Finding a Landscape Architect
Engaging a landscape architect early in the design and build process is a good idea. Not only are landscaping lead times often quite long, but many cities require driveways and grass to be in place before they will issue a Certificate of Occupancy, allowing you to live in your beautiful new home. This is certainly true for Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills.
Finding a landscape architect for your custom home requires a similar process to identifying the rest of your design team. In many cases, the simplest solution will be to ask your builder to recommend landscape architects who regularly complete high-quality designs at your price range and scale, and who have the skill set to execute your specific ideas.
You could also try to find one yourself – you’ll probably see a great many yard signs for different landscaping companies as you drive around the neighborhood or when you search online. The challenge is to identify which of these are genuine landscape architects and which are mostly maintenance companies who’ll do some planting for you if you know where you want it to go. Once again, online reviews are important, but word-of-mouth recommendations in your local area are more helpful.
A good landscape architect will begin the process when your site plan and house design is underway. They will ascertain what’s most important to you:
- Are you looking for a pool and pool house?
- Do you need designated sports areas?
- How much time do you want to spend living outdoors in the warmer months?
- How important is shade versus sun?
- Are you looking for an elaborately landscaped space or something a little lower maintenance?
They will use the architectural drawings, your requirements and existing natural features to design a landscape that frames the house. Many will have the technology to generate renderings of your home and surrounding landscaping that will really make you excited about what lies ahead.
Finding the right landscape architect is important. Poor landscape design may overshadow or even detract from the design of your home. Good landscape design will frame and accentuate the beauty of your finished home design.
August 4, 2021.
Coming in September … breaking ground.