If you are one of those property owners who has been putting off making landscape improvements because you think it’s too expensive, think again. Landscape improvement projects do not necessarily require overwhelming financial or time commitments. Studies show people prefer to shop and live in areas with attractive landscaping, so the return on your investment easily makes it worth your time and money.

Craig Suhrbier, 2001 President of the Institute of Real Estate Management feels strongly that landscaping is what separates premiere properties from “run-of-the-mill” developments. “This is especially true for apartments and office space as well as retail shopping centers," Suhrbier said. “The dollars sacrificed for an attractive landscape design and property maintenance are more than made up in rents. Attractive, well-landscaped properties draw quality tenants and

The San Diego Hilton Beach and Tennis Resort goes all out when it comes to landscaping. The grounds feature palm trees, shrubs, tropical plants, seasonal and annual color, and extensive bird of paradise. Plants materials grown by Miramar Wholesale Nurseries. Landscape construction by TruGreen LandCare.

therefore can help owners of investment-grade properties achieve higher occupancy rates and greater returns.” According to Suhrbier, rental rates are directly proportional to aesthetics — the more attractive the property, the higher the rents can be.

The value of your landscaping is derived from many sources, the most obvious of which is the flat cost of purchasing the materials such as trees, shrubs, plants, and hardscaping elements like arbors, benches, fountains, and sculptures. “You could spend from $500 up to $500,000,” said Jon Ewing, special projects consultant for the southwest region of TruGreen LandCare. TruGreen is San Diego’s and the nation’s largest landscape installation/maintenance company.

“Every job is different, and it depends on the needs of the project. But the most simple solution to adding value to your property without spending a lot of money is to install seasonal or annual color in focal areas,” Ewing said.

For about $1,200 a business can revamp approximately 500 square feet of land such as an entryway to a residential complex or the focal area of a shopping center. “This would cover minor irrigation modifications, flats of annual or seasonal color, removal of existing turf or groundcover, and soil preparation,” Ewing said.

In addition, strategically designed landscaping can save you money by improving air quality, controlling pollution, and reducing energy consumption. But the psychological effects of plants are probably the most significant. People just feel better in pleasant surroundings.

In the book, With People in Mind: Design and Landscape for Everyday Nature, the psychological relationship between people and environments is examined in detail. Authors Rachel Kaplan and Stephen Kaplan, leading researchers in the field of environmental psychology, along with Robert Ryan, a landscape architect and urban planner, recommend “designing and managing natural areas in ways that benefit the tranquility, the reasonableness, and the effectiveness of the people who come in contact with them.”

Like the land itself, landscaping appreciates in value over time. Although a properly designed landscape may look a little sparse when first installed, it will fill out and mature to create the desired effect. Because plants have such a great impact on human emotions, landscape enhancements are an excellent tool for promoting your product, service or location on a subliminal level.