Residential Design
10 Reasons to Hire a Landscape Architect
ASLA 2014 Honor Award, Residential
Category, Vineyard Retreat, Scott Lewis Landscape Architecture/ image: Matthew
Millman Photography
1. Landscape architects will increase the value of your
home. Hiring a landscape architect is one of the best
investments for your home, adding as much as 15 percent to its value
over comparable houses. A landscape architect is well equipped to design an outdoor living
space that will not only add value, but also extend your
living space while allowing you to enjoy all that nature has to offer. Arbors, installed seating, fountains, fire pits/fireplaces,
patios, and even outdoor kitchens can create a space that is
both inviting and environmentally sustainable. And research from Virginia Tech shows that landscapes
literally grow in value over time, while traditional home additions or remodels
start to lose value the minute the dust settles.
ASLA 2014 Honor Award, Residential Category, Hill
Country Prospect, Studio Outside Landscape Architects / image: Arlen Kennedy
Photography and Robert Reck Photography
2. Landscape
architects have a plan. A big advantage of hiring landscape architects is that
they’re trained to think about landscapes as systems. They will assess your property’s problem areas as well as
possibilities and create a solid plan that addresses both the big picture and
exact details of how your landscape will look. They will also help you select
the perfect materials, styles, textures, and colors for your landscape project.
A landscape architect will handle all the details, saving you time and stress.
2014 ASLA Honor Award, Residential Category, City House
in a Garden, McKay Landscape Architects / image: McKay Landscape Architects
3. Landscape architects design low-maintenance gardens featuring
beautiful native plants. For those who are looking for low-maintenance gardens,
native plants are the way to go—and a landscape architect will incorporate them
into your landscape design. Native plants reduce water costs and often reduce
chemical applications, and insects like bumble bees and butterflies flourish
among them. One trend that relies on native plants is called xeriscaping, which
reduces the need for supplemental watering or irrigation.
2015 ASLA Honor
Award, Residential Category, West Texas Ranch, Ten Eyck Landscape Architects,
Inc. / image: Terry Moore, Christine Ten Eyck, Trish Bigler
4. Landscape architects know where to place trees to lower
energy bills. The proper placement of trees and large shrubs can actually
lower energy bills by reducing heating and cooling costs, and a knowledgeable
landscape architect knows exactly where they should be placed.
2014 ASLA Honor
Award, Residential Category, City House in a Garden, McKay Landscape Architects
/ image: Linda Oyama Bryan
5. Landscape architects incorporate permeable
paving. Permeable paving can offer solutions for driveway flooding or just add
beauty to patios and sidewalks, while reducing runoff and encouraging
groundwater recharge. A landscape architect will integrate permeable paving
into your home landscape.
ASLA 2014 Honor
Award, Residential Category, Vineyard Retreat, Scott Lewis Landscape
Architecture / image: Matthew Millman Photography
6. Landscape architects design beautiful rain gardens. A landscape
architect will create a properly-placed rain garden for backyards that might
experience seasonal flooding. Rain gardens also create a habitat for birds and
beneficial insects. These gardens help to filter rainwater runoff away from
sidewalks and lawns and allow the water to infiltrate back into the ground.
They are more attractive than a storm drain or French drain.
ASLA 2014 Award of
Excellence, Residential Category, Woodland Rain Gardens, Jeffrey Carbo
Landscape Architects / image: Rebecca A. O’Neal and Jeffrey Carbo Landscape
Architects
7. Landscape architects design natural swimming pools. Unlike the
aquamarine-colored pools of the past, a natural pool looks and sometimes acts
like a natural pond, but also offers all the benefits of a chlorinated pool
with less maintenance and harsh chemicals. A landscape architect will work with
you to create a beautiful, all-natural backyard pool.
ASLA 2010 Honor
Award, Residential Category, Bridle Road Residence, Rees Roberts & Partners
/ image: Scott Frances
8. Landscape architects can devise the perfect drip
irrigation system. Drip irrigation systems water plants right at the root and
serve as an efficient alternative to sprinkler systems. But an incorrectly-installed
irrigation system can not only cost extra dollars on a monthly water bill, but
it can also kill all of the new plants it’s meant to be helping. Over-watering
is a huge problem in many residential landscapes and one that can be easily
avoided by hiring a landscape. Be sure to get a timer for maximum
effectiveness.
9. Landscape
architects offer expertise from start to finish. Landscape
architects will remain involved with the construction and follow through. What
the homeowner may consider a long weekend project might actually take weeks.
10. Landscape
architects will design a landscape you will love. Landscape
architects will deliver a finished project that you will love but also comply
with regulations and codes. It will be a special place that you and your family
and friends will enjoy for years to come.
ASLA 2014 Honor Award, Residential Category, Vineyard Retreat, Scott
Lewis Landscape Architecture / image: Matthew Millman Photography