While green spaces have become essential for any building, the question remains: How to keep the greenery looking as fresh and lush as the day it was installed?
One key method, designed to protect the landscape plan and design intent at least for the first few years, is for owners and developers to ask construction companies to build into the contracts a longer maintenance period beyond the traditional one-year guarantee. Of course, the landscape contractor must be dedicated to maintenance and committed to retaining the landscape architect/designer's original intent.
Following a few key steps should insure proper ongoing maintenance and preservation of the design intent:
* Make sure that the landscape architect/designer you hire draws up an ongoing plan for the property. This introduces the importance of establishing a deeper level of care.
* Always keep and refer to the original planting plan from the landscape architect/designer and make sure that the landscape contractor refers to it as well and uses it to quote from.
* Get references.
* Make sure the owner or management company hasn't "tied the hands" of the landscape maintenance company to save money. If there are too many constraints the company just won't be able to do its job.

Teresa Carleo is the president and CEO of Plant Fantasies, Inc. (PFI), New York, N.Y.
Tags: