Landscape Design and Consultations, Austin
Are you tired of looking at your yard not knowing where to begin? Let me give you 10 great reasons to call me for a landscape design or consultation.
1) Lawn Care
Whether you want to remove your lawn completely or learn why your lawn never seems to be happy, I can help you come up with a solution, watering schedule and fertilization.
2. Plant selection
From full sun to full shade I know plants. Low water, low maintenance, native and adapted plants and trees are my specialty. I can also teach you how and when to trim.
3. Outdoor living space
Allow me to create additional living spaces with clever solutions including stone options and installation details.
4. Privacy
Have a neighbor you would prefer not to see, or a noise issue that makes being outside unpleasant? Let me show you some plant and design selections that can address your needs with style.
5. Trees
Oak Wilt is epidemic in our area so I teach you how to properly trim Oaks and all trees, as well as when to do it.
6. Water conservation
We all have to do our part and I provide valuable money-saving information on water conserving plants, designs and rain barrels.
7. Organic pest control and
fertilization
I am certified in organic gardening and have. Whole host of great ways to control or improve just about everything. Why use chemicals when there are organic solutions to almost every problem?
8. Design
With my Landscape Consultation, I will teach you to design your own space using basic measurements and the plant selection we compile during our visit. (I can also design your space for you)
9. You can do it yourself or
take educated bids
If you are the type of person who really prefers to do it yourself and just need some direction, a landscape consult is a perfect place to start. I give you step by step instruction including timing and where to purchase the materials you will need. If you plan to have the work done or take bids, you still need to know what you are biding on and what you truly need. An educated consumer is a savvy consumer. My job is to talk you out of “up sells” and unnecessary materials by showing you “all” of your options, not just the most profitable ones for me.
10. I can save you thousands
in costly mistakes
Lastly, my landscape designs and consultation aren’t to “upsell” you. My only goal is to educate you on your landscape. I help you stay in your budget, save money on choosing the wrong plants and materials and offer alternatives to costly hardscape finishes.
Before a consultation and design…
Before, you cannot see the huge porch and the windows have no natural light from the crowded, over sized bushes.
After the consultation and full design
After. Open, inviting, updated! Ready to enjoy, or sell for a premium.
Before: Desolate post-construction, outdated landscape in serious need of some love.
After: A Hill Country landscape indicative of the architectural aspects of the home and the beautiful Texas Hill Country topography.
Leader limestone saw cut stepping stones.
For the best result, I use only native and adapted plants for our Central Texas planting zones 8a/b. You need to add loads of compost and mulch and ultimately, you need to know how to care for your plants properly so you are set for success.
Best of all, Consultations are really fun and informative. They should be required for every home owner! I provide Online Landscape Consultations through Zoom for $225 for Cedar Park, Leander, Round Rock, Pflugerville, Austin, Buda, San Marcos, Driftwood, Wimberly, Kyle or anywhere in Hardiness Zone 8 a/b.
Depending on your area, an in person consultation is $325-$375 for a 30 minute educational “walk and talk”. This service is followed up by a concept sketch, an edited plant list and information packet for you to use throughout your space.
Full Landscape Design
In the end, should we determine that a full Landscape Desig is needed, the consultation cost goes towards the cost of a detailed sketch or design. The average bed design ranges from $375-500 (for small or builders beds and a consultation) and a full, in color design ranges from $750 to $2000. Please check my list of services for more information.
Ultimately, a design consultation is a conceptual idea or plan of action with a write up of the details to include my professional recommendations for your property. Additionally, you will receive an edited plant list for your property and sunlight needs.
You will also receive a list of organic protocols, watering instructions, general lawn and tree care, and planting instructions. Examples of recommended hardscape materials are also provided.
