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Ecological Landscaping

Beautiful gardens that function like ecosystems.

If you are interested in our gardening services, please fill out this form and we will be in touch:

🌼NEW CLIENT INQUIRY FORM🌼

Planting for Privacy & Wildlife

The desire for an intimate private space has become a common request as homes are built closer together and more cars and lights clutter our roads. The majority of privacy issues can be solved with landscaping that mimics nature and does not rely on the hardscape of fences or conga lines of evergreens. A soft multi-layer of plantings makes a space feel private without making the homeowner feel claustrophobic or trapped on their own land. Nature often hides views from us and does it best with a hedgerow. A well-made hedgerow includes a mix of evergreens, deciduous trees, flowering and fruiting shrubs, tall grasses and perennials. The density and variety of plants becomes a part of the natural landscape without bringing attention to undesirable views they might be screening.

We are no longer doing large installations like these but we can refer to someone who does ecological privacy plantings.

Gardens full of diversity, color and texture are as delightful for wildlife as they are for the gardener. A meadow is often the perfect solution to an area where the homeowner does not want to mow or prefers a natural view instead of a manicured garden bed. Such spaces can be a magnet for pollinating insects, butterflies and birds as they offer a buffet of food and beneficial habitat throughout the year. Despite what those cans of flower seeds claim, meadows are not a simple undertaking. To create a meadow with waves of constantly changing colors, a diversity of thriving species and plants that play off the light, some planning needs to be done. We emphasize the use of plants that have not been overly hybridized for the sake of color or size but rather maintain a full offering of pollen for the butterflies and insects that are nurtured by these flowers. It takes patience and skill to create these habitats, but they are worth it.

Meadows & Wildlife Corridors

Be it simple curb appeal or the place where you welcome people into your home, an entrance needs a character that suits the house and it's owner. The trend away from "bearding" a house with shrubs and a little weeping tree in the corner is a welcome one. Today people look to make the most of their outdoor space and create living rooms and outdoor habitats that are both welcoming and functional. A courtyard entrance is the perfect example of this. A properly designed courtyard can create privacy, a place to enjoy the outdoors not far from your kitchen, and a space to greet people or welcome in friends.

Entrances & Foundation Plantings with Wildlife Value

There was a time when homeowners were judged on their ability to keep a velvety carpet of lawn enclosed with straight lines. Happily, society has been moving away from that aesthetic and now we can tinker with a freer way of landscaping that embraces color, texture, and curves. A lawn can still exist as a recreation space, or to simply frame the garden, but the days of fertilizing, reseeding and needing to sit down while mowing is losing its attraction.

Eliminating Lawn to Create Habitat

People often worry that a garden that benefits wildlife has to be wild and messy. While nature loves a good mess, there are ways to design and tend a garden that is beautiful to people, compliments the architecture of a home and still nurtures nature. The most successful gardens are ones in which we can be comfortable and co-exist with other living things that just want a chance at life too.

Gardens with Eco-Benefits

Pools can be a challenge for ecological landscapers because they attract amphibians, small mammals and insects and once in, they can't get out. To help these creatures escape these watery traps, you can add Frog Ramps or Critter Skimmers to your pool - and these products are easy to find online with a basic search.

Gardens can function like miniature meadows offering food, host plants and shelter to pollinators.

Foundations plantings can emulate hedgerows or a woodland edges. Most important is to avoid invasive plants and focus on creating layers of layers of plants that nestle a home into the landscape while offering a diversity of plants that support local wildlife.

Even the toughest terrains can be transformed into lush gardens when the appropriate plants are used. All the plants in these gardens are tolerant of drought and can even thrive with neglect.

Xeriscape, Dry Creeks & Rain Gardens

People often ask how to make a wet area less wet. We prefer to work with Mother Nature and not fight her. Many plants love "wet feet" and wet meadows and bog gardens can become a favorite habitat for the homeowner to cultivate. We also work with helping nature repair itself from flooding and hurricanes. Properly restored stream banks and flood plains can resist erosion and maintain that delicate balance between a little too much water and disaster.

Ponds, Bogs, Wetlands & Rain Gardens

Shade gardens have a mystical and earthy feel to them that is hard to accomplish in bright sunlight. Glorious gardens can be created under a canopy of trees. A shaded area can be one of the most rewarding to landscape. We often associate pollinators with meadows, but there are many woodland butterflies and moths and they require specific plants to reproduce on.

Woodland & Shade Gardens

One of the most empowering things you can do with your land is to grow your own food. Whether it’s an herb garden, a vegetable plot or an orchard we can help you feed yourself and your family in a healthy, sustainable way.