What Is Ground Maintenance?

Ground maintenance is an important part of maintaining any facility or home. Proper care of your grounds can increase the value of the property, lower energy costs, and make the space more enjoyable for everyone. In this blog, we’ll explore what ground maintenance involves, how it differs from other maintenance types, and the best practices for keeping your grounds in great shape. Let’s dive into the details!

What is Ground Maintenance?

Ground maintenance involves taking care of outdoor spaces to keep them clean, attractive, and well-organized. This can include tasks like trimming plants, mowing grass, and landscaping. It also covers indoor gardens and potted plants.

The main aim of grounds maintenance is to enhance the look of outdoor areas. Landscaping, an important part of this, involves creating visually pleasing outdoor spaces that extend your indoor living areas. Property owners often focus on ground maintenance to improve the appearance of their property, boost the mood of occupants, attract customers, and protect their investments.

According to research from Virginia Tech, good landscaping can raise property values by up to 12%. For instance, a property valued at $150,000 without landscaping could be worth an additional $19,000 with well-designed, colorful landscapes and large plants.

Both homeowners and business property owners use grounds maintenance to increase the perceived value of their property, leading to higher selling prices and better overall appeal.

Who Uses Grounds Maintenance?

1. Residential Facilities

   For apartment buildings and condo complexes, regular ground maintenance is super important. This includes tasks like watering plants, trimming, weeding, and removing snow. Keeping these areas well-maintained not only makes the property look attractive but also helps retain renters and buyers who value a clean and organized environment.

2. Commercial Properties

   In places like shopping malls, hotels, and restaurants, maintaining the outdoor areas is important for creating a welcoming atmosphere. Regular upkeep, such as landscaping and keeping pathways clear, enhances the property’s appearance, attracts customers, and ensures safety. A well-maintained property also helps businesses attract new tenants, and franchisees, and maintain a good reputation.

3. Schools and Institutions of Higher Education

   Schools and higher education institutions maintain their grounds to ensure the safety of both students and faculty. This maintenance also encourages “green” learning, as horticulture students often take part in the maintenance as part of their coursework. Whether it’s elementary schools, high schools, special education centers, or universities, all benefit from well-maintained outdoor spaces.

4. Cemeteries

   Cemeteries depend on ground maintenance to preserve their calm, peaceful environment. This care helps maintain the dignity of the space and honors the memories of loved ones who have passed away.

5. Theme Parks and Zoos

   Ground maintenance is important for keeping theme parks and zoos looking their best. These places often have beautiful landscapes, themed gardens, and water features that need careful care. From keeping lawns and flowerbeds clean to making sure walking paths and rides are safe, grounds maintenance teams are essential for creating a positive and enjoyable experience for visitors.

6. Public Parks and Gardens

   For public parks, botanical gardens, and recreational areas, grounds maintenance is crucial for preserving their beauty and functionality. These areas often have large landscapes, flowerbeds, lawns, walking paths, and things like playgrounds and picnic areas. Proper maintenance ensures that these spaces are inviting, safe, and well-maintained for visitors to enjoy.

7. Sports Facilities

   Sports facilities like stadiums, arenas, and sports complexes rely heavily on ground maintenance to ensure optimal playing conditions. Maintaining grass fields, synthetic turf, and tracks is important for the safety and performance of athletes. Ground maintenance teams also play a crucial role in preparing facilities for events and tournaments.

Types of Grounds Maintenance Workers

Grounds maintenance workers are responsible for taking care of properties and ensuring they look their best. Their work includes tasks like pulling weeds, adding mulch around trees, mowing lawns, and helping plants stay healthy. There are four main types of grounds maintenance workers:

• Groundskeepers: They handle basic tasks such as snow removal, trimming hedges, mowing grass, and aerating the soil to keep it healthy.
• Landscapers: These workers help bring landscape designs to life by planting flowers, and trees, and creating other outdoor features.
• Arborists: Arborists focus on trees, trimming branches, applying treatments, and shaping trees to improve their appearance.
• Pesticide Handlers: These workers inspect the grounds and apply chemicals to control weeds and pests. Pesticide handlers need to have safety certifications required by the Environmental Protection Agency.

What Are Some Examples of Ground Maintenance?

Here are some common tasks involved in maintaining grounds:

• Mowing the Lawn: Regularly cutting the grass to keep it looking neat and well-maintained.
• Trimming and Pruning: Cutting back trees, bushes, and hedges to maintain their shape and encourage healthy growth.
• Planting and Replacing Plants: Adding new flowers, trees, or shrubs, or replacing ones that are damaged or dead.
• Fertilizing: Using fertilizers to improve the health of plants and enrich the soil.
• Watering: Making sure plants receive the right amount of water, often with sprinklers or drip systems.
• Clearing Leaves and Debris: Picking up fallen leaves, branches, and other waste to keep the area clean and orderly.
• Pest and Disease Control: Watching for signs of pests or plant diseases and taking action to manage or prevent them.
• Seasonal Work: Carrying out tasks specific to the season, such as removing snow in winter or protecting plants from cold.
• Maintaining Pathways and Pavements: Fixing cracks, pulling weeds, and ensuring that walkways and paved areas are safe and usable.
• Taking Care of Equipment: Regularly servicing tools and machines like lawnmowers and irrigation systems to keep them in good working condition.

Let NEXGEN Take Care of Your Grounds

Keeping the outdoor areas of your facility well-maintained is essential for both appearance and safety. Regular maintenance helps prevent these spaces from becoming messy or hazardous. While this type of work doesn’t require a lot of formal education, workers can still benefit from professional training to advance in their careers.

NEXGEN’s facilities maintenance software can make ground maintenance even more efficient by providing field crews with maps, instructions, and checklists directly through a work order. With easy access to asset locations and clear instructions, tasks can be completed more quickly and effectively.

Interested in seeing how NEXGEN works?