You gaze out of your window at the flat, manicured lawn and the occasional planter, watching silently as your clients get a workout walking up the slope to your front entrance from the parking lot.
What can be done to liven up your curbside appeal and make it easier for clients and staff alike to make it to the front entrance without worrying about missing leg day at the gym?
You have heard about retaining walls, but you likely think that’s just for the inside of the property. How and why would you ever consider getting one installed as part of your landscaping?
Let’s journey through some of the benefits and wonders of an outside retaining wall, and how it can improve your property and make your landscape even more beautiful than it is now.
What is a retaining wall?
A retaining wall is defined as “a wall to prevent the land behind it from sliding.” Retaining walls serve many functions in landscaping your property. One of its main purposes is that it helps strengthen your lawn.
Retaining walls can be made from a variety of eye-catching materials, such as stone and brick. Thus, they don’t have to be bland and boring like a wooden structure with drywall. In fact, they should only be made from strong materials such as stone or even concrete.
With the above in mind, here are seven reasons how your business or organization can benefit from a retaining wall.
1. Hold back the land and soil
Depending on how flat the ground around your property is, a retaining wall can be used to strengthen dips and rises, especially in areas where there are steep banks alongside pathways.
Soil erosion is also a problem, especially in high-traffic areas, or, again, where steep banks are involved. This erosion is caused by people walking, animals grazing, and even rain and other environmental factors. Without the proper support, the next rainfall could bring about a landslide.
The wall, once erected, helps to prevent soil degradation and banks collapsing on unsuspecting passersby. As well, with the right design and planning, these walls can be a feature in their own right, not just a barrier to protect people.
2. Keep the water flowing safely
Natural drainage is essential to keep any landscaping from rotting and drowning in stagnant water that builds up under the surface.
Retaining walls help to provide extra drainage channels that will form naturally in the ground. This allows the water to flow without taking all the soil and plants with it, preventing other issues later on.
The wall can also safely guide water in the event of heavy rains and potential flooding. By forming a dam-like barrier, they can deflect the excess rain safely away from problem areas, such as patios, freshly worked landscaping areas, pathways, and even underground parking to an extent.
3. Maintain safety
Aside from helping to prevent landslides after heavy rainfalls, retaining walls can provide additional safety measures.
For employees or clients walking around in the evening or later at night, these walls provide a solid structure on which you can mount additional lightning. You can illuminate the path to the parking lot or to the main street where there are more brightly lit buildings.
4. Provide seating areas
Retaining walls can be erected to create private patio spaces or open areas with additional seating. You can have the seating built into the structure, or at the right height to simply rest on if you meet someone on the pathways and stop for a chat.
By creating a barrier between your property and neighbouring buildings, you can also gain an element of privacy. The space can help to reduce noise in the areas as well, allowing you to have those confidential off-site conversations.
5. Reduce maintenance costs
With less damage caused by nature, your maintenance costs will be drastically reduced.
A decrease in damage means fewer repairs, and with sturdy retaining wall services in Hamilton, you can ensure that all your landscaping features will require less maintenance overall.
6. Allow easy entry for all
Retaining walls can help to create small slopes leading up to your entranceway. This is great for clients who have mobility issues and require aids like wheelchairs. A slope is much simpler to deal with than stairs.
Walls can also assist in creating flat areas, which allows for easier cleanups at the front of the building. While such reasons may seem trivial to some, keeping areas clean with minimal hassle and allowing everyone to enter and conduct business is crucial.
7. Increase curb appeal and property value
Small things can lead to a big change. By adding retaining walls, not only do you increase your curb appeal with stylish techniques and materials, but you also raise your property value.
You can even use these walls as vertical planters, allowing you to have colourful flowers in interesting displays, aside from the normal ground-level planters you typically see.
With the added space created and its visual beauty, your property will be more appealing to potential buyers, tenants, or even new clients.
Retaining Wall Services in Hamilton: What’s holding you back?
Retaining walls serve more purposes than simply keeping the land and soil where they should be; function and beauty are also essential aspects of such structures. For example, proper drainage, assisted by a retaining wall, helps to keep landscapes green, colourful, and healthy.
Additional lighting and private spaces with bonus seating increase your curbside appeal and company reputation for being visually outstanding. Easily accessible and clean entranceways, as well as wheelchair-friendly spaces, will enhance your image even further.
So, reach out to JW Landscaping today and talk to the experts about how you can make your vision come true with minimal maintenance. Call us at 289-290-5241 or request a quote online and let’s get you started.
