Are your shrubs not looking their best? Are they losing vibrancy, changing color, or maybe even appear as though they’re being eaten by something? All of these symptoms are signs that your plants are declining in health. It could be the result of a disease, a pest, or even an environmental stressor.
While you may recognize that your plants aren’t looking great, chances are, you’re too busy to do all the research and figure out what’s wrong. Even so, the last thing you need is the aggravation of losing your plants and having to spend even more time figuring out how to remove them or replace them.
You want to find tree care that will set you up with what you need so that you don’t even have to worry about it. For trees and shrubs that are under 20 feet tall, a plant health care program may be the solution to your concerns.
A lot of homeowners do not know what plant health care is or why they would need it. Instead, they often become aware of this solution after they spot some serious problems arising on their plants and a specialist is called in for an analysis.
Simply put, plant health care provides your plants with vital nutrients they need to thrive while also protecting them against insects and disease. The treatments combine fertilization, pest control, and disease control. That means, with plant health care, your plants’ leaves may be greener, your plants’ flowers may grow more profuse with potentially longer bloom time, and your plants may be better protected against the threat of insects or disease.
While that all sounds good, you might be wondering but how common are these plant threats?
The truth is, very common.
For example, a large majority of plants in our region are plagued by common pests and diseases such as the following.
It’s important to treat for damaging plant pests when they’re active each year in order to help reduce the population and keep your plants healthy. If you don’t take these steps, it’s possible your plant could be killed off by destructive pests or diseases.
Ignoring plant health care can be a very costly mistake. It might not seem like a big deal at first that your plants aren’t looking their best. However, if they start to decline and ultimately die, you’re looking at a bigger problem.
Let’s explore some of the costs you could face if you ignore plant health care.
The expense of replacing even a single plant can really start to add up when you look at not only the cost of the plant itself but also the labor involved.
For instance, to replace an established Azalea that dies from a pest or disease, you have the cost of removal and installation on top of the cost of the plant itself. Combined, you could be looking at as much as $300, assuming you can even find an established Azalea of the size you just lost.
You could spend less than that on plant health care and treat your entire property for a full year—and that’s just the cost of a single shrub.
Plant health care not only covers your shrubs but also your small ornamental trees of 20-feet or less. It’s important to note that the cost of tree replacement is even more than the cost of shrub replacement. The removal and replacement of a 20-foot Dogwood, for instance, is closer to $1,000 in cost.
But it’s not just dollars that are at stake. When your plants are not properly protected you’re also risking time and aggravation associated with their decline.
There is time involved in finding tree care that can remove your plants and install new ones. You’ll likely need to take off work and meet with a tree care company or a landscaper, which is an added hassle to your already-busy life.
There is also extra time involved in caring for a new tree or shrub. Suddenly you’re having to water your new plants regularly in order to help them survive as they become established on your property.
And of course, before any of that can even happen, you’ll have to spend time living with your dead plants until you can get someone on your property to take care of it. Unfortunately, it’s going to affect how your entire landscape looks.
This can also impact your reputation in the neighborhood and can be embarrassing. After all, you don’t want to be “that neighbor” who has the ugly, dying trees and shrubs in their yard. And even worse, what if your trees, for example, offered an additional benefit for screening for your neighbor.
Failing to take care of your landscape impacts more than just your family.
The simple fact is, ignoring plant health care can be more costly than paying to prevent issues. If your plants succumb to pests, disease, or environmental stressors, it could cost you way more (money, time, aggravation, reputation, and ultimately, peace of mind).
Of course, you might be wondering, how much does plant health care cost?
Most people find that for the results and the peace of mind it offers, preventative plant health care is very reasonable. For a townhome, the price starts at just $35 per treatment and for a single family home (5,000 square foot yard or larger), the price starts at just $50 per treatment. Seven treatments are advised throughout the year.
Chances are, you’ve invested heavily in your landscape. That may be through maintenance tasks or even the thousands of dollars worth of plant material that is growing on your property (whether you’ve planted it or someone before you). It only makes sense to protect that investment with plant health care focused on your trees and shrubs of 20 feet or less.
By investing in preventative plant health care, you’ll not only be able to ditch the worries about your landscape but you’ll be able to spend your time on priorities and on things you truly enjoy.
If you’d like to discuss plant health care for your landscape, request a quote, get your customized plan, and relax knowing that your plants are in good hands.