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So you know, Landscape consults are scheduled Monday – Friday mornings from 9:00 to noon. My afternoons are scheduled for drawing. If you would like to contact me to schedule your online or in-person landscape consultation, please send me an email and photos of your space to lisalapaso@gmail.com.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Lisa LaPaso
Lisa’s Landscape and Design
“Saving the Planet One Yard at a Time”
Beneficial Bugs “Get to know your friends”
Lizards, frogs and many beneficial insect eat the destructive pests in your garden. You need to be able to recognize who is who…Amphibians are hyper sensitive to chemicals so always use organics whenever possible.
Beneficial insects play a very important role in our biological warfare. One of the best reasons to employ the bug world to fight your pest fights is that chemical insecticides in the form of a broad spray or granular broadcast kill the good guys and can make matters worse. It has also been shown that destructive insects are actually becoming immune to chemical pesticides do to the gross over use in tremendous volume, which is obviously counterproductive in a large number of ways. Chemicals destroy not just the pests, but people, water and soil too. It is very important to get to know your friends and foes in the garden. When you know who is actually working for you, you can make better choices in the way you tackle a potential pest problem. For example, spraying a pesticide over a large area kills your bees, lady bugs, spiders, lizards and any other soft bodies creature who comes in contact with it. Do you really want your children and pets around that? Best part is (not really the best part…being facetious) is that when the destruction is done on land, it dissipates into the air as well…lose, lose.
You can order many bugs online to add to your arsenal, and others like Ladybugs, beneficial Nematodes and Praying Mantis can be purchased at local nurseries and released in your yard. (How cool is that!) You can also order them online at The Bug Lady and some natural pesticide at Planet Natural online. Many of your local nurseries will carry much of this as well so always support your local business whenever possible and if they do not carry these items, ask them to do so!
Lady bugs eat Aphids, in fact, an adult Ladybug can eat up to 5000 Aphids in its lifetime. While you may easily recognize a
These are the Aphids being munched on by Lady Bug Larvae…This is why it is important to know who your allies are!
lovely Lady Beetle, you may not recognize its eggs that are attached to the bottom of a leave in a yellow egg cluster, or that it’s larvae, that can eat a good amount of Aphids themselves, looks like a tiny ugly alligator (photo right). This is why it so important to know who your allies are.
One example of a pest or visitor I don’t mind sharing with is a caterpillar that will some day be a butterfly. Swallow Tails (caterpillar shown below) love dill and every year I plant plenty so they can have their fill. However, the Tomato Horn Worm is another story. While the Horn Worm will become a Sphinx Moth (Hummingbird Moth) they are voracious and should be controlled as they can eat an entire tomato plant or Penta overnight. I choose the pick and flick method. Yes, it is just how it sounds, I pick them off the plant and flick them off my property, or I escort them down the road to a field away from my house if my son catches me as he believes you should find them a new home ( and he is right), but you may choose to employ the Trichogramma Wasp. This wasp lays it eggs in the caterpillars and many other pests and when the eggs hatch, they feast on the host. Pretty gross really, but after you have lost enough food to the critters…it feels more like tit-for-tat ;-/ The variety of wasp depends on your location and you can ask for the ones for your area when you order them.
I will be a beautiful Black Swallowtail one day. Please protect me so I can pollinate your flowers later.
Now maybe you’re not the buying bugs type, so at the very least you need to get to know who your friends are. There is a list of beneficial bugs you can find on-line, there are plenty of books, and you can find a short list of both good and bad bugs on a handy laminated single page you can buy at any bookstore for about $6. You can keep the page somewhere convenient and when you see a bug you don’t recognize, you can identify if it is a friend or a foe. If it is a friend, thank him for his kindness ;-), if it is a foe, you will know who it is and you can learn how to attack it. (organically of course )
Now, say you have found a huge breakout of Aphids, (which by the way can be controlled by a hard spray of water from the hose) you can get your Lady Beetles and set them free on that plant/plants, and they will go right to work. If it is a pest you identify but are unable to locate a beneficial bug to “sick on it”, you can be sure your Praying Mantis will take on the job. They are ravenous and vicious and while they will make good work on the bad bugs, they aren’t choosy and will eat anything in their way, including good bugs or her partners head after she has mated. Ugh
However, if you locate a certain bug and realize that the infestation is too great and or aren’t going to purchase bugs, and you think you need to rely on chemical warfare, than you will know what you are treating and can treat only the affected plants, not the whole yard. You begin of course with organics, but if the problem persists, you go to the chemicals as a last resort. There truly is an organic remedy for just about everything, so taking a daily stroll through the garden is not only therapeutic, but helps you see there is a problem before it is too big for an organic solution.
