HOA Landscaping

May 5 2026

Best Plants for Native Pollinators

Robbie Blog Arizona Landscape, ArizonaLandscaping, AZ Landscape, HOA Landscaping

Many people talk about supporting “the bees” when designing gardens and landscapes. What most may not know, though, is that the “Honey Bee” that we associate with “the bees” are not native to the Americas. European Honey Bees (and their “Africanized” counterparts) are, as their name suggests, from Europe. They were first spotted in the Americas shortly after the beginning of European colonization of the New World. They pollinate numerous flowers throughout the Americas today, though in many ways they harm the environment by outcompeting native pollinators and spreading insect diseases.

Arizona alone is home to over 1,300 species of native bees, almost all of which have been ecologically challenged by European Honey Bees. Additionally, there are 300 species of butterflies, 28 species of bats, dozens of birds, and even many flies and other small insects that cooperate with the native plants of our state to create stable ecosystems. Honey bees pollinate some of the plants in the desert, but not all of them. Some plants rely entirely on specific native animals to reproduce. Therefore, if you can install any plants that support native pollinators, you’ll be contributing to their survival in our urban areas. And guess what? Most native pollinators don’t even sting.

Some plants that bring native pollinators to your home include: Desert Milkweed (Asclepias subulata), Vining Milkweed (Funastrum cynanchoides), Desert Marigold (Baileya multiradiata), Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis), Ocotillo (Fourquieria splendens), Desert Lavender (Hyptis emoryi), Chuparosa (Justicia californica), Creosote (Larrea tridentata), Blackfoot Daisy (Melampodium leucanthum), Deergrass (Muhlenbergia rigens), Ironwood Tree (Olneya tesota), Blue Palo Verde (Parkinsonia florida), Hedgehog Cactus (Echinocereus engelmanii), Parry’s Penstemon (Penstemon parryi), Globe Mallow (Sphaeralcaea ambigua), Velvet Mesquite (Prosopis velutina), Arizona Rosewood (Vauquelinia californica), and many, many more. European Honey Bees will still take pollen from many of these, but the benefits of providing space for native pollinators will be greatly appreciated by Arizona wildlife of all types.

Assuming you already have established trees in your yard, the top three picks for shrubs that support native pollinators would probably be the Desert Milkweed (Asclepias subulata), Desert Lavender (Hyptis emoryi), and Arizona Rosewood (Vauquelinia californica). The Desert Milkweed in particular is special for its role as the main food source for Monarch Butterflies during their yearly migration through Arizona. Please feel free to include as much native plant biodiversity as possible in your yard if you are able! Doing so increases the number of native animal species that can have a safe, survivable haven amidst the sprawl of the Phoenix metro area.

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we grow and install native plants that we are happy to install in landscapes throughout the valley. If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email robbie@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

February 27 2026

Why Do Arizona Turfs Need Gypsum and Sulfur?

Robbie Blog Arizona Arbor Care, Arizona Landscape, ArizonaLandscaping, CommercialLandscaping, HOA Landscaping

If you’ve lived in the Phoenix area for a while you know that it can be difficult to keep plants happy. The summers are hot, sure, but the big problem can be found in the soil itself. The soil in the Sonoran Desert is very alkaline. Essentially, that means it’s salty. As salt builds up in our clay-rich soil, it can become impermeable, hardening and preventing air and water from easily soaking in. This is bad for the roots of plants, especially if they are not native to the desert or otherwise accustomed to salty soils. There’s probably no plant where this challenge is more obvious than grass.

Turf in Arizona faces several challenges, but one of the worst is the alkaline buildup in the soil, or more specifically, the consequences of this buildup. Plants have difficulty absorbing important nutrients when the soil gets too salty. Nitrogen and Iron are especially likely to be chemically trapped in salty clay buildup. Both of these nutrients are vital to a plant that gets regularly cut down like grass, and there is very little Nitrogen found naturally in desert soil. The lack of available Nitrogen, Iron, and most other nutrients, makes grass turn pale or yellow. It can also slow its growth, change its shape, or kill the grass altogether in especially impermeable spots. How do you solve this problem?

