We know from our 20 years of experience that successful gardens are those that are designed by the people who build them and built by the people who design them. The designer involved in the construction of the garden ensures the inclusion of important details, relationships of space & scale and can prevent costly errors borne by misunderstanding of plans. All of our gardens have seen the benefit of this seamless approach.
Every landscape design begins with a consultation. During this hour-long first meeting, we will look at your site, discuss your needs, and maybe help to define them . . . make suggestions, and start the process of using design to make the best use of your budget. We have 20 years of experience designing and building gardens and garden features ranging from small and inexpensive to large and very expensive.
At this time we will help you decide what degree of design work your project requires and provide an accurate estimate of what this work will cost.
The next step is signing an agreement for Private Gardens to provide design services - we will show you a copy of this agreement at our consultation. Once we determine your needs for design, we will develop a timeline and begin the process of collecting information, developing and reviewing concepts, and working toward a complete design. These scaled plans will be documents from which your landscape can be built.
In many cases these will also include detail drawings, elevations, and walkthrough computer modeling. With these tools, even people who have trouble visualizing 2-D plans will get a virtual glimpse into their finished garden before a shovel breaks ground.
After the design is complete, we work with you to determine priorities and develop an estimate for installation. Some are interested in having the entire design implemented at one go. Others find that their budget and/or schedule permit only part of the garden to be constructed immediately. We will work with you to determine the most suitable plan of action.
Though we use subcontractors to carry out some portions of the installation, i.e. concrete, we have our own skilled workers who we are confident will produce the quality of work which we and our other clients have come to expect. This work includes not only acquiring and planting beautiful plants, but also irrigation, lighting, stone and paved terraces, retaining walls, steps, water features, and helping to choose and install works of art.
For a behind-the-scenes look into some of this work,
visit our construction detail page.
