Happy Father's Day!

Dads work hard and they like to relax too! 

Enhancing the backyard so Dad can spend time enjoying his family and friends is what Integrity Landscape is all about.

We custom design the ideal upgrade with beautiful features such as brick patios, seating walls, water features, fireplaces and fire pits.

Fire Pits Are Cool

Here are six reasons for you to turn to Integrity Landscape for a permanent fire pit upgrade.

1. Family and Friends. Nothing says gather your friends and family together like a fire pit.
2. Outdoor Space Use. Fire pits are a great way to extend your party space to the outdoors.
3. Food Preparation. There is nothing more distinctive than kabobs or marshmallows cooked over a fire pit.
4. Warmth and Gentle Light. It is enjoyable to gather and socialize around a fire pit on a chilly spring or fall night.
5. Tranquil Ambiance. When you and your loved ones are spending quiet time together, nothing is more satisfying than a warm fire and star-gazing.
6. Increased Value. Landscaping upgrades, including a permanent, brick fire pit add investment value and selling price to your home.

Call Integrity Landscape Services today for a free consultation about adding a permanent fire pit to your residence.

Celebrate. Honor. Remember.

On Memorial Day we can celebrate our freedom and remember those who have served, so bravely and selflessly, our wonderful country.

All we can say is we thank you.  We honor you.  We never forget your service and sacrifice.

Landscape Lighting

If you are thinking about ways to provide a distinctive effect to your landscape, adding lighting fixtures is an affordable and creative way. By adding a light system, you can tastefully accent and highlight selected features of your landscape and improve home security measures.

Soft lighting adds warmth and dimension to a landscape.

One way to incorporate landscape lighting is through up lighting, or projecting light upwards to focus on specific objects and plants in the landscape area. Up lighting accentuates trees, shrubs, and other plants that stand above the general landscaping plane.

Similarly, down lighting is another lighting technique that can create unique and dramatic effects. You can achieve a down lighting effect by mounting flood or spotlights above the landscape line. Down lighting, sometimes called moonlighting, creates a soft, subtle radiance throughout specific areas of your yard.

Another approach to enhancing landscape through the use of light is backlighting, or silhouette lighting. Placing light fixtures between your home’s facade and a particular object causes the object in front of the lighting to appear as a silhouette. You can also use backlighting to highlight walls, columns or doorways for further effect.

There are endless possibilities to incorporate lighting into your overall landscape design. Integrity Landscape Services has designed and installed lighting approaches throughout the Milwaukee area and surrounding counties. Enjoy unique results that fit your budget by integrating lighting effects to your landscape this season.

The Outdoor Display!

It is coming along quite nicely, our new yard and outdoor display!  We couldn't be more thrilled with the results so far. 

Select Materials

At Integrity Landscape Services, select materials can be used to create a patio wall or entrance area to obtain a rich, upscale appearance.  To further improve your entertainment area, consider additional features such as seat walls, steps and decorative pillars.  Our new display boasts the beautiful Unilock Olde Quarry wall units (pictured here).

Recommendations for Your Plants and Grass in Spring

Integrity Landscape Services recommends that new plants that were installed last Fall be watered once temperatures reach 40 degrees or higher.

It is also recommended that grass seed that was installed last Fall be tended to as well.  Once temperatures reach 50 degrees, apply Milorganite to the areas that were seeded to jump start the growing process this Spring.  The rain should do its part.  Milorganite, which originated in Milwaukee, is available at most local hardware stores.  It is inexpensive and you simply follow the directions on the bag.

We hope you enjoy your new yard in 2015!

Fire Pit: A Nice Addition to Your Outdoor Room

Over the last few years, landscapers have seen a trend emerge throughout the Greater Milwaukee area: incorporating a fire pit in a home’s outdoor design. The addition of a fire pit creates a beautiful focal point for your outdoor room and adds seasons to outside living. 

