To landscape or not to landscape? It’s all about time
As winter disappears into our rearview mirror, the annual ritual of spring cleaning is just ahead.
For some, this could include clearing out the attic, the garage or even the tool shed.
For landscaping companies, such as Reich Landscaping here in Butler County, spring cleaning has a bit of a different meaning. They’re hard at work removing winter debris and dead vegetation, preparing lawns for growing season and grinding down tree and shrubbery stumps.
According to Matt Reich, owner and operator of Reich Landscaping, the company does a lot of one-time jobs.
“We do a lot of one-off projects — typically when a new client approaches us they’re coming with a specific project in mind and then we’ll go from there,” said Reich.
There’s a seasonal flow to the company’s work, according to Reich.
Reich Landscaping begins booking projects starting in fall and continues through the early weeks of the year.
During the first few weeks of spring, Reich and his team complete a lot of mulching projects.
“We do a lot of clean up from the winter months and then get into mulching, which is very important because mulch holds a lot of moisture,” said Reich.
Later in the year, construction projects come to the forefront.
“Come summer, we find ourselves building retaining walls and installing walkways and patios,” said Reich.
Well, the short answer is, we can. Many people find do-it-yourself projects to be personally rewarding. While there are benefits to DIY, like choosing exactly what you want and setting your own expenses, there are a lot of other factors that come into play.
Professional landscapers can be highly knowledgeable in their area of expertise. They can help guide a client toward what type of trees and flowers will flourish best based on their area and terrain. They can also bring an eye for design developed over years of experience.
According to the National Gardening Association’s 2024 National Gardening Survey, $81 million was spent on lawn care in the U.S. household and $52 billion was spent on lawn and garden products.
Another survey found on Medium from 2024 garnered feedback from 1,000 people on landscaping plans. One-third of respondents expressed intent on spending up to $5,000 on improving their outdoor spaces that summer, while 47% of respondents indicated their biggest stressor in maintaining their yard was dealing with weeds.
Time is one of the biggest factors driving consumers to decide between DIY and hiring professional landscapers.
According to the Medium survey, 22% of homeowners surveyed indicated they don’t have the time to improve their yards.
Factoring in time isn’t just about from start of project to finish, but also the amount of time that will be spent on upkeep.
Some landscaping companies, such as Schill Grounds Management, of Westlake, Ohio, will revisit for maintenance 28 to 32 times a season.
Per an American Society of Agronomy study on homeowner lawn care practices, 58% of surveyed homeowners reported spending between two and five hours per week working on their lawns.
Everything boils down to the amount of time you’re able to prioritize and your budget for project completion.
Being outside in a nonchaotic yard could be beneficial to your health.
A survey commissioned by TruGreen in 2024 showed that 94% of respondents agreed spending times outdoors helped them when battling stress and anxiety. The data follows similar findings in Medium’s survey. For those respondents, 21% of surveyed homeowners reported their belief that having a better yard will improve their happiness.
This Old House’s outdoor living trends of 2025 indicated homeowners’ top three reasons for having landscaping work done:
■ 51% of surveyed homeowners named aesthetics
■ 37% stated a desire for an enhanced entertainment space
■ 33% wanted to extend the living space of their home outdoors.