In addition to proper turf care like aeration and dethatching, substances can be added to turf spaces to break up built-up clay and drastically improve the health of grass. Soil Sulfur is a powder or granular supplement that does wonders on this front. Sulfur is acidic, and when allowed to dissolve with water, it chemically reacts with the salts in the ground and breaks them up. This opens up the previously impermeable soil, lowers the pH level around the roots of grass, and makes Nitrogen, Iron, and the other important nutrients available to be consumed by the roots. Gypsum is also a great option. It acts in a similar manner, reacting with salts and breaking them apart, allowing water, air, and nutrients to reach the roots of turf grass. The only difference is that it is chemically much tamer and has minimal impact on the pH level of the soil as a whole. There are many other products that can be used for similar purposes, called Soil Acidifiers. These are usually liquids that can either be sprayed on turf or injected directly into built-up soil to make it healthier for growth.

While these practices are relatively well-known for keeping grass happy, many do not know that the vast majority of landscaping plants in the desert can benefit from practices like this as well. While native plants like mesquites and cacti are accustomed to our soil type, non-native species of all sizes will likely perform better if the soil around them is amended with Gypsum, Sulfur, or other Soil Acidifiers at regular intervals. Try it on trees and shrubs that are underperforming! Consult a Certified Arborist if you are unsure whether your plants will benefit from these practices.

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we always recommend soil amendments to turf areas at regular intervals that are best for keeping healthy grass. If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

February 2 2026

Creating an Arizona Hummingbird Haven

Robbie Blog Arizona Landscape, HOA Landscaping

There are at least 15 species of hummingbird that call Arizona home, and luckily none of them are considered truly endangered. However, the Black-chinned, Rufous, Broad-tailed, and Calliope hummingbirds are on several ecological watchlists due to shrinking habitats. Hummingbirds are extremely important to the Sonoran Desert ecosystem, as they pollinate when they drink the nectar of flowers of all types, especially the tubular and trumpet-shaped flowers of the desert. If you want to bring more hummingbirds to your home, and thereby give them a safe place to eat, drink, and nest, it’s actually pretty easy to do so!

There are several known “hummingbird plants” that you can grow in your yard that will be sure to attract them with time. They absolutely love bushes like the Pink Fairy Duster (Calliandra eriophylla), California Fairy Duster (Calliandra californica), Chuparosa (Justicia californica), Coral Fountain Grass (Russelia equisetiformis), and any species of Penstemon (a great choice is the Penstemon eatonii). These are just a few options, as they love any bush with trumpet-shaped flowers, tubular flowers, or puffball flowers with lots of nectar.

Some trees that hummingbirds love include Desert Willows (Chilopsis linearis), Mimosa Trees (Albizia julibrissin), Bottlebrush Trees (Callistemon citrinus), and to an extent, Velvet Mesquites (Neltuma velutina). Some annual and perennial flowers are hummingbird favorites as well, such as any Lavender (Lavandula), any Salvia (Salvia), Zinnias (Zinnia), Petunias (Petunia), and Cupheas (Cuphea).

Once you have some of these plants installed in your yard, you can actually look into having your home made a Certified Hummingbird Haven! The International Hummingbird Society has a set list of criteria on their website (www.hummingbirdsociety.org), and if you qualify, you can sign up to certify your outdoor space as a hummingbird haven. The requirements include having at least 20 hummingbird-friendly plants, a source of moving water, space for sanctuary and refuge, and avoiding the use of chemical pesticides and herbicides. Funds for their nonprofit go toward research and conservation for hummingbirds and their habitats around the world.

