to continue unchecked. As your commercial landscape maintenance issues grow, so does your burden.

Landscaping Contractor Red Flags

The common theme of doing your landscaping company’s job for them, noticing lapses in communication, seeing your landscape’s health deteriorate, and more are all big-picture issues. To help make these concepts more practical, we’ve put together a list of common red flags that you should watch for and take seriously when you notice them.

• Issues are noticed by residents, tenants, board members, ownership, etc., before the landscaping company.
• Inconsistent levels of attention and care given to different areas of the property.
• Rapidly deteriorating landscaping between visits from your service provider.
• Lapses in communication, including slow response times, vague answers, and the need to repeatedly contact the landscaping company about obvious problems.
• A contractor that only cares about or responds to problems after complaints are made.
• Uncertainty about what is included in the maintenance contract.
• Recurring issues, especially when it comes to the presence of weeds, sick or dying plants, messy mulch beds, declining turf, and unkempt shrubs and trees.
• Minor landscaping issues that are allowed to escalate into complex repairs and expensive replacements.
• Poor transitions between seasonal shifts, year after year.
• The presence of neglected areas, particularly in places that are easily ignored (back lots, fence lines, drainage areas, etc.).
• No proactive recommendations for landscaping improvements, including changes to outdated or aging landscaping elements.

Keep in mind that this is not a comprehensive list of bad landscaping company signs. However, it should give you a foundation from which to evaluate your current contractor, identify areas of concern, and take a more critical look at the performance and value they are bringing to your commercial property.

If you want to distill these landscaping contractor red flags into patterns of behavior, it is best to watch out for inconsistency, poor communication, reactive rather than proactive management, unacceptable quality of work, and a lack of accountability.

A company that displays these red flags is typically not worth the investment. They will end up causing more stress and demanding more time, ultimately undermining the very reasons you hired them.

How to Avoid Commercial Landscaping Company Problems

Doing routine evaluations of the work your landscape contractor is performing is key to catching concerning warning signs early and dealing with them promptly. Even the slightest bit of vigilance and familiarity with the common red flags of poor landscaping can save time, frustration, money, and so on.

If possible, it is best to avoid this situation altogether. For that reason, the best thing you can do to set your commercial landscape up for success, protect your time, and preserve your budget is to choose the right landscaping company from the start.

Building a healthy, long-term relationship with your commercial landscaper is much more efficient and beneficial than starting over every time a contractor lets you down. So, take your time evaluating your potential partners, ask the right questions, and know what you’re looking for ahead of time.

Taking the commercial landscaper hiring process seriously sets the stage for a better future. From understanding landscaping contracts and the needs of your unique property to asking the right questions and researching a company’s credibility, the effort you put in at the start will pay off substantially in the years to come.

Poor Commercial Landscaping Service FAQs

Why is a healthy landscaping relationship important for property managers, HOA boards, and commercial facility managers?

Not only does proper landscape maintenance create an idyllic environment for your residents, tenants, clients, employees, and more, but it also alleviates a tremendous amount of stress from your shoulders.

A good commercial landscaping company will care for your property, be proactive when addressing potential problems, suggest upgrades, and keep everything humming along as it should.

In other words, you can trust a quality landscaping contractor to maintain an exceptional property without your constant input, involvement, or attention.

What are the most common landscaping contractor red flags?

There is a long list of specific red flags that you should be aware of when evaluating your landscaping company’s work and ensuring that your property is in good hands.

To keep things as simple as possible, however, the most common issues to look for are bad communication, inconsistent quality of work, small issues that snowball into serious problems, and a gradual decline in the appearance and health of your property.

What should I do if my commercial landscaping company is not performing up to standard?

If you notice repeated issues or patterns of substandard service, you should address them with your landscaping company. If they are not receptive to the feedback or nothing about their performance improves, it is time to find a new commercial landscape maintenance contractor.

As you search for the right fit for your property, be sure to ask thorough questions, examine references, and confirm the services included in the proposed contract. Choosing the right provider is essential, so do not take the process lightly!

How the Right Commercial Landscaping Partner Makes All the Difference

When you find the perfect commercial landscaping company for your property, the difference is immediately apparent. Not only do they emphasize proactive care and provide consistent quality, but they also improve your professional relationship.

The communication is suddenly open, honest, and streamlined. The contents of your contract are clear and easy to understand. Any concerns are addressed promptly and professionally. In other words, your trust and stress levels benefit just as much as your landscape.

At Alan Horticulture, we have been providing exceptional commercial landscaping services in the Chicagoland area since 1978. We pride ourselves on treating people right, which is why we have wonderful relationships with many long-term clients.

If you’d like to learn more about how you can transform your commercial landscape for the better, feel free to schedule a consultation. Our team is happy to talk through your landscaping goals and set you on the path to success.