Scheduling a free consultation with Integrity Landscape Services allows homeowners to choose from many different variations of fire pits, depending on the size of your landscape and your budget.

 

Patio Entertaining: Celebrating Life Outdoors

Thinking about installing a brand new patio area or overhauling an existing slab of concrete within your landscape? With the ever-growing popularity of outdoor entertaining, there are countless ideas and options for transforming and extending your living space.

Using assorted styles, sizes and colors of clay or concrete brick is one way to create a unique environment that is both beautiful and functional. Through the use of brick pavers or natural stone, the possibilities for turning a patio into an outdoor sanctuary are endless.

If you are looking for design inspiration, look no further than our designers here at Integrity Landscape Services, LLC. Whether your tastes are simple or extravagant, our landscapers can deliver the exceptional results you desire. Our passion is to create designs that accentuate your personality and encourage you to entertain, celebrate and live life outdoors.

Brick pavers or natural stone add a practical touch of elegance to any landscaped area.

Super Service Award from Angie's List

Integrity Landscape Services has received the Super Service Award once again from Angie's List!  This makes 2014 our fifth year in a row to receive this prestigious award.  We couldn't be more proud and thank our wonderful customers, staff and vendors for helping us achieve this goal!  We plan to put forth the same effort and service in 2015.  Thank you to all!

2015 Specials

Starting on March 1st, Integrity Landscape Services will be offering monthly specials on Facebook throughout our 2015 season.  Go to our Facebook page, "like" us, mention the posting and we will apply the special for that month!  We are looking forward to a great season this year. 

A Winter Garden

A winter garden can provide food and shelter for birds and other wildlife in the cold months.  A good-looking, inviting winter yard could include Cypress trees, Maiden Grass, and Boxwoods.  All varieties offer a lovely shot of green or burgundy in the dreary winter months.  Winterberry offers a vibrant red proving you can have a beautiful and colorful yard in winter too!

 

Merry Christmas to All!

Integrity Landscape Services wishes everybody a very, Merry Christmas and wonderful New Year!

We've enjoyed a busy 2014 and look forward to the beautiful landscaping to be done in 2015!

Calcium Chloride Is Our Choice

Calcium chloride is excellent for melting ice and snow and is better for your surfaces than rock salt.  It is more expensive, but delivers several advantages over rock salt.  Calcium chloride can be effective at temperatures as low as -25 F, while rock salt works loses its effectiveness at temperatures below 15 F.

Rock salt can poison soil and can also be damaging to trees and other vegetation. 

Rock salt can damage concrete. 

Rock salt can also be harmful to pets.  Pets will lick their the irritated paws to remove salt, possibly ingesting the salt.

For the reasons above, Integrity Landscape Services always recommends calcium chloride to reduce slippery driveways and walkways.

Pruning in Winter

The best time for pruning varies with the type of tree but it is generally accepted that early winter is a good time to prune deciduous trees, as long as it is not frozen!  If there is no freezing yet, the leaves are gone and you can easily inspect the branches and tree structure for any signs of weakness.

For Evergreen trees and shrubs, you should wait until after the last winter freeze before pruning.  Early Spring is best.

After a heavy snow, your trees and bushes might be icy and covered with snow.  It is best to wait until everything thaws before trying to assess damage.  Shaking snow or ice off a plant can cause even more damage to it. 

Protecting Arborvitae Through Winter

Although Arborvitae are frost-tolerant, they are easily damaged by snow and wind storms.  This can leave frustrating bare spots.  Some people cover their shrubs in burlap, but that isn’t very visually appealing.  Some experts recommend using thick rope or rubber straps.  Don't use wire as it can scar the plant.

The best approach is to wrap the twine around the outside of the plant like the stripes on a candy cane, starting at the bottom and working your way up.  Pull it snug but not so tight that it breaks branches and deforms the shape of the plant.

Remember to remove the rope or straps early in the spring so the tree will grow and move naturally.