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, many of the plants we install in our communities are hummingbird favorites, and we engage in proper pruning and maintenance practices to keep things blooming for as long as possible. If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

December 2 2025

The Importance of Mycorrhizae

Robbie Blog AZ Landscape, HOA Landscaping

Did you know that nearly all soil contains fungus? Often we think of fungus as a problem in landscaping and gardening, but this is only a small part of the picture. There are many harmful fungi that can take advantage of poor drainage, weakened immune systems in plants, and many other variables. However, the majority of fungus species present in soil are either neutral or beneficial to the health of plants. These beneficial fungi interact with bacteria and the compounds in the soil itself to make nutrients easier for plants to absorb! There’s actually a name for the part of the soil that contains these vital fungi: the “the Mycorrhizal Network.”

These networks of fungus and roots are the most robust in wetter regions, especially in forests, but mycorrhiza is vital to life in the Sonoran Desert as well. In our ecosystem, mycorrhizae live amongst, and connect the root systems of shrubs, trees, and cacti in a fascinating balancing act of mutual relationships. Legumes, such as Palo Verdes, Mesquites, and Ironwoods, have special “nodules” in their roots that contain colonies of Nitrogen-producing bacteria that provide much-needed nutrition for both the plants and fungi in their rootspans. Fungi break down dead organic material, converting it into nutrients for plants to consume. Trees, shrubs, and cacti then grow and create more shade, preserving moisture and lowering the temperature in the ground. All of this creates a self-sustaining cycle that can carry organisms through the difficult summers in the Sonoran Desert.

A common problem in Arizona landscaping, thus, is the elimination of the mycorrhizal network. Construction, followed by the separation of individual landscaped spaces from the wider ecosystem by roads, houses, and pipes, can sometimes lead to the death of most microorganisms in yards and streetscapes. If you’re having difficulty establishing plants in an otherwise empty gravel yard, this is likely one of the reasons why. The best solutions to this include installing multiple plants of varying heights (tree, shrub, groundcover) at around the same time, buying healthy plants that haven’t been in their pots too long, and treating the soil.

Luckily, there are many easy ways to introduce beneficial microbes to the soil. Most organic fertilizers come with mycorrhizae (including fungus and bacteria), and need to be used shortly after purchasing so that the microbes don’t die off. Additionally, breaking up soil with high salt buildup is a great way to improve the quality of your yard’s mycorrhizal network. Gypsum, Sulfur, and Humic Acid are great soil amendments to improve root growth and mycorrhizal health. Adding organic mulch to the topsoil is also a great way to support beneficial fungi. Overall, improving your soil is one of the best ways to ensure that your plants, trees, and cacti can truly thrive, even in a new yard!

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we do our best to improve and maintain the quality of soil so plants of all sizes can truly thrive. If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

March 4 2025

Turn Your Yard Into a Butterfly Wonderland!

robbie@evergreen Blog Arizona Landscape, HOA Landscaping

With the springtime comes the planting season! While ELS is planting new shrubs, trees, and cacti from our Wholesale Nursery in communities across the valley, residents are planning what to do with their backyards, planters, and private landscape spaces. Adding native plants is always recommended, as it improves the quality of life of the Sonoran Desert wildlife and the ecosystem as a whole, all while being beautiful and fitting into the natural landscape around us. Certain plants attract different pollinators, all of which are beneficial to the ecosystem as a whole. One group of helpful insects that is particularly threatened in the Sonoran Desert is the butterflies, as many of their primary food sources have been displaced by invasive species. To help create a haven for local butterflies, there are annual and perennial options that will look great in your yard this spring, most of them native to Arizona!

