Landscape Management, September 2013

ADD ONBIZ EXTEND YOUR BUSINESS Water ways Aquatic maintenance services are a must for some of Terracares commercial clients HOAs are the primary SNAPSHOT LANDSCAPEMANAGEMENT NET SEPTEMBER 2013 40 client for Terracares aquatic services PHOTO TERRACARE ASSOCIATES F OR TERRACARE ASSOCIATES landscape contractors based in Littleton Colo one way to distinguish its business is to expand the services it offers to its primarily commercial clients One service it offers is aquatic maintenance Terracare which had 255 million in annual revenue in 2012 uses several methods to remove vegetation and maintain water for recreational purpose including mechanical aquatic harvesters and herbicides to control plants and algae The service also includes water monitoring Terracares Aquatic Services Manager Stuart Perry whos based in Northern California says there has been an average growth of approximately 10 percent each year in aquatic maintenance The combination of water body management with landscaping services is what attracts customers The main customer prospects are homeowner associations HOAs that have lakes or large water features in common areas Golf courses are another potential client Its a specialty and its a small market Perry says Theyre not constructing lakes at a very steady rate and the natural water ways are varying in existence so at times its hard He notes this service requires specially trained staff He has more than 25 years of experience in research and specialized aquatic vegetation control programs and has a masters degree in aquatic plant ecology He recommends having at least one staff member with aquatic biology or ecology degrees or perhaps a limnology and fisheries background For Terracare other aquatic staff members may have biology degrees or backgrounds but many gain experience on the job ROUTINE MAINTENANCE Terracare sells and operates its aquatics service as a routine maintenance program Two or three times a year per client the staff mitigates aquatic weeds one of two ways with a trailer harvester or small motorboats with spray rigs The trailers Terracare uses are large capital investment as much as 100000 apiece The boat spray rig set up costs about 9000 Chemical treatments also occur two or three times annually These include various aquaticlabeled herbicides which combat both submersed and floating aquatic weeds Algae are another concern theyre treated with liquid algaecides or copper sulfate crystals Terracare also offers monitoring of bodies of water after they have been affected by stormwater The water is tested for dissolved oxygen levels pH conductivity turbidity and nutrient levels especially nitrogen and phosphorus Preconceived ideas about how a lake should look and behave are one of the biggest challenges we face Perry says Out here everybody expects the lakes to look like Lake Tahoe but stormwater and other factors make that unrealistic Regular communication with our clients is essential These communications include science based descriptions explanations of the biological processes that occur in water bodies and how they affect individual lakes to help the clients understand their systems Despite the challenges Terracare has continued to turn a profit in this area Perry estimates the services profit margin is slightly higher than landscaping The company determines aquatic services pricing by considering the labor costs and the materials required It offers acre and daily rates which are calculated by how much work the machines can do at a profitable rate Being able to provide such a distinctive service has helped Terracares business to grow many new customers come from referrals Perry says Expertise is something that we can offer because we have the correct biologists with the correct degrees he says Aquatic maintenance is vital to our business Its an important component because we can combine landscaping and aquatic services as a package and other companies can not BY MOLLY BEALIN SERVICE COMPANY Terracare Associates HEADQUARTERS Littleton Colo ADD ON SERVICE Aquatic maintenance WHY AQUATIC MAINTENANCE Offering both commercial landscaping and aquatic maintenance services is an important combination for commercial clients like HOAs EQUIPMENT NEEDED mechanical aquatic harvesters motorboatmounted spray rigs and aquatic herbicides among others Its a specialty and its a small market STUART PERRY Bealin is a Cleveland based contributor to Landscape Management