If you are on Facebook, please ck out my” Lisa’s Landscape & Design” Page and by pressing the “like” button you will get daily updates about all sorts of great info including pics of beneficial bugs and what they are hungry for. Here is also a list of the good guys from the Mater Gardeners website.
Happy Gardening !!
Lisa LaPaso
Lisa’s Landscape & Design (“like” me on Facebook!) 
“Saving the Planet One Yard at a Time”
Check me out of YouTube!
White Mistflower
White Mistflower, fragrant, sun to shade, low water, deer resistant.
One of my favorite Texas native plants is the for so many reasons Fragrant White Mistflower. Aptly named for its beautiful fragrance and also known as White Mistflower, Shrubby Boneset, or Havana Snakeroot. It’s an interesting plant with furry white flowers and deep green leaves that is semi evergreen and quite interesting in the landscape.
Easy Care
Super low water and little to no maintenance, it’s a great choice from sun to shade. Growing to 3-6’ tall and 2-3’ wide, it’s a beautiful plant on its own or planted as a grouping.
White Mistflower Boneset
Incredibly Fragrant
White Mistflower blooms a couple times from late summer to fall. The blooms start with these little buds that eventually become prolific furry flower sets that are very aromatic.
Covering the entire shrub, the showy white flowers make a huge display of color against interesting green foliage. This is an excellent choice for part sun to shade gardens and does very well in sun with a little more help.
Loved by Bees, Hummingbirds and Butterflies
This deer resistant plant is unique from flower to stem. It’s a major attraction for butterflies and native bees and the fragrance is an excellent addition to any patio or seating area.
Great Addition to any Garden
A beautiful, mounding background to a variety of color or shades of green, the textural interest and unique shape of the leaves stand out in any landscape.This plant is great as specimen or planted in mass.
If you would like help finding native and adapted plants and trees for the Central Texas landscape, contact me for an educational Consultation, or complete Landscape Deisgn at Lisalapaso@gmail.com. I specialize in xerophytic gardens that make the most of layering plants and trees instead of just rock and cactus.
Lisa LaPaso
Lisa’s Landscape and Design
”Saving the Planet One Yard at a Time’
Culinary Gardens Austin
It’s Easier Than You Think
What do all of these beautiful dishes (above) have in common? Everything fresh came from my garden. Culinary gardens can either be in a raised bed or among the perennial plants, but in either case the key to success is the proper plant selection and lots of compost. You can get a lot of great food with minimal efforts if you know what to grow and when.
Edible landscapes Austin
What do both of these gardens have in common? Above, on the left is onions, peppers, grapes, peaches, and mint. Below from left to right, Pineapple guava, Kiefer fruiting pear, Wonderful pomegranate tree and Methley plum, in addition to edible and medicinal perennial plants and ground covers. Looking at this landscape you would never know there’s food here. The goal is to incorporate edible plantings with your perennial garden for seasonal interest.
River rock in grass with edible borders.
Plant With Purpose
If the main goal is to plant annual or seasonal foods, you might choose plants like okra, tomatoes, peppers and assorted herbs and seasonal fruit. Plants like blackberries take up a decent amount of room with only a springtime fruit set. If this is a favorite of yours by all means take up the room for it, but if space is limited, do your homework on mature size and fruit timing so you can plan for food all year and make the most space for the produce and herbs you will use the most.
