September 2025 Landscape Committee Report

HOA, BOYCO and Homeowner Responsibilities

By Louise Caudle, Chair 

Members of the Landscape Maintenance Committee are Debbie Bell, Kathleen Cirillo, MaryKay Doane, Leigh Garmhausen, Bob Williams and me.

We are pleased to serve as new members of the committee and are eager to play an active role in maintaining and increasing the attractiveness of our already beautiful neighborhood. 

Our primary role is to advise the board and to make recommendations related to the overall condition and appearance of the common areas in our community as well as areas outside the courtyards or patio areas of individual lots. 

This largely involves assessing the work being done by our contracted landscaping management company, BOYCO; identifying possible landscaping violations in the community; and recommending beautification improvements to the board. 

BOYCO is new to Courtyards at Southpoint, having begun work with us in January of this year. A family-owned licensed landscaping contractor, BOYCO is based in Raleigh and has been in business since 2010. Here’s a quick look at the services we contracted with BOYCO to provide at your homes during each visit:  

• Mow grass and edge all turf and landscaping beds with a string trimmer to provide a crisp, tailored edge. Twice a month, BOYCO uses a blade edger around all hardscaped areas such as sidewalks, curbs and driveways.

• Blow clippings and debris off walkways, driveways, and porches and patios not enclosed by a fence.

• Treat minor insect infestations and fungus issues.

• Apply a post-emergent herbicide to weeds in landscaping beds and in grass. 

In September, BOYCO also will apply a granular fertilizer to the grass, which will be beneficial for root development and preparing the lawn for winter dormancy.

All the lawns in our community consist of Bermuda grass, which is a warm-season plant that goes dormant in the winter. Once established, the grass is a dominant turf during the growing months that helps choke out many unwanted weeds. 

The Bermuda grass in the new section of our community was installed after the 2024 growing season. The late-year installation did not provide an opportunity for the lawns to develop a strong, healthy root system. Unfortunately, pre-emergent weed killer cannot be applied until grass is well-established, which usually takes a year. This has resulted in a large quantity of weeds throughout the new section of our neighborhood during this first year. We can expect a big improvement in the weed situation in 2026!

As previously communicated, we have updated the list of homeowners who wish to opt out of certain landscaping maintenance services that BOYCO provides. Thanks to those of you who fall in that category for confirming your wishes.

The landscaping committee wants to remind neighbors of responsibilities we retain as homeowners and ways to help make our neighborhood more beautiful:

• Pop-up gutter drains 

  • Ensure that pop-ups are not clogged with debris by lifting the tops and periodically cleaning out the leaves, pine needles, etc. 

  • Make sure that pop-ups are level with the ground so that lawn mowers don’t catch and destroy them.

  • If your pop-ups are broken or destroyed, please report the matter to Albert Veron Cruz and copy our committee.

• Solar lighting, sprinkler heads, bird feeders, etc., placed outside your courtyard fences

  • Place these in landscaping beds, mulched areas or other locations near your house that are not mowed so that landscaping maintenance crews do not have to mow and trim around each of them. It behooves all of us to enable the crews to work as efficiently as possible. The HOA and BOYCO are not responsible for damage to such objects. 

  • As a reminder, approval is required before installing landscape lighting outside your courtyard and patio area, so please be sure to submit a request for architectural review and board approval. 

• Weeds inside your courtyard fences are your responsibility; please ensure the appearance of your courtyard is attractive and well-maintained.
   

• Trees, shrubs and lawns

  • Homeowners are responsible for watering their landscaping. This especially is important when getting new plantings established with strong root systems. 

  • Street trees in the new section of our neighborhood also need to be watered to keep them alive and to enable them to become well-established. Please water street trees near your homes to help them be healthy and to thrive. Epcon will replace trees that already have died along the street during the one-year warranty period.

In addition, the landscaping committee encourages you to remove lot markers, private residence signs and any remaining tags on street trees. These are unsightly and no longer needed.

Thank you for helping us preserve and improve the beauty of our community! Comments, questions and suggestions are welcomed by the committee.