Nothing provides a better link between the vision of a professional landscape designer and a customer’s understanding of the project than a landscape design. Depending on the scale of your project and your overall budget, there are a few directions you may want to consider before moving forward with a design. First of all, ask yourself the following questions. How large of an area are you wanting to landscape? Will your budget allow you to complete the project all at once, or will you likely work through it in phases? Do you have trouble visualizing things from a 2 dimensional plan (or aerial) view? Are you interested in installing a variety of hardscapes in your landscape (i.e. patios, walkways, retaining walls, water features)? How familiar are you with plant varieties? Based on how you answer these questions, you may prefer to have the designer provide one (or more) of the following:
- Full Scale Design – often on a large 24″x36″ page (sometimes 18″x24″). Large designs like this are common when you either have a very large area or when you have various hardscapes that need to be installed. Also, if you intend to do the work in phases, many times a full scale design will be worth it’s weight in gold as you continue through the different phases.
- Small Design – typically an 8.5″x11″ page (normal printer paper). Given the smaller size, less detail can be conveyed for larger areas, but if you’re only interested in a portion of your yard (around the deck, the front foundation, a privacy planting, etc) sometimes it’s more cost effective to keep it small. If budget is a concern, a larger area can be designed this way. It will however require more on-site decisions to be made at the time of installation since the design is more conceptual in nature.
- Digital Photo Imaging / 3D Design – many designers have laid down their pencils and headed down the road of digital designs. The two options described above can be accomplished with either physical paper or on a computer screen. Given how much easier it is to make changes, I personally prefer to use software for a majority of my designs, though many still prefer to have a pencil in hand. Whatever the designers preference may be, technology has undoubtedly widened the playing field of possibilities with regards to how ideas can be presented. The most up-to-date software on the market allows landscapers to take a digital photo of the area and “superimpose” plant images, turf, walkways and walls. If you have a difficult time visualizing things or if you’re not familiar with plant varieties, this method may prove to be invaluable to you. We have software that will even allow us to transform that image or the plan itself into a 3D – rotatable image which allows you to see it from multiple angles!
- On-site Design – When it comes to landscape design there many factors that can be overlooked or forgotten from an office or drafting table. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve used notes, plot plans, photos or areal images to “return” to the site during the design process. These are all very useful tools that are (and should be) used regularly by any landscape designer or architect, however anyone will tell you that there’s nothing like being on-site. Because of that, we at Hyatt Landscaping, Inc. have perfected the art of on-site design. No, we don’t bring out a drafting board and set up shop like Bob Ross in your backyard…nor do we have a mobile design studio-in-a-van that we retreat to. After many of the same processes used to create a design (meetings, measurements, etc) we bring out a truck load of plant material and set it out the same way we would draw it on a page. This allows the customer a chance to step back and see exactly what the finished product will look like before we start digging holes.
Regardless of which direction you feel is best for your project, feel free to give us a call here at Hyatt Landscaping, Inc. We look forward to working with you to create the best possible landscape solution for your home.
Leave a Reply