Edible and culinary landscapes are becoming more and more popular for good reason. Not only are prices more concerning than ever but it’s also nice to know where the food comes from, that it’s organic and what it’s grown in. Simple ingredients below like basil, tomatoes peppers and onions can be pricey when buying organic but they’re a fraction of the price to grow.
Bee Creative
A big part of the edible landscape is encouraging pollinators to spread the love throughout the space. The combination of food and flowers is not only beautiful, but beneficial.
Lisa lapaso, Lisa’s landscape, austin
Don’t Skimp on The Soil
raised bed soil is pricey for a reason. It’s quality, organic and nutrient rich. Plants can’t pull nutrients they need from soil that hasn’t been amended because they can’t walk around the yard gathering what they need. They have to rely on you for organic fertilizer, compost and soil depth for healthy plants and roots.
Here are just some of the many foods, herb and medicinal plants that do beautifully in the Central Texas landscape.
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- Turks Cap, Lisa LaPaso
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- American beauty berry
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- Lisa LaPaso designer Aloe Vera
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- Bee Balm
Think Outside the Box
Change the idea of what you consider to be an edible or culinary garden. While you can certainly use raised bed to grow food, you can also grow a whole lot of evergreen and annual food in the existing landscape to provide shade, sustenance and texture that just happens to also be delicious.
This is one of my herb, fruit and veggie beds and I have barrels on either side for easy access.
This raised bed (above ) is not your typical food bed. Inside this space there is a plum tree, tomatoes, peppers, herbs of all kinds, raspberries, cantaloupe, roses and flowers for pollinators.
This view is over 70% edible plants and trees
Start small and add on with success. Use only organic soil and fertilizer in and around food beds. If you choose to use a raised bed planter, be sure it is food grade and not treated wood. Make sure the adjacent beds and lawn are also treated with organic protocols and mulch them well for water absorption. Be careful with the timing for best results and here is a chart that will help with when is the best time for planting.
Contact Me for Help!
If you’d like help with an edible Landscape Design or educational Consultation, contact me at Lisalapaso@gmail.com
Lisa LaPaso
Lisa’s Landscape and Design
“Saving the Planet One Yard at a Time”
Sandy Loam, the Red Death
Have you ever wondered what that orangish, sandy dirt is that your home builders lay out before the closing of your home? That mushy when wet / concrete when dry substance is called Sandy Loam but us Master Gardeners refer to it as “Red Death”.
Poor soil quality, Lisa’s landscape, Austin
Quality is Everything
Sandy Loam is a super cheap dirt (notice I didn’t say soil) that is often used by builders and landscapers as bed fill and property grading. The reason it is cheap is obvious and that is because this type of red loam is pretty much good for nothing. Filling your raised beds with sandy loam is equivalent to adding bags of sand. We live a an alkaline environment with limestone and clay so while a little bit of sand can help break those down and retain moisture, too much sand is never a good thing unless you’re at the beach.
If you are trying to repair a yard already filled with sandy loam, my best suggestion is to purchase large amounts of compost and till it into your soil to integrate the two and allow them to break down the clay while adding nutrients. This allows the sand to act as drainage as it is intended, not to mention add much needed nutrients. Sandy Loam (unlike chocolate loam) is deficient in nutrients and in a soil with good drainage, sand does not hold water making plants planted require more, it is also a runoff nightmare.
Know the Difference
Sandy loam is made up of 60% sand, clay and silt. Now, as most of us in the Austin and surrounding areas have compaction and drainage issues, loam stays wet too long after a rain for native plants and dries like concrete in the heat. Chocolate loam is not much better unless it’s used beneath sod as it is a combination of top soil, 50% sand and clay. Again…we have clay and rocks in our soil already so how much clay and rock do plants need?
Top soil is a term meaning the top 12 or so inches of the native soil depending on where you live. That will be the darkest richest soil because it has the benefits from decomposition. To amend this top layer of soil, we need to find a good combination of soil, sand or mineral rock and compost, so where you purchase your materials can be a world of difference. Be sure to ask the right questions and look at the color of the soil you are purchasing. If the soil is dark, falls apart easily but not too sandy you are probably on the right track.
