September 27, 2010

 re September landscape notes

 Dear Property Manager,

 For your information, I append some links to our website which 
 you may find of interest this month.

 There was lately a problem with our sample municipal landscape  
 maintenance contract posted on our website, causing it to fail 
 to display the document.  This has been fixed.

 This contract is customized for the Seattle area, and 
 corrects a number of misconceptions which are incorporated 
 in many landscape contracts currently in use.

 Use of an agronomically sound contract which also requires the
 contractor  to perform to accepted professional standards has 
 many benefits.  The recommendations of the King County extension
 can be used as a guideline for professional performance.

 Strict enforcement of the contract will help minimize unnecessary
 services and corrective work down the road.  It is becoming more
 important to pay attention to recommendations pertaining 
 to integrated pest management (IPM) to reduce reliance on 
 toxic chemicals for disease and insect problems in the landscape. 

 The rains have come early.  September is usually one of the 
 driest months.  Sprinkler systems can probably be shut down by 
 the end of the month.  Late September and early October are 
 excellent times for lawn renovation.

 ------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 How much should it cost to water your grounds?

 Actual cost of residential service, to irrigate in Seattle, is about
 1.5 cents per square foot of grounds under irrigation, per month.
 Irrigation is only needed about 3 months per year, July - September.

 However, wastewater rate charges, based on actual water useage per 
 month, can triple that amount.

 Residential wastewater charges are based on winter useage, so  
 irrigation water does not incur additional wastewater charges. 

 Non-residential and multifamily users incur the extra wastewater charge.
 Multifamily is generally considered 3 units or more, in Seattle.

 Other cities, such as Bellevue, Redmond, and Kirkland,  are wholesale
 customers of SWD, and set their own rates for water and wastewater.

 Shoreline and parts of Burien also set thier own rates for wastewater.  

 Properties on separate irrigation meters do not incur wastewater charges. 


 Regards,   

 Don Bassman
 Landscape Specialists
 425.644.6335

 
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   http://GoodFolksToMow.com - Home Page

   http://GoodFolksToMow.com/agree-ix.htm - Commercial Service Agreements  

   http://www.GoodFolksToMow.com/calendar.htm -
    2010 Grounds Maintenance Scheduler and Calendar

   http://www.GoodFolksToMow.com/pam2.txt  - September Things-To-Do
    
   http://GoodFolksToMow.com/pam20.txt - September Monitoring Alerts
  
   http://www.GoodFolksToMow.com/link-ix.htm -  Research Links