Perennial trees, bushes, and groundcover are, in the long term, the best ones to plant to create a desert butterfly habitat. You’ll only have to plant them once and you’ll have years of healthy native vegetation. The first classes of plants that must be mentioned in a conversation about butterflies are the Milkweed (Asclepias) genus and the Milkweed Vine (Funastrum) genus. The Desert Milkweed (Asclepias subulata) is the primary food source for Monarch Butterflies when they pass through Arizona during their yearly migration paths. It looks like a collection of neutrally-colored stalks that occasionally bloom in huge clusters of cream-colored bells. The Baja Fairy Duster (Calliandra californica) is another native option that is frequently covered in puffy red-pink flowers that butterflies and moths love. The Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa) is a great butterfly attractor, but it can be quite allergenic in large quantities. The blooms of any Mesquite Tree (Neltuma), while often messy, bring in pollinators of all sorts. The same can be said for the iconic Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis). Dozens of other choices exist as well that can be found at most Arizona nurseries.

There are also good annual options to plant in garden beds or sow as seeds for the springtime bloom. The Coulter’s Lupine (Lupinus sparsiflorus) makes small stalks of blue flowers that butterflies go crazy for. The Mexican Hat flower (Ratibida columnifera), California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica), Globe Mallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua), and Gaillardia (Gaillardia aristata) are other options that you’ll see springing up in the desert every year.

While native plants are certainly preferred whenever possible, there are several non-native options that are beneficial to butterflies as well. Several plants from northern Mexico and the Chihuahua Desert would be the next best thing to Arizona natives: the Wooly Butterfly Bush (Buddleja marrubiifolia), Lantana (Lantana) genus, Passion Flower (Passiflora) Vines, Queen’s Wreath (Antigonon leptopus) Vines, Tecoma (Tecoma) bushes, various Acacia (Acacia) species, Mexican Bird of Paradise (Caesalpinia) species, and countless others.

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we install plants that are beneficial to the important pollinators in the desert. If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

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January 31 2025

Invasive Plants Should Be Removed Before They Bloom

robbie@evergreen Blog Arizona Arbor Care, Arizona Landscape, ArizonaLandscaping, AZ Landscape, CommercialLandscaping, HOA Landscaping, HOAMaintenance, Landscape Management

Since the population boom in the Phoenix area in the past several decades numerous invasive weeds have been introduced to the environment which cause severe damage to the ecosystem and make wildfires more potent and frequent. The worst offenders include Buffel Grass, Brome, and, most recently, the notorious Globe Chamomile (“Stinknet”). Removing or killing these noxious weeds whenever possible is beneficial, but, for several reasons, it is much better to remove them while they are young.

First of all, it’s important to remember that blooming means reproduction. Allowing the pollen of invasive species to spread not only makes local allergies worse, but also causes these weeds to produce seeds that are prepared to sprout the following spring. It’s vital to remove invasive weeds while they are young, so that, at least in your area, there will be less of them to worry about next year. If you remove them too late, there’s also a good chance that you are spreading the unwanted seeds while pulling the mature plant material.

Secondly, invasive weeds that are allowed to grow to maturity will proceed to die and dry up. This dry plant material is fuel for fires. In fact, the species listed earlier are likely nearly entirely responsible for the increase in the size of wildfires in the Southwest in the past several years. If you can keep your property clear of invasive species, you lessen the likelihood that your home will be damaged in the case of a wildfire. It’s much easier to remove these weeds while the plants are alive and young and the weather is cool.

Additionally, it’s important to remember that invasive plants steal resources from native plants. If you allow invasive weeds to grow unimpeded, they will steal root space, water, and nutrients from the soil and weaken native plants leading into the summer. This especially applies to cacti, which rely almost entirely on shallow-depth capillary roots for their water. Invasive plants steal that water individually in small volumes, but collectively enough to put an established cactus into a state of drought.

A final note: Study the appearances of invasive weeds before you pull them, or contact a landscaping professional to do the work for you. It would be very unfortunate to accidentally remove a native plant!

