Landscape Design

^ This is a newly planted cottage garden. This garden is planted with space in mind for the each plant to eventually drop seed and make new plants. The cottage garden is an old world design technique to mimic the mixed flower and herb gardens of the cottages in England.

^ The perennial border garden is one of the most natural and beautiful landscapes there is.  Looking across the picturesque landscape to see a border of colorful flowering perennials will dazzle the senses. Having a backdrop or border of herbaceous flowering perennials can create a spectacular feature within the landscape; not to mention, the wildlife it will attract.

^ This garden, currently being worked on in the photo, borders a house that was built in 1895.  The landscape has changed many times over the last 127 years. This is a restoration of the garden's current state. The shrubs have been professionally pruned, the soil has been amended with all natural topsoil and organic fertilizer and spring blooming annuals and perennials have been planted.  Restoring tired or overgrown gardens is a great way to bring new life into the landscape.

^ By following simple guidelines you can have your garden certified as a "wildlife habitate" and will receive a decorative sign to display. The goal with certification of habitat is to create and install resources for wildlife such as bees, birds, butterflies, frogs/toads and more. Habitat is more than just plants, it's a source of water, food, shelter and nesting sites; all using
sustainable practices. By adding pollinator and butterfly friendly plants, you will help to increase the wildlife population.

^ A variety of flowering plants will attract many pollinators. Purple Leaf will create an effective garden design for pollinators by planting a succession of blooms from early spring untill late fall. The goal is to have a continuous source of nectar and pollen. The more variety the better! Many native plants are a necessity for our native bees, butterflies and other insects.

^ The goal of every living organism, including plants, is to create offspring for the next generation. Color is one of the ways plants attract wildlife. As for landscape design, color creates interest and diversity. Plants offer many colors in many ways including: flower buds, petals, seed heads, fruits, stems, leaves, and bark. It is important to me that the garden is filled with color. Texture is the next way to add diversity and interest to the landscape. Plants offer many types of textures including: leaf shape, leaf variegation/contrast, stem size/thickness, bark character, flower size/shape, and fruit size/shape. Finally, shape comes into play when planting annuals, herbaceous perennials and woody shrubs and/or trees.  There are both nature-made and man-made shapes. Find out more about this in the Professional Pruning section.