May 1, 2025

Growing Strong: The Business Case for a Holistic Approach to PHC

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Holistic Approach to PHC

A PHC tech with Almstead Tree & Shrub Care setting an Arborplug. All photos courtesy of Arborjet | Ecologel.

In today’s competitive green industry, professional arborists, landscapers and plant-health-care providers face mounting pressure. Stabilizing revenue, managing rising labor costs and navigating a market of price-sensitive customers make the road to sustainable growth a winding one. However, one strategy has proven itself time and again to not only improve plant outcomes, but also to build profitable, recurring revenue streams: a holistic plant-health-care (PHC) approach.This isn’t about adding more services just to pad a brochure. It’s about transforming your business into a solutions-based partner for your clients – one that anticipates problems, customizes care and delivers tangible results. At the heart of this approach are two essential tools: Integrated pest management (IPM) and tree injection. These practices are not just environmentally sound, they’re business builders.

What is holistic plant health care?
A holistic PHC program is proactive, not reactive. It’s based on regular monitoring, early detection and preventative strategies that consider the whole ecosystem of the plant – soil conditions, water availability, pest and disease pressure, climate influences and the client’s goals.

Unlike a one-time treatment model, PHC encourages long-term customer relationships. It allows you to transition from “tree person” to “trusted advisor,” generating consistent income through repeat visits, ongoing monitoring and scheduled interventions that reduce crisis calls and improve resource allocation.

IPM: Smarter, not harder
IPM is the cornerstone of a successful PHC program. It reduces pesticide use while increasing control effectiveness by focusing on monitoring, thresholds and the use of biological, cultural, mechanical and chemical tools in harmony.

From a business standpoint, IPM opens doors to:

  • Recurring revenue: Monitoring contracts ensures your technicians are on the property multiple times a season.
  • Labor efficiency: Early detection prevents the need for emergency calls or extensive treatments later on.
  • Customer loyalty: Educated clients appreciate a responsible, transparent approach that protects their landscapes, their health and their wallet.
Holistic Approach to PHC

Tree Fellers Inc. arborist Jesse Allen inspecting for leaf damage.

Business case: Selling IPM to an HOA
Take, for example, a local HOA struggling with repeated outbreaks of aphids on their community trees. A traditional bid would likely involve a broad-spectrum insecticide application – perhaps once, maybe twice if problems persist. You win the job, treat the trees and move on.
Now consider the PHC approach. Offer the HOA a seasonal monitoring program: bi-monthly visits, threshold-
based intervention and documented reports. The benefits? Better control of the aphid population, fewer stressed trees, improved aesthetic quality and a predictable monthly contract that stabilizes your revenue. Your client isn’t just buying pest control; they’re investing in peace of mind and a healthier landscape.

Tree injection: High efficiency, high impact
Tree-injection technology offers one of the most powerful tools in an arborist’s toolkit. By delivering nutrients or insect- and disease-control products directly into the vascular system of the tree, injection provides targeted, measurable results with minimal environmental exposure.

In the era of heightened pesticide regulation and public environmental concern, tree injection offers compelling selling points, including:

  • Precision: No drift, no runoff – just clean, effective delivery.
  • Efficiency: Fewer applications, longer residual effect, less labor.
  • Profitability: Tree injection can command a premium price due to its effectiveness and sustainability.

Business case: Justifying injection to a municipal client
Imagine pitching your services to a city managing a population of valuable oaks threatened by oak wilt. They’re juggling budget restrictions, public-health opinion and a wary city council.

Propose a tree-injection program targeting the most valuable or high-risk trees first. Present data showing reduced chemical use and increased tree survival. Include public education on the benefits of injection (reduced drift, safety for pollinators, no spray signage needed). The result? You become not just a service provider, but a responsible partner aligned with the city’s sustainability goals – opening the door for long-term contracts and citywide PHC strategies.

Overcoming objections and price sensitivity
The biggest challenge facing service providers isn’t always competition – it’s customer hesitation. Price-sensitive clients often need help understanding the value of preventative care.

Reframing the sale
Don’t sell services. Sell outcomes. A PHC plan isn’t a line item – it’s an investment in asset preservation. Homeowners want fewer dead trees. Property managers want fewer complaints. HOAs want healthier curb appeal. Tree injection and IPM aren’t upsells; they’re insurance policies for the landscape.

Tools to support the pitch:

  • Before-and-after visuals: Show success stories with similar clients.
  • Cost comparisons: Demonstrate that treating a tree is cheaper than removing and replacing it.
  • Service bundles: Offer seasonal PHC programs with IPM monitoring and injection treatments included for a flat monthly rate – stabilizing income and providing customers with a simple value proposition.
Holistic Approach to PHC

Hendrik Wenning, with Barrett Tree Service East Inc., inspects a shrub.

Labor costs and business stability
By transitioning to a PHC model with IPM and injection services, you’ll find that:
Technician training improves efficiency. Instead of general laborers, your team becomes skilled specialists, increasing service value per hour worked.
Your schedule becomes predictable. Recurring visits and monitoring help flatten the peaks and valleys of seasonal demand.
You can scale smarter. Recurring revenue gives you confidence to grow – hiring strategically, rather than reactively.

Takeaway: Partner, don’t just provide
The businesses thriving in today’s green industry aren’t the cheapest – they’re the most trusted. They offer holistic solutions that are grounded in science and delivered with consistency. As a Board Certified Master Arborist (BCMA), I’ve seen firsthand the power of PHC to transform not only landscapes, but businesses. Integrated pest management and tree injection aren’t just good arboriculture, they’re smart business.

If you want to stabilize your operations, control costs and sell value over volume, the holistic PHC model isn’t a trend – it’s your roadmap.

Kevin Brewer is the Northeast technical manager for Arborjet | Ecologel, as well as a Board Certified Master Arborist (BCMA) and Registered Consulting Arborist (RCA). He’s worked in the green industry for more than 20 years.

Arborjet | Ecologel is a global leader in the plant-health-care industry, delivering innovative products that protect trees, conserve water and provide sustainable solutions for customers. Over the past 25 years, the company has safeguarded millions of trees from pests and disease while developing thorough, field-tested research. With proprietary formulas and equipment, environmental stewardship remains the core mission – keeping people and planet in mind.

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