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we do whatever we can to minimize the growth and spread of invasive and noxious weeds! If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

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December 30 2024

Dealing With Frost Damage in the Desert

robbie@evergreen Blog Arizona Landscape, AZ Landscape, HOA Landscaping

The Sonoran Desert winter is renowned across the United States for how pleasant it is compared to many other regions, however there are often weather patterns that lead to frosts or even occasional dustings of snow. When this happens, it’s important to follow these precautions to prevent causing permanent damage to your plants.

First, it’s important to know that, to a certain extent, frost damage is natural and normal. Simple frost damage can occur even when the temperature is nominally above freezing temperature, even as high as 40 degrees. As long as the temperature doesn’t drop below 29 degrees, simple frost damage should only cause temporary, cosmetic damage to established plants (though recent plantings and plants that are already suffering severe ailments may die). For plants that were chosen for our landscapes specifically for their compatibility with the Sonoran Desert, permanent issues start to arise if the temperature goes below freezing for multiple days in a row, or if snow settles on them for extended periods of time. If these occur, cell death in the bark and roots can cause even established trees and shrubs to lose limbs or, eventually, die.

If you look at the weather forecast and you can see that the temperature is expected to reach within 5 degrees of freezing temperature, it’s best to assume that frost damage is possible. Protect young plants and plants that you don’t want to look ugly for a few months with light blankets, towels, or frost cloths overnight to lessen the impact of the cold. Do NOT leave frost coverings on top of plants all day long, or for multiple days in a row without a break! Plants need to breathe too, and keeping the coverings on for too long can cause more damage than the frost itself would have done.

It may seem counterintuitive, but if you know a frost is approaching, you should give sensitive plants EXTRA water beforehand. A day before the frost arrives, give your plants a deeper watering than normal. This will keep the capillaries, roots, and bark of your plants full beforehand, which actually increases the internal temperature of the plants and lessens that damage to plant cells that do get frozen.

It doesn’t happen often, but if it does snow, and that snow lingers for more than an hour or two, you should do your best to shake or otherwise clean the snow off of desert plants that are covered. The ice can cause cell death in desert tree bark. Also, the plants of the desert, especially trees like the Palo Verde and thorny shrubs like the ocotillo, cannot bear the weight of snow for extended periods of time. During the “Snowpocalypse” of 2019, thousands of trees and ocotillos in the East Valley were flattened and killed by the weight of a strong snowfall that lingered for over two days. This was on a scale that could not have been prevented overall, but if the same happens in your yard you can do your best to mitigate the damage.

Finally, you need to be careful AFTER the frost is over. Shrubs with superficial frost damage should be LEFT ALONE until the risk of frost is over. Some plants go dormant in the winter, and frost can just be the final step for them to shed their remaining leaves – in which case, it’s okay to cut them back for aesthetics. But, if a bush is meant to be truly perennial and it gets cosmetic frost damage, or if a tree experiences severe frost damage, it is best to leave the damaged portions on the plant until springtime. Even if the branches look ugly and dead, they still provide the living portions of the plant protection from the cold. Wait until the last frosts of the spring are over, and then you can cut off the damaged parts. You’ll have to deal with some ugly looks for longer, but you’ll have healthier plants in the long term.

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we handle the seasonal needs of plant materials and hardscapes alike with care and professionalism! If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

September 20 2024

Low-Water Replacements for Grass Turfs

robbie@evergreen Blog Arizona Landscape, AZ Landscape, HOA Landscaping

Clover, Dichondra and Kurapia – Replacements for Grass?

These days, every level of Arizona society from the state government to local governments to individual homeowners are trying to find ways to preserve water. The most notable water consumer in residential areas is very obviously the grass, with golf courses and lawns swallowing up huge amounts of irrigation water throughout the Phoenix area. However, there is a quickly developing field (pun intended) of replacements for typical turf grasses with plants that consume much less water and can handle the Sonoran Desert climate for some or all the year.

