Self-storage industry advisor Tron Jordheim has launched the Living Gravel Project, an exploratory initiative examining whether carefully selected, low-growing plants can improve the performance of gravel surfaces at self-storage facilities.
Thousands of self-storage properties use gravel for drive aisles, outdoor storage areas, parking spaces, and undeveloped expansion land. Maintaining those surfaces often involves a recurring cycle of applying herbicides, removing vegetation, scraping the surface, and replacing displaced gravel.
Living Gravel asks whether self-storage operators may be treating every plant in gravel as a problem when certain types of managed vegetation could potentially become part of the solution.
“We spray it, pull it and scrape it, and then it grows back,” Jordheim said. “Living Gravel begins with a simple question: What if some carefully selected plants could help gravel hold better, erode less and function better?”
The concept is not an argument for allowing weeds to overtake a property. Any vegetation used in a Living Gravel test would need to remain low, tolerate appropriate levels of vehicle traffic, and avoid obstructing storage doors, drainage systems, or customer access. Test areas would also need to look intentional and properly maintained.
Potential areas for investigation include whether managed vegetation can:
The project is currently in its exploratory stage. No particular plant species, seed mixture, or maintenance system has been selected or proven. Jordheim is seeking input from self-storage owners and operators, university researchers, agricultural extension specialists, plant and soil scientists, stormwater professionals and environmental agencies.
“This is a project, not a product,” Jordheim said. “We do not have a finished solution to promote. We have a practical question that can be researched and tested under real operating conditions.”
Self-storage facilities may offer particularly useful testing environments because they contain gravel surfaces with different traffic patterns. Some drive aisles receive daily vehicle traffic, while other areas are crossed only occasionally. This could allow researchers and operators to compare plant survival, gravel movement, drainage, appearance and maintenance requirements under a range of conditions.
The project will also consider customer perception. A successful Living Gravel test must do more than produce an environmental or maintenance benefit. It must allow the storage property to remain safe, clean and visibly well maintained.
Jordheim developed the idea through his work with self-storage properties and his interest in questioning long-established industry practices.
“Self-storage has become increasingly sophisticated, but innovation does not always require another piece of technology,” Jordheim said. “Sometimes it begins by looking at an ordinary problem and asking whether we have understood it correctly.”
Self-storage operators with gravel drive aisles or parking areas are invited to share their experiences and indicate their interest in participating in future Living Gravel research or field trials.
More information is available at LivingGravel.net.
Industry members can also participate in the project survey at https://forms.gle/FY2AGSRQjdmcD62Y7.
Tron Jordheim is the managing partner of Self Storage Strategies and a strategic advisor and industry instigator serving the self-storage industry. He has more than 25 years of experience in self-storage sales, marketing, operations, customer experience, and revenue growth. Jordheim works with storage owners and operators to question assumptions, identify unconventional opportunities, and improve performance within their existing operations and culture. He is also the host of the Self Storage Hawai’i unConference.
Tron Jordheim
Managing Partner
Self Storage Strategies
Email: win@selfstoragestrategies.com
Living Gravel: https://livinggravel.net