Landscape Design Firms

With landscape design firms like Exterior Worlds, our palette and canvas is the Houston landscape. We are professionals trained in principles of design who are skilled in horticulture and construction techniques. For example, our expert design teams have adroit use of color, as shown by the use of primary, secondary, tertiary and complementary colors in design plans. Adding color to a landscape design communicates interest, depth and texture. Care is taken not to overuse color, however, since it can result in a garish, overly busy plan that could even detract from the design. We further demonstrate our color expertise not only with plant choices but in material choices as well, ones that properly accentuate your home.

Another example of the tools that we have at our disposal is the design principle of line. Within a landscape design, lines dictate space and style. Biomorphic lines, with their organic shapes that mimic natural environments, offer possibility, exploration and discovery. When circles and ellipses overlap and yield to each other, the sharing of space is conveyed. Arcs, either circular or elliptical, provide an occasion to pause or gather in a particular spot. Straight lines communicate movement while curves enhance the overall flow within the space.

Similar to other landscape design firms, we use both hardscapes and softscapes to create these lines. Perhaps we’ll do it with the hard edge of a deck, patio, retaining garden wall, pathway or Houston driveway. Equally valid, we may draw lines in space with landscape design tree placement or foundation planting. The line form chosen—be it straight, curved, circular or elliptical—defines the space and demonstrates a certain landscape style. Their proper usage results in your desired experience.

One important skill that Exterior Worlds provides our clients is our expertise in the infrastructure of landscape architecture. Even though the design elements like line and color, scale and placement, are attention-grabbers and get all the accolades, very often it is the unseen work of our design team that feeds the consistency of your pleasure in it.
Here we’re talking about such non-sexy topics as irrigation systems and yard drainage, which, when done right, reside beneath the surface and keeps your plant materials healthy and your ongoing maintenance at a minimum.

Landscape design firms in Houston, including Exterior Worlds, give swimming pool landscape design a lot of attention. Since our climate welcomes a luxury pool, it usually becomes the center of outdoor living. We have specialists who focus just on the swimming pool environment and cater to every aspect of the pool to come up with a plan specifically for your wants, needs and site capacity.

One last tip for those homeowners who are in the process of hiring the best landscape design firm for your exterior design: we highly recommend that you ascertain their skill at maneuvering through the permitting process for standard items such as drain and irrigation systems, fencing and tree preservation. Exterior Worlds has turned it into a fine art and our proficiency in this area can save you money, time and aggravation during the installation phase.

Bush Planting in your Landscape Design

At Exterior Worlds, we think the hard-working bush is one of the gardener’s best friends. The taller, evergreen bushes create the backdrop against which colorful plants stand out. At the mid-level, or filler, range, shorter bushes provide interest and flowering bushes add color and texture. All of which makes bush planting one of the foundational elements in your Houston landscape.

Bush planting is sometimes called foundation planting, coinage that came about when most houses were pier-and-beam and bushes were planted close to the house to hide the distracting construction. Unfortunately, foundation planting is often static and too narrow, a single row of shrubs in lockstep with the lines of the house. This problem has a quick fix: just layer the bushes front to back, from shortest to tallest, making sure none of the new bushes loom above the established ones.

One tip on garden landscape design when planting bushes: the wider the beds, the more freedom of expression. A wide bed lets you combine seasonal color, native grasses, evergreen bushes, flowering shrubs and graceful trees, which are more attractive. The wider width gives you more planting opportunities for a lush, layered look.

With bushes, you want to go with evergreens to create a year-round structure. However, you also want to use deciduous shrubs and perennials that provide ornamental value all year. Planting roses is one way to add bushes and color to your landscape. Rose bushes require specific and meticulous care, but the pay-off comes with that bowl of fresh roses from your very own garden, sitting on the dining room table and sending out waves of pleasure.

Planting azaleas is an often dazzling choice for our region. In addition to azaleas, choose plants with staggered bloom times so that you have spring blossoms, colorful summer flowers, bright fall foliage, and winter berries and fruit.

One ally in your bush planting endeavors is a reputable lawn and garden services provider, such as Exterior Worlds. We can do the inspection for insect infestation required feedings and pruning. And speaking of pruning—you need to be mindful of choosing varieties of shrubs that will grow to the size you want. It saves on your landscaping budget because it means the landscaping crew spends less time trimming.

Bushes thrive on proper mulching, as do all the plant material in your garden design.
We recommend that mulch installation be done as soon as new bushes are planted and then checked regularly to see where it needs to be re-applied. For superior results, garden beds should be mulched twice a year. Mulch should not run up the trunks of bushes—or any plants—as this over-application harms them and invites disease.

Finally, when planting gardens, plan before you plant. A good starting point is with an enlarged photo of your house from which you can trace its outline onto paper, including any features, such as mature trees, that you plan to keep. Then draw in your preferred plants, including bush plantings, at their mature shape and size. Exterior Worlds employs professional landscape designers who can aid tremendously in this important step.

Houston Garden Design

What types of garden design work the best for Memorial homes?
Although it is very close to the Galleria, the Memorial neighborhood has a distinctively rural feel to it. In fact, it feels and looks more rural than a lot of Houston area suburbs. The large lots and ranch style homes create a feeling of expansiveness. Houston garden design experts support this by planting natural gardens that contribute to the forest-like feeling of heavily wooded lots, and country-style gardening that supports the ranch style homes.

