Do you only work with native plants?

99.9% of the time, yes. If a particular aesthetic effect is desired I am willing to use nativars (a portmanteau of “native” and “cultivar”) but I try to keep those to a minimum. I’m not opposed to using non-native plants so long as they are sterile/unable to spread - the problem is mainly that they don’t always play well with natives. Non-native plants (especially those bred to be sold commercially) will often either smother or be smothered by natives. That’s not always the case, though, so if you are feeling conflicted about removing grandma’s favorite rose bush, ask!

What if I only want to do part of my lawn or a foundation bed?

It’s totally OK if you only want part of your lawn gone - many people leave either mulched or turf grass paths and have other areas where they want to keep turf. That’s no problem! As for small beds, I have limited availability.

Do you use herbicide?

Yes, I use an exceedingly careful application of glyphosate to kill lawns. A page that outlines my philosophy on herbicides is forthcoming but the short version is that the alleged "safer” methods are often worse for soil health and ineffective on some weeds.

If herbicide use is still a dealbreaker for you, we can still work together to create your dream garden! I will come out and do a site evaluation like normal and then you would take care of the lawn killing part. After it’s dead, you would get back to me to complete the project.

Do you do hardscaping/lawn care?

No, I do not.

What is maintenance like for native landscaping?

It depends! Most will need to be mowed once a year in the early Spring. Some raking and debris removal will be necessary, but how often will be determined by environmental factors.

During the first crucial years the garden will need to be weeded regularly. Watering may also be necessary in the first year. Clients should be prepared to do this themselves (though I am available to answer questions and do have a limited number of maintenance slots available.)

After the first year the landscape shouldn’t need to be watered. When the landscape is mature in 3-5 years the weeding will have tapered off. There may be times where you may want to limit the spread of certain plants to maintain a certain look, but that is an individual choice and one I can assist you with.

There is no such thing as a no-maintenance landscape, but (aside from the first couple of years) this is as low maintenance as it gets.

Do you do maintenance plans?

I give my clients the tools they need to do their own maintenance because I believe the more hands-on you are with your garden, the happier you will be with it.

If you are interested in routine maintenance, please contact me for details and rates.

Do you travel?

If you are outside my service area (listed on the Services page) but are interested in my services, do not hesitate to contact me.

Will you convert my large property to prairie?

At this time I’m only taking clients with small-medium sized residential and commercial spaces. If you have a very large suburban or rural space, you will need to look for restoration companies that will seed a prairie.

Where is your phone number on this website?

I try to limit the use of my phone number online because of spam calls. It’s still on my Google page, business cards, and on the Contact Me page.

Do you do talks or lectures?

I’m developing some! Contact me if you’re interested.

Are you hiring?

I am only looking for help with landscape installations at the moment but please feel free to reach out with your resume and cover letter as things can change fast!

My future goal is to turn this into a worker co-op where all employees are owners and decisions are made collectively. If you are interested in either doing some 1-2 day gig work for landscape installs or are interested in teaming up, contact me!