A Sustainable Oasis For Your Home.
If you are interested in sustainable practices and appreciate the natural world, let’s work together to create beautiful, outdoor spaces that bring joy while respecting the environment.
My Story
When I was four, I was enamored with the idea of making a wish while you blew puffs of Dandelion seeds into the wind. One afternoon as a surprise for my mother, I dug up Dandelions from the field next door and planted them throughout her garden. With the wisdom and patience only a mother can muster, she realized I needed my own patch of dirt and created a small garden in an old washbasin for her budding gardener. From that moment on, I’ve had dirt on my clothes and a trowel in my hand.
What I do
Gardens by La Voy specializes in complete residential landscape design and consultation, as well as individual projects like water features, raised beds, vegetable gardens, hanging baskets, espaliered trees, patio pots, front porches, bird habitats, children's gardens, and more. Careful supervision and management of an installation is an important aspect of the work I do.
My goal is to bring joy to those who inhabit outdoor spaces while respecting the beauty and strength of our natural environment. I believe the harmony found in nature can guide us to create beautiful, functional, outdoor spaces.
The process begins by listening to your desires for the proposed landscape: "How do you hope to enjoy and live in the space?" "What level of maintenance fits your lifestyle?" "What monetary investment seems comfortable?" The information you provide informs decisions about which natural and built elements will bring life to your proposed landscape.
Throughout the process every effort is made to embrace the use of organic materials, and sustainable methods are employed.
I want to work with you to make any space - large or small - feel like your own personal oasis. Depending on your needs and your budget, these are some of the ways I can work with you to create and maintain your garden.
Consultation: At any stage of gardening, you may need someone who will just come and speak with you about thoughts/ideas/plans you have, problems you are encountering, next steps in a stalled DIY project, plants that just won’t thrive, or plants that are out of control – anywhere you just need a bit of guidance to make your garden flourish.
Conceptual Design: Sometimes a simple preliminary design is all you need to get your juices flowing and give you the confidence to plunge in and get your hands dirty. After listening to your thoughts and ideas, I can draw up a conceptual plan (drawing without measurements or specific plant list) for your garden project and you can take it from there.
Perspective Planning: Once you’ve decided to move forward with your ideas, you may want a fully detailed plan that includes exact measurements, an inventory of existing plants, a complete list of the new plants to be installed, and a careful plan for placement of all the hardscape and greenscape elements.
Installation Oversight: Selecting people to do the installation and supervising that work are important components of realizing your ideas, and I am happy to provide those services if desired.
Continuing Support: Even the most seasoned gardeners sometimes need continuing support as the garden begins to grow and mature, and I can be there for follow-up at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and one year. Whether it’s guidance for training a vine, trimming an unruly hedge, pruning an ornamental tree, or adding annuals to the mix, we can schedule time for additional visits to make certain your garden is becoming what you imagined.
Service Fees: Your first 60-minute consultation is free. All services (subsequent consultations, research, drafting, installation, materials acquisition, etc.) after that point are billed at $100 per hour.
Where I am
Gardens by La Voy is located in Petaluma, and serves Napa, Sonoma, and Marin Counties.
Rooms & Patios
Gardens
Medium Spaces
Small Spaces
Large Spaces
Yards
My Favorite Projects
These projects were particularly satisfying as they each addressed a specific issue or need:
The espaliered trees offered a variety of apples and pears without taking the space of 6 large fruit trees. They brought the fruit within easy reach (even the kids could harvest) and produced an amount that could easily be consumed by a family (no rotten fruit littering the ground).
The beautiful native plants (Foxglove) came from seed and were very low cost. They brought height to the garden, provided food for the bees and hummingbirds, produced seeds that could easily be dispersed throughout the garden for the following year, were pest resistant, and took little to no care.
The shade garden filled a space where most ornamentals wouldn’t grow. The plants were perennial so returned each year, the ferns provided a light, airy feel, and the pot brought a splash of needed color.
* Espaliered trees bearing 6 types of apples and 6 types of pears.
* Beauty and use of native plants.
* Shade Garden.
Contact me.
It all begins with an idea. You may want to bring life into your office space or refresh the entrance to your home. On a larger scale, you may want to revitalize your backyard into a landscape you can enjoy.
Whatever your needs, I am here to help you realize your ideas in beautiful, sustainable ways.
✆ (707) - 753 - 1445