Our
Approach
Our environment persistently shows her resilience. But for how long?
The problematic methodology of conventional landscaping, which has been left unrestrained and otherwise ignored, must be unwound. This unwinding starts with you. Choosing Richard A. McCoy Horticultural Services Inc. shows your support of our environmentally-friendly practices and serves as a role model to neighbors and other communities. Your support also serves as an imperative call to action, not only to create a sustainable environment but also to pay attention to our health and that of our families and pets in addition to the future of our planet.
Organic Land Care
We have a developed, refined, practiced, and proven approach to superior systems of organic land care. Your family will reap immediate rewards from the reduction of exposure to harmful chemical applications that many landscape companies use. You will also benefit from our industry-leading three-year guarantee on plants. Your landscape will thrive and be full of healthier plants that showcase brighter, more vibrant colors and live longer. Besides the long-term health and cost-saving benefits, there are additional bonuses, such as less frequent mulching and watering and overall healthier turfs, trees, shrubs, and flowers.
The practice of organic land care is fundamentally based on science and observing the best cultural practices. We take a holistic, common-sense approach and implement each project correctly. Our expert team members understand that observing proactive maintenance practices will save you a lot of money over the years. We pay special attention to the health and type of soil we are planting in. We then select the appropriate plants for the existing site conditions (right plant, right place). This assures that plants are well suited for a chosen location and are in the right place for their cultural needs. This will help the plants thrive, thus reducing the need for pesticide/fungicide applications that plants often need when they are stressed or not planted in the correct place. This saves you money by eliminating the need for the removal of unhealthy plant material due to it being planted improperly and in the wrong location.
A Natural Approach
Our approach to plant maintenance is a simple one — properly plant the appropriate plant in the correct location, mulch properly, and your healthy landscape will flourish without the use of harmful chemicals.
Additionally, we make every effort to maintain our clients’ properties without the use of synthetic chemicals of any kind. We recognize the harm these substances cause to the environment and human health, so we use organic and 25 b. EPA minimum risk exempt products and follow the NOFA Standards and The Rutgers Organic Land Care Best Management Practices Manual recommendations.
We also pay particular attention to the soil that we plant in and soil’s health and “diet,” as most soil we find is void of the vital microorganisms that make nutrients available to the plants, which is imperative to a healthy landscape.
By “feeding the soil” organic/natural materials, we enhance the natural activity of the soil’s microorganisms that will make the naturally occurring soil nutrients available to the plant. “Feeding the soil” strengthens the plant’s root systems and defenses as opposed to synthetic fertilizers, which will weaken a plant’s defenses, leaving them susceptible to opportunistic insects and disease.
Problems Associated with the Methodology of Conventional Landscaping
Nature doesn’t cause landscape problems — humans do.
Problematic landscape areas are created by the improper design and utilization of a designated space. These sites tend to be defined by the general lack of consideration for one or more of the following crucial steps in the design and implementation process:
Soil – the chemical and textural properties of the soil and, perhaps even more importantly, the biological makeup of the soil, are typically overlooked.
Plant selection — in most common landscape designs plant selection is based merely on ornamental characteristics. However, plant selection should be based on ecological value. In other words, whether or not a plant has a positive or negative effect on ecology.
McCoy Horticultural defines ecological value as – calling in native pollinators, beneficial parasitic insects, the building of soil structures, and carbon sequestration as well as how a plants ecological value supports and provides other beneficial ecosystem services.
Conversely, in common landscape design, the plant is selected for ornamental value only. With that perspective, the detrimental impact of a plant is not recognized.
Some negative ecological impacts – aggressive, invasive non-native plant tendencies lead to native habitat loss or fragmentation and soil erosion. Additionally, the changing of soil structures and biological components by non-native plant species tend to be disregarded. Other aspects that are not acknowledged are the cultural suitability/adaptability of a plant and plant size at maturity.
Implementation and maintenance — A host of antiquated, less-than-acceptable planting practices are unfortunately commonplace today, including substandard pruning, over-mulching, and the indiscriminate use of synthetic herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, and fertilizers. Over the decades, these antiquated practices have caused irreparable damage to the detriment of unsuspecting consumers. They have also caused great harm to the general public and professionals alike who handle and apply hazardous materials without proper training or protection.