Dark, nutrient rich soil is another area that most “Lawnscapers” do not understand. That orange dirt they paid $10 bucks for may have made them a profit, but it just cost you and your landscape a fortune. Compost can save the world!
Simplify
The first thing I do with every property I work on is to bring in yards and yards of compost. Even if it’s applied as a top layer it will integrate as plants and trees are installed. Eventually, as seasonal applications of compost and shredded mulch are made (and no chemicals are used), your soil will look like the picture above. When I hold my soil tightly in my fist it makes a ball but when I open my fist and touch the ball gently it falls right apart. This is the consistency you are seeking and it should look like a rich chocolate cake.
These are excellent tools for hand tilling without compaction. If you have inherited sandy loam from your builder or uneducated landscaper, simply add compost and mulch generously each spring and fall, then continue to add compost whenever you plant. If you are preparing new beds, never allow your landscaper or lawnscaper to add sandy loams to your beds. Insist on quality raised bed (with proper amounts of sand)or garden soil mixes and be willing to pay for it, or you’ll pay dearly later.
Landscape design, lisa lapaso
if you’d like more valuable information on how to care for your lawn, beds and plants, contact me for an educational consultation!
Lisa LaPaso
Lisa’s Landscape and Design
“Saving the Planet One Yard at a Time”
Weeds Blow!
While I do appreciate that a weed is simply a plant in an undesirable location, I also understand the chore that comes with them. I never knew what a weed problem was until I moved to a tract of land that was previously a wild space and chemical treated farmland. Acres of open space for weeds to blow and I was in the middle of it.
Compost
The first thing I knew I had to do was to amend the soil. Weeds prosper in poor soil so amending it was a benefit. Compost is a chemical chelate, it breaks down into food for new trees, plants and lawn and retains moisture.
Your soil should be rich, dark and luxurious. That’s right, I said luxurious.
Plant an Ecosystem
Keep your beds full. The fuller your plant beds are with plant material the less chance weeds have to grow. Native plants and trees take up real estate in beds blocking light and room for weeds to grow.
Keep Beds Mulched for Better Weed Control
Keep a minimum of 4″ of mulch in your beds. Compost and mulch every spring, and again in the fall. Shredded natural colored hardwood mulch is the best choice for beds. As previously mentions, these act as a weed preventative, helps with water retention and protects the compost from being burned up before it can do the most good.
Micorrizae in the mulch
Mulch can also keep the temperature of the ground a little cooler and prevents cracking of foundations when placed around a home. Be sure however, to allow at least 4-6″ of space from mulch to foundation to prevent termite damage.
Use a Plastic Liner Beneath Rock
The river rock path (above) is an excellent way to address drainage, function and compaction; they are still maintenance in the way of weeds. I recommend river rock sidewalks have a 4-6mil painters plastic liner and landscape pins attaching the plastic beneath the river rock anywhere there are no large plants or trees such as the space above. Only use landscape fabric beneath rock when you have large plants or trees whose roots could be covering access to mature plants. If possible simple cut large holes in the plastic allowing for water to each plant in the beds, or use fabric and expect to replace it in about two years when the weeds have penetrated it like a spaghetti strainer.
Weed fabric after a few years in the shade…
NEVER Use Chemical Weed Killers
Fabric lasts about 3 years in our heat and once the fabric has been compromised, the swearing and desperation starts which typically looks a lot like a job for Round Up. You’d be WRONG! Round up is NEVER the answer to anything but more disease and ecological devastation so don’t use rock if you’re not going to hand weed or use an organic weed killer.
Buy A Quality Weed Popper Tool
Weeds are the enemy when we are seeking heathy lawns and flower beds. Most weeds are easiest to pull right after a rain or the day of irrigation. This is the best time to get roots and all because the plant is nice and plump and not so easily detached from the root. Weed poppers like these can be great tools for the job.
