Plant Health Care, also called PHC, offers a total health approach to tree and landscape and plant health.
How PHC Landscape Programs Work
Traditional landscape pest control programs rely on what are called “cover sprays.” The pest control sprays offered to the client are based on the company’s knowledge of common pest problems and control measures in the service area. The cover spray type, method, and timing are pre-determined by the company.
The client may have the option to choose from a number of pest control programs based on the client’s priorities. Traditional pest control programs are not necessarily obsolete or “bad” for the environment and may be the best option for clients who have overriding concerns about program cost or are only concerned about one specific pest problem.
In contrast, plant health care (PHC) technicians consider the landscape as a whole when deciding how to best care for plants. PHC technicians control plant problems through careful monitoring of the landscape environment. Chemical controls may be part of the treatment but they are not necessarily used in every treatment.
The PHC technician maintains landscape plants by:
evaluating the landscape’s environment;
noting actual or potential causes of plant stress (stressors);
maintaining plant performance through proper cultural practices;
investigating the landscape through monitoring;
and identifying and treating problems as they occur.
Because of this, every PHC program is “customized” to fit the client’s property and expectations.
