How to Add Year-Round Color to Your Commercial Property's Landscaping

Picture this - you’re the owner of a commercial office building, you pull up to the property in the summer and the view is spectacular. The sun is shining, the grass is green, and the flowers outlining the walkway are in full bloom. You have vacant office space available, but not for long because the applications are piling in. You are on your way to gaining a new tenant and the employees of the companies that currently occupy your building enjoy the scenery on their way to work every day. Now, consider the same situation, but in the winter. Can you say your commercial property has year-round curb appeal or does it become dull and lifeless during the winter months?  

If the landscaping at your commercial property is looking a little dull and dreary, and could benefit from an infusion of colorful flowers, plants and shrubs we have some ideas that can help bring it back to life.  

What Hardiness Zone Are You In? 

Hardiness zones have been created to help you figure out which plants should survive winters successfully in your garden. A zone, in simple terms, refers to an area with a similar average low-temperature. Plants that are hardy in your region, find your zone here, can live through the lowest temperatures in your region and survive whatever else winter throws at them.  

Winter Bloom Flowers  

There is nothing like some bright colored flowers to help bring a dreary winter landscape back to life. The good news is, there are plenty of colorful flowers that bloom during the winter that can be added to your landscaping during the winter months. These flowering plants help add a variety of colors that can help bring your winter landscape to life.  

Pieris Japonica Plants – (Hardiness Zones 5-8) These plants thrive during the winter. They love the cooler months of temperate climates and produce coppery-pink clusters of flowers.  

Honeywort - (Hardiness Zones 2-11) This plant has a reputation for being a hardy annual that grows well during winter months in warmer climates.  When the weather turns colder than normal, the leaves display a beautiful deep blue color that makes for a great contrast to other greenery.  

Kaffir Lily - (Hardiness Zones 9-11) This plant produces tall stalks that are beautifully lined with leaves. The brightly colored flowers it produces will help bring even the dreariest winter landscape to life. 

Camellia - (Hardiness Zones 6-8) These flowers range in color from white to pink and light pink, to a dark crimson. Thanks to advancements in breeding, many new camellia varieties can be successfully grown in much colder climates and can endure temperatures below freezing. 

Honeysuckle - (Hardiness Zones 5-9) This climbing shrub with tubular flowers displays creamy-white flowers that are packed with a pleasant, lemony smell.  

Hellebore - (Hardiness Zones 6-9) This hardy plant blooms when just about everything else is frozen. These beautiful flowers not only work well for commercial landscaping, you may even want to incorporate them into your household garden as well. You can learn more about how to add these and other beautiful flowers to your home landscaping, in our tips section. 

In addition to plants and flowers there are also some colorful ground cover options available that can really make your winter landscaping pop. 

Sweet Alyssum - (Hardiness Zones 2-11) This is the perfect ground cover if you’re looking to add a pop of color. Colors vary between purple, white, pink and bright yellow. 

Going Green...Evergreen  

Adding a few Evergreen trees is a great way to add soft tones of green to your landscaping. They work really well to balance brightly colored flowers or plants. There are also varieties that feature conifers, containing cones instead of flowers, berries, and seeds. Some of the most attractive plants in a winter garden are not conifers, but ordinary shrubs and trees, like ‘broad-leaf’ evergreens. These festive trees can really add some charm to your office landscape and look great around the perimeter of your property. 

Shrubs  

You may recognize Holly from holiday decorations. This scrub can survive harsh winters and produce brightly colored red berry clusters, even during the coldest parts of the season. Although it is a berry producing shrub, Holly is not edible. In addition, this bush will also deliver small white flowers come springtime. Holly is a good choice as a shrub to add to your winter landscape. 

Multicolored Butterfly Bush – (Hardiness Zones 5-9) This is another good choice for regions that don’t get too cold for long periods of time. This is a cold hardy bush that can withstand light freezing temperatures. Even in colder regions, the plant will often die above ground, but the roots stay alive, and the plant will re-sprout in spring when the soil temperatures warms up. In full sun this plant will produce vivid colors, in partial shade the bush will produce colors that are pale pink or a light lavender color. 

Ornamental Cabbage 

Kale and cabbage are some of the hardiest plants around. Some of these plants can even withstand below zero temperatures. If you choose one of the ornamental varieties, they will bring some gorgeous color and texture to your winter garden, even if you don’t plan on eating them. These make for a great filler around parking areas or as a boarder for walkways. 

A Standout Property 

You might be surprised how adding some color to your winter landscape can drastically change the look and feel of your commercial property. A colorful landscape will not only help keep your current tenants happy, but it can also help attract new ones too.  

A commercial property with year-round curb appeal also helps keep your retention rate high and makes your office location a desired piece of real estate. Your commercial property is an investment and one of the best ways to advertise is to keep it looking great all year long. If you need help or would like to discuss ideas on how to bring your winter landscape to life, call the landscaping pros at The Grounds Guys. We can help you develop a landscape plan for year-round seasonal color that will make your property the envy of the neighborhood. Visit us online to schedule an appointment.