• How much does a consultation cost?
  • $70 per hour
• How much does a design cost?
  • Also $70 per hour. Depending on the lot size and design challenges, a design usually takes between 8 and 30 hours.
• I want to do my own installation. Can I still get a consultation?
  • Yes, feel free to carry out the design yourself, or hire someone else to do it.  However, we strive to keep our installation and maintenance costs affordable, and it is best to build a lasting relationship so we can continue to work with your landscape as it grows.
• What can I expect from my consultation?
  • First we will discuss your lifestyle, what you hope to get from your garden, what is on your grocery list that we can grow here, etc.  Then I will survey the property, looking for sun exposure, wind exposure, and taking soil samples to determine the acidity and available nutrients.  
  • If possible, I would like to know what patterns you have noticed about the wildlife around you – from what directions should we expect deer or rabbits to come looking for a snack?
  • After the survey, I will draw up a design detailing where to locate trees, shrubs, and garden beds, as well as composting, irrigation, pest control
• What is regenerative landscaping?
  • I define regenerative landscaping as any landscape that adds nutrients to the soil, rather than extracting them.  The natural feel of these landscapes can also be considered regenerative to humans, both mentally and emotionally.
• What is permaculture?
  • Permaculture is a design philosophy that emphasizes observing patterns in nature and building healthy relationships between systems.  It was originally called “permanent agriculture” until it became clear that it was not just agriculture that needed adjusting, but our culture as a whole.  Read more here: 
• How does regenerative landscaping help the environment?
  • By allowing organic material to decompose, nutrients are made available for new life to form and carbon is captured in the soil, thereby reducing greenhouse gasses.  An abundance of plant life also helps prevent water runoff and erosion, and, of course, provides food and habitat for wildlife.
• Is regenerative landscaping easy to maintain?
  • If you don’t mind what it looks like, super easy!  Just leave your plants to grow and die on their own, and the soil will naturally begin building nutrients. Our specialty is to make regenerative practices look appealing, for example by grinding dead leaves and sticks to make our own mulch.
• What are the benefits of planting native plants?
  • Native species have been growing together for thousands, if not millions of years.  Each ecosystem is made of organisms specially evolved to both compete and cooperate with each other.  New organisms may be introduced to an ecosystem, but they will not find much success unless that ecosystem has recently been disturbed.  
  • Unfortunately, humans have recently begun doing exactly that – cutting down forests and replacing them with roads and suburbs, while also spreading the seeds of exotic plants, both intentionally and by accident.  This sudden change to the local environment is havoc for the birds, insects, mammals, reptiles and amphibians that used to make this area their home.
  • So we gotta plant more native plants, ya dig?
• What are the benefits of composting?
  • According to the EPA, compost improves the structure and health of your soil by adding organic matter, it helps the soil retain moisture and nutrients, it attracts beneficial organisms to the soil and reduces the need for pesticides and fertilizers, reduces the potential for soil erosion, sequesters carbon in the soil, and builds resilience to the impacts of climate change.
• What are the benefits of edible landscapes?
  • By growing food, spices, or anything else at home, we can reduce the farmland required to provide for our needs.  Less land used for agriculture means more land that is free to remain a truly undisturbed ecosystem.
• What is soil microbiology?
  • Maintaining soil health is mostly a matter of maintaining suitable habitat for the myriad of creatures that comprise the soil food web. This can be accomplished by disturbing the soil as little as possible, growing as many different species of plants as practical, keeping living plants in the soil as often as possible, and keeping the soil covered all the time.

• Will the wildlife that we attract be dangerous?
  • Most of the wildlife is harmless, and Jake is happy to relocate any black snakes that are scaring people.  However, any wildlife that poses a threat (like the venomous copperhead snake) should be reported to animal control.  Most dangerous animals are eradicated from areas that humans live in.
• What if the deer eat everything I try to grow?
  • Deer overpopulation can be a real problem in suburban areas.  One solution is to leave a certain area for the deer to graze, and plant a deer resistant hedge to guide them away from the real prize that is your vegetable bed.
• “Will the compost smell terrible?”
  • With our help, a good compost design will keep the smell contained.
• “Will the HOA be ok with this”
  • They can fight me!  Just kidding, we will work within any HOA restrictions and do our best to make healthy soil where we can.
• “What if I travel a lot?”
  • We can set up an automatic irrigation system to grow huge vegetables even while you are away.  Alternatively, we can set up drought tolerant systems and simply expect a smaller harvest.
• “What if my soil is hard?”
  • Plants with deep tap roots such as dandelions and daikon radishes can break through compacted soil, this is often the first step in restoring a suffering landscape.