Embrace The Weeds!
Sometimes our lawn is the weed. Sods like Bermuda are invasive sods that send out runners and stolons that create more plants and so on. However, if your lawn consists of mostly weeds that aren’t prickly and stay evergreen, you have the best lawn going. Weed lawns are natures carpet so if you’re tired of fighting, just join em. Mow weekly and you’ll have a super drought tolerant ground cover of native and adapted plants that are perfectly happy in your space.
Consistency Is Key
Consistently making a plan to remove weeds as they come in is the best way irradiate the problem. Make a point every other Saturday morning or Tuesday evening (but you have to pick a day) to get out there and pull for 15 minutes and you should have things well in control.
Buy a quality weed popper and mow often to keep new plants at bay. Once they go to seed, you’ve got 99 problems and weeds are one of them.
Never Allow Weeds to go to seed
Immediately after flowering, weeds go into seed production. Never let your lawn or bed weeds go to seed (above). Remember that weeds blow and once you start that cycle it can take years to correct. Be sure to rinse your lawn mower after each mow to rinse off weed seed. If you have a service, ask if they have a protocol to avoid this. Otherwise, theyre bringing every seed and disease they mowed over from all the other yards they service.
Consider It Therapy
Finally, don’t get frustrated. Removing weeds can be a great form of therapy. Frankly, I take it rather personally and I’ve been known to kick the heads off of a few after a long day in traffic. Like bad thoughts, they will take over if you let them. Here’sHere’s some more information to get you started.
Lisa LaPaso
Lisa’s Landscape & Design
“Saving the Planet One Yard at a Time”
Creating Peace In Our Landscape
I think everyone’s acutely aware of what’s happening in the world around us. And while I think it’s important to stay informed, it’s also important for us to stay grounded and give our heads time to recuperate from the harmful noise in the background. Creating some of that peace in our landscape is a lot easier than you may think.
Gardening For Purpose
For centuries landscapes have been used for food, flowers, art and sustenance. This practice is also one of mindfulness that many times comes in the form of therapy.
What constitutes therapy is very different for each individual. To me, working in the garden while getting a little exercise and sunshine is delightful, to others that may sound like work. This is where balance comes to play.
Start Small
The first consideration when creating a peaceful garden space is to just determine how much time you wish to spend in it. Prioritizing for time spent at work on flower and food, versus how much time you’ll spend at play. Creating a low maintenance, therapeutic garden is as simple as determining what is most important to you.
Water is the Sound of Tranquility
Water features such as ponds are certainly more maintenance, but the tranquility and sound buffer they provide are well worth the effort for a small feature.
Disappearing water features are very popular for their low maintenance and safety with small children and animals.
The custom feature below demonstrates how creative you can be with a myriad of vessels and rocks.
Make The Most Of Any View
To find peace in our landscape choose a favorite focal point or several, and play it up whenever possible.
Even the most intimate spaces can provide a peaceful place to rest and meditate. Fragrance and color are strong memory cues. Moving water can guide the neuronal waves that create a calming effect through white noise. A pleasant view is a recalibration tool that can boost your mood and improve your mental health.
Color And Texture
Surround yourself with your favorite colors, an abundance of flowers or an evergreen planting with interesting textures. Always choose native and adapted plants for low maintenance and low water needs.
Statuary, religious symbols and inspiring signs or plaques can also be a reminder of what’s most important.
Your special place should be a distraction from the busy world. It should replenish and ground you with a peace that only nature can provide. Rather it’s a few pots next to a bench or an entire landscape of your favorite plants and trees, start somewhere and start now.
If you’d like help with creative design and low water landscape ideas, contact me for a consultation or complete landscape design for Austin and the surrounding area.
May peace be with you,
Lisa LaPaso
Lisa’s Landscape & Design
”Saving the Planet One Yard at a Time”