Championing green workspaces

Green landscaping doesn’t have to be a major undertaking. Adapting pre-existing verges, banks and lawns is a simple way to inject colour into a business park while enhancing biodiversity. Truly effective adaptations focus not just on how a space looks, but how it works: are the plant varieties right for the location, when should they be in bloom, and are they a good fit for current grounds maintenance?

Lubbe Lisse takes a combined approach to design, biodiversity and maintenance. If done properly, a bulb mix can transform pre-existing outdoor spaces into a vibrant, multiyear patch of colour without the need for more intensive maintenance. As demonstrated by the HoogTij project, targeted interventions can improve a business park’s look and feel, boost biodiversity and align with current grounds maintenance.

‘When the municipality of Zaanstad asked us to make this location more attractive and biodiverse, Lubbe Lisse was our first port of call. We worked together to create the ideal bulb mix for the location and current grounds maintenance. We made an effective team, and the business park looks all the better for it.’ – Meijns Grondverzet & Groenvoorzieningen (landscaping and excavation works)

From uninspiring grass bank to flowering showstopper

The business park was bordered by a large grass bank. This prominent location, situated along a high-traffic route and used as a walking spot for staff on their lunch break, had plenty of potential to add colour and variety to the business park. All that was needed was a relatively simple intervention.

HoogTij was looking for a design that made this area of the business park more attractive, colourful and biodiverse without additional grounds maintenance. 

The solution: a location-specific bulb mix

Lubbe Lisse worked together with HoogTij to compose a bulb mix that was right for the location, taking account of the target look and feel as well as the aspect of the bank, visibility from the roadside and existing grounds maintenance. As we were planting on an incline, we chose a carefully curated mix of taller varieties that would also be visible from the roadside.

The mix includes:
1.    Daffodils – provide colour early in the year
2.    Camassia – add height and create a natural look and feel
3.    Alliums – offer a dash of colour later in the year and are visible from the roadside
4.    Irises – add colour and structure to the bank

As the varieties are in bloom at different times from February to July, they provide a continuous range of fresh colours for several months.

Smart design minimises maintenance

While HoogTij wanted more green spaces, it didn’t want more maintenance. We therefore composed a bulb mix that achieved the target look and feel without adding pressure to grounds management, tailoring it to the low-frequency mowing regime used at the park. The bulbs are also perennials: they bloom each year without requiring intensive maintenance.

Thanks to this intervention, the business park’s pre-existing grassy area is much more attractive and has been given a second use.

Professional slope planting

The project was completed in collaboration with Meijns Grondverzet & Groenvoorziening. After the bank had been carefully mown, Lubbe Lisse planted the bulbs using a specially designed slope planter to ensure efficient and uniform planting.

The green landscaping will be completed in phases. The project itself will be expanded annually, so that more parts of the business park can be integrated into the green design.

A business park in bloom

The once uninspiring grassy area has been transformed into a flowering showstopper, blooming for several months each spring. The business park is now more attractive for visitors, businesses and employees. When in bloom, the bulbs function as biodiversity boosters, offering a source of food for honeybees, bumblebees and other local pollinators.

The project shows how a business park can be massively upgraded by just one simple intervention. Our smart design for pre-existing outdoor spaces adds a dash of colour and improves biodiversity without intensifying maintenance.

Explore the possibilities of green spaces for your business park

We’re sure there are opportunities to make your business park’s pre-existing outdoor spaces more attractive and biodiversity-friendly. Lubbe Lisse helps you to select the right varieties and planting solutions for your location, goals and maintenance regime. We provide site-specific solutions covering everything from advice and design to project implementation.

Our combination of design, planting, project implementation and maintenance turns pre-existing land into a space that adds colour to your business park year after year.