Clover is often a weed that appears accidentally in turf spaces throughout Arizona. Recently, though, people have realized the reason clover likes to volunteer here so much. Clover can handle the heat and tolerate the higher pH levels of Phoenix-area soils, making it a great choice for a green space that will require less water and less fertilizer. Their flowers attract lots of pollinators, which can be good for a decorative space, but might cause issues if you have kids or pets playing around in the yard on a regular basis.

Dichondra is a type of clover, though it looks much different than the typical clover you may think of. Each leaf looks more like a small lily pad, and it makes for a pretty and soft looking bed when it grows nice and full. Like other clovers, it will barely, if ever, need to be mowed, as it maxes out at a height of only about 2 inches. It is best planted in areas that get morning sun and afternoon shade, as the summer sun can still cook them.

Kurapia is a new type of groundcover coming to the market, being a trademarked plant hybrid designed by Kurapia, Inc. specifically for the purpose of lowering water usage while still being a pretty and sun-hardy turf plant. They may use as much as 75% less water than a summer Bermuda grass, can handle the salinity and high pH of Arizona soil, and barely ever need to be mowed. Having even irrigation distribution is important for Kurapia, as uneven watering can lead to larger clumps forming in wetter spots while drier spots can end up looking sparse. Otherwise, this is a great replacement for typical turf grass! Learn more at Kurapia.com.

Ruschia nana is an interesting one. It looks like a dwarf version of various ice plants – with clusters of beautiful magenta flowers and everything – but this is a totally functional desert turf. While it looks like it would be fragile like a typical succulent, it is strong enough to walk on regularly without causing damage. It does great in the full sun and doesn’t need much maintenance whatsoever, though if certain areas thin out it may take a while to get them to fill in again. Learn more at Ruschiananaplugs.com.

If none of those options interest you, the best thing you can do for your yard is a Xeriscape Conversion. This is the act of removing turf altogether and replacing it with a lush, but still low-water, miniature Sonoran Desert ecosystem in your yard. This is the best choice for the environment, as you’ll create an oasis for native birds, pollinators, and other creatures that will help threatened species survive in the massive urban sprawl of the Phoenix area. There’s a catch though – if you have pre-existing trees and shrubs that are relying on the excess water from your turf space, a conversion without a plan can lead to all of them drying out and dying from suddenly losing their main water supply. If you’re going to do a xeriscape conversion, do it in the fall to give stressed plants several months to grow new roots before the next summer. Also, ensure good drip irrigation is getting to your trees and shrubs and supplement with occasional deep soakings, especially as their first summer without a lawn approaches.

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we are conducting xeriscape conversions in communities throughout the valley to save water and recreate natural ecosystems. If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

August 30 2024

Preventing Wind Damage in Desert Trees

robbie@evergreen Blog Arbor, Arizona Arbor Care, Arizona Landscape, ArizonaLandscaping, AZ Landscape, Commercial Landscaping, CommercialLandscaping, HOA Landscaping, HOAMaintenance, Landscape Management

The summers in Arizona are characterized by the storms brought on by the monsoons. Whether or not those storms bring rain, they will certainly bring strong winds. Those winds often yield great amounts of broken branches or even entire uprooted trees. While there’s no way to completely prevent wind damage and nobody’s perfect, here are some of the best practices to minimize it.