What are gardens in River Oaks like?
They are very formal. Lots in River Oaks are very large, and many of the homes date back to the 1920’s. River Oaks is famous all over the world for some these Old World and Colonial style Mansions that are truly magnificent in every respect. Many of the trees here are also among the oldest in Houston. The magnolias, for example, are survivors of Houston’s all but gone indigenous forest that was cut down in the late 19th century to build the railroad.

Houston garden design teams must be careful to preserve all the many layers of history laid on top of one another in River Oaks. Many unknown factors—such as tree roots near the surface that must be worked around, or utility cables that are not marked on city documents—require highly customized garden installation to avoid disturbing existing tree life and structures.

What are Tanglewood gardens like?
In the Tanglewood neighborhood, the lots are very large, and the homes were built in the 1960s. The terrain is very flat in this part of the city. Large water oak and live oak abound throughout the Houston landscape in all directions, giving the otherwise flat lots a sense of fullness and life.

This led to the original homes here being built in the same ranch style homes that Memorial is known form. However, recent trends have seen a more toward the construction of new custom homes, many of which are well over 6,000 square feet in size.

Rose gardens work very well with many of these yards. Around the perimeters of new custom homes, we take a more innovative and highly individualized approach to Houston garden design. Forms here must be highly individualized in order to properly respect the persona that the new home projects toward the neighborhood. Front yard landscaping and small gardens in the front are very important here in order to give each new home a highly distinguished and truly unique appearance.

What about Bellaire and West U?
In Bellaire and West University, Houston garden design focuses on making small lots look large. Most lots here are small, and the homes range from smaller wooden homes to very large homes that have recently replaced original structures. Gardens must be compact, geometrical, and often many in number. This helps create the illusion that the property is larger than it is and proportional to the new, larger home now residing on it.

Houston Patios and Gardens

Most Houston patios and gardens are built in the back yard. These constructs literally carve special spaces out of the fabric of the landscape itself. These spaces are meant to play host to special activities and support those activities with specific states of mind.

On some larger estates, like those in River Oaks, patios and gardens can be built in the front yard as well. People in these neighborhoods often like a seating area near the sidewalk where they can visit with neighbors and get a panoramic view of the Houston landscape.

A Houston patio and garden go hand in hand. The patio gives you a surface that you can stand or sit on, and the garden frames that space with elements of vitality and life. This feeling of living enclosure makes you feel warm and invited into an intimate setting irrespective of the size of the patio itself.

There are all sorts of patio design that you can choose from. The fittingness of any given style, material build, or hardscape size always corresponds to the nature of the event that will occur on the patio and the aesthetic demands of the property. We must always respect home architecture and maintain thematic consistency with the design of the surrounding landscape. Nevertheless, there is a tremendous amount of freedom that exists for us when working even within these boundaries.

For instance, patios can be built out of any number of materials. Just a few of these include decorative concrete, natural stone, ornamental brick work, and decorative wood treated to resist the elements. Which of these works will work best with any given landscape style will ultimately be determined through consultation with the client and the expert advice of the landscaping professional.

Another major factor in Houston patio and garden design are the weather conditions of various seasons. The landscape designer must integrate some form climate control into a patio and any corresponding structure that surrounds it. This can be anything as simple as an overhanging tree or a decorative canopy.

In the hotter summer months of July, August, and September we may need a bit more to cool things down. Outdoor structures like arbors, living rooms, and outdoor kitchens can be built with ceiling fans and basic AC systems. Gardens around are often planted with shade resistant species because the plants receive less sunlight.

For the cool months of the year, patios and gardens are by nature much more self-contained. Because of heavy humidity combined with sporadic cold snaps, people must be kept both dry and warm. Garden plants used here are typically species that flourish in cooler climates with heavier rainfall. Drainage is very important because from December to February in Houston often experiences heavy thunderstorms and flash floods that can make outdoor environments uninhabitable and wash plants away if preventative steps are not taken.

Popular patio styles for winter are outdoor fireplaces and outdoor fire pits. Both can be built either as standalone structures or part of a courtyard or entry garden. Other elements like lighted fountains, pottery, and decorative statuary can be added to make even the coldest of winter nights vibrant and comfortable. Winter canopies can be used to cover seating areas on rainy nights so lighted vegetation and decoration can still be enjoyed regardless of what the weather happens to be doing.

On clear February nights, however, an evening outdoors on an Exterior Worlds lighted patio and garden space can be just as enjoyable—and perhaps even a bit more romantic and mystical—than a typical summer evening that many take for granted in our traditionally warm climate.

Houston Home and Garden

What is the greatest benefit offered by c elements?
Gardens support home architecture and link the home with the natural environment. It is very important to do this in order to generate a comfortable outdoor living environment for the homeowner. The absence of garden plantings will make a yard look sterile, dominated by the house and outdoor buildings and diminished in organic vitality.

The right style of garden, on the other hand, can merge the connection between home and nature. Most gardens are planted right up against the house, so that when you move outside, you immediately step into a world of greenery and color that sets the tone for the entire landscape.

How do you determine what Houston home garden design will work best for a particular residence?
More than anything else, we seek to discover what Houstonians plan to be doing in their gardens. We try to find out what the intent