When we get 3 weeks of snow (like we did last winter) you just might start thinking about alternatives to shoveling snow off your driveway.

Could a snow melting mat system, installed under your driveway, be the solution?

Maybe. 

Exciting things are happening in landscapes all over. Maybe you have seen them in your neighborhood, or maybe you will be the one introducing them to your neighbors.

What trends should you be on the look for? Here in Portland there are at least three that will continue to gain steam in 2018:

Does guilt keep you from doing what you know you need to do- remove unwanted plants from your garden? Do you just keep adding new plants, creating new problems and regrets?

Constant addition to a garden usually results in chaos and death (plant related, so not that serious.) At times the best solution is to remove a plant. When should you seriously consider pulling a plant?

What can you replace your lawn with? There are a ton of lawn alternatives, and I am going to list all the ones (I can think of) that work well here in Portland. All the options on my list meet these criteria:

In many ways this was a typical Ross NW Watergardens project. The client wanted a landscape that was:

And retaining walls too. See how we are using this ancient art in very modern landscapes!

You have a proposal from us, which includes a payment schedule. The structure is pretty straight forward, but you may have questions. Hopefully this post will answer them

You like contemporary landscape design. You picture a garden influenced by modernism, maybe even minimalism. But your home is decidedly not modern. 

Should you forge ahead? Yes. Your landscape does not have to be held hostage to your home's style. Here are 5 guidelines to keep in mind:

You have a lawn and it is lousy. Full of weeds, lots of thatch, bare dirt, lumps.... I haven't even seen your lawn but I know what it looks like.

Good news:

Fixing your Portland area lawn is less work than you think it is. All you need is a lawn mower, possibly a wheelbarrow, and these instructions.

Ross NW Watergardens purchased a landscape maintenance company in 2011, and has enjoyed caring for hundreds of lawns and landscapes in the years since.

However, starting July 17th we will no longer be doing any residential landscape maintenance. If we have been caring for your lawn, you may wonder why.