Structural Pruning. When pruning trees, especially young trees that are establishing their main trunks and arterial branches, a long-term look at the healthiest structure for the tree is necessary. Branches that cross over one another prime candidates for pruning, as they will rub against one another and grow until one or both break from the prolonged friction damage. If two branches or trunks are co-dominant (equally large and splitting off from the same point), whichever one ends up carrying the most weight will be the one most likely to break off during a particularly severe storm with the wind positioned just right. Single-trunk trees are generally better at surviving the wind than multi-trunk ones, but even multi-trunk trees can be structurally pruned to live as long as possible.
Air Flow Pruning. While structural pruning is about the long-term structure of tree branches and the overall canopy, pruning for airflow is a short-term solution for trees that grow thick canopies very quickly, such as Mesquites and Palo Verdes. Essentially the goal here is to lessen the overall friction in the air by allowing more space for wind to flow between branches. Typically, this involves cutting smaller branches (though with the long-term structural implications in mind) to reduce the thickness of canopy foliage in trees that are deemed vulnerable to strong gusts.
Proper Irrigation. When young trees are planted, they typically have their irrigation drips relatively close to the trunk to make sure that they can properly establish themselves after the shock of planting. However, the drip should not be left near the trunk for long. Beginning about 6 months after the young trees’ first growth cycles, the drips should be incrementally moved further away from the base of the tree, usually proportionally to the diameter of the trees’ canopies. If drips are not pulled away, the root systems will remain small, despite the growth in canopy size, and they won’t be able to support the weight for very long. This causes LOTS of trees to fall over every summer. You can tell if this was the cause of a tree’s collapse if there are barely any roots connecting to the trunk. Often, improper care at their original nurseries can cause root girdling early on and doom trees right from the start, as well, so it’s important to check the quality of the root flare even for trees in pots at nurseries before you buy. While trees that were girdled in their original containers have little chance of surviving multiple decades, healthy young trees can be given the best chance of long-term survival if the drips are carefully and gradually moved further from the trunk as the canopy expands.

At ELS Maintenance & Construction, we have our own Wholesale Nursery where we grow quality stock with healthy roots, and our Arbor Division ensures that trees in your community have the best shot at surviving the summer winds for years to come. If you know of a community or commercial center that needs new landscapers, email contactus@evergreenaz.com and we can get started!

February 14 2024

Irrigation Lines Break More Often When Seasons Change, But Why?

robbie@evergreen Blog Arizona Landscape, HOA Landscaping, HOAMaintenance

A common issue in Arizona landscapes, and landscapes around the world, is for irrigation leaks to sprout from seemingly nowhere. Not many people notice the strong correlation between the frequency of spontaneous irrigation leakage and the weather.

Most small-scale residential and streetscape landscape irrigation lines are either made of poly-tubing or PVC pipe. Poly-tubing is much weaker than PVC pipe, especially when under the Arizona sun for years. This is where you’ll most often find your leaks.

Poly-tubing is composed of polyethylene, a malleable plastic that works great for flexible irrigation installation. For places other than the Southwest, this may be perfect. Unfortunately, the high average UV index in Arizona speeds up the weakening and decomposition of polyethylene. Even though most poly-tubing is installed a few inches underground, the heat and some of the UV radiation still makes it through to the pipes. After experiencing the heat and UV radiation for years on end can lead to such significant weakening that a weaker spot can rupture after a temperature shift.

The change from extreme heat to near freezing temperatures and vice versa each year often happens in major increments upon the arrival of progressive cold or warm fronts. As temperatures decrease, plastics, gasses, and water contract and shrink in size. Then, when temperatures warm in the spring into the summer, they grow. The size and pressure differences are subtle, but when the irrigation line is stuck underground and can only expand into a medium of dirt, this motion can become grating to the polyethylene material over time. Eventually, cracks will appear.

So why do so many communities and municipalities in the desert use poly tubing? It’s easy to install due to being flexible and portable, and it’s cheap. With the rapid development of communities around the Phoenix area in the past 30 years, it makes sense that the quickest and easiest materials would be used to support faster turnover rate. In the long run, poly-tubing is no longer the cheapest option, because it starts requiring more and more maintenance due to leaking and decomposition.

To solve this, ELS has been replacing poly-tubing infrastructures with stronger, long-lasting PVC pipe in contracted irrigation system “revamps.” Though PVC is more difficult to install and thus more costly at first, the lack of the need for maintenance ends up creating net savings for communities.

If your community is in need of an irrigation revamp to replace poly-tubing with PVC infrastructure, reach out to us at contactus@evergreenaz.com.

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