Amenity
Horticulture
Levels-of-service framework design, maintenance specification writing, KPI and reporting design, planting design, plant sourcing, and contractor performance reviews - built to plug into your asset management plan, not sit beside it.
Amenity plantings sit at the intersection of community visibility and quiet budget pressure.
Most councils have inherited mixed-quality plantings, vague service levels, and contracts that don’t quite measure the right things.
We design the levels-of-service frameworks that bring discipline to amenity horticulture - so a CBD planter and a suburban roundabout aren’t held to the same impossible standard, and so the contract that maintains them measures what actually matters. Read the full argument for four-tier LoS →
Including the plants themselves. Planting design that suits the use, climate, and maintenance budget - and plant sourcing relationships that get you what you specified, not what was easiest to deliver.
The output plugs directly into your asset management plan. No parallel framework, no separate spreadsheets - the same levels-of-service logic that runs through your wider asset management system, applied properly to amenity plantings.
Council teams getting the plantings right.
Parks & open space managers
If you’ve inherited a portfolio of amenity plantings and you’re looking to bring some structure to service levels, specifications, and contractor management. If you’re about to renew the maintenance contract and you want to do it properly.
Asset planners aligning systems
Updating the asset management plan and wanting amenity plantings to sit inside the same levels-of-service framework as the rest of the parks portfolio. We design it to align.
Project & design teams
If you’re specifying plantings for new developments, streetscape upgrades, or community projects. We do the planting design and source the plants - so what gets specified is what gets planted.
Documents that do the work.
Levels-of-service framework
Tiered LoS framework for amenity plantings - from civic-prominence to suburban-baseline - with clear criteria, measurable outcomes, and budget implications. Designed to align with wider asset management.
Maintenance specifications
Detailed specifications by planting type - trees, shrubs, groundcover, annual displays, sports field surrounds - covering frequency, technique, acceptance criteria, and KPI structure.
Planting design
Site-specific planting design suited to use, microclimate, soils, and maintenance budget. Species selection, planting plans, establishment specifications, and ongoing care guidance.
Plant sourcing
Sourcing plants to specification - working with growers and nurseries to secure the right species, grade, and quantity. Includes sourcing strategy, timing, and quality acceptance.
KPI & reporting design
Performance KPIs, reporting templates, and dashboard structure for amenity contracts. Built to surface the right information for parks managers, contract managers, and elected members.
Contractor performance review
Independent review of contractor performance against amenity contract obligations and outcome measures. Findings written to support contract management or renewal decisions.
From principle to planting bed.
Portfolio review
Walk the portfolio. See what you have, how it’s performing, and what the existing service levels actually deliver in practice.
Framework design
Draft the LoS framework, specifications, and KPI structure. Aligned with your asset management plan and tested against your real portfolio.
Validation
Workshop with the parks team, the contract manager, and (where appropriate) the contractor. Iterate until the framework works at every level.
Embedding
Roll into the next contract, the next AMP update, or the next operational review. We can support the rollout or hand it back to your team.
A flavour of amenity horticulture engagements.
Levels-of-service framework for amenity plantings
Designed a tiered levels-of-service framework for amenity plantings across a council’s parks portfolio, including maintenance specifications, KPI structure, and reporting templates plugged into existing asset management systems.
CBD streetscape planting upgrade
Planting design and plant sourcing for a CBD streetscape renewal. Species selection suited to the urban microclimate, planting plans, establishment specification, and direct sourcing through grower relationships.
Amenity maintenance contract specification
Drafted maintenance specifications and KPI structure for a regional amenity horticulture contract - covering tree, shrub, and groundcover plantings across multiple council reserves.
Out of the weeds.
Into excellence.
If your amenity plantings need a service-level framework that actually works - let’s talk. First call is free.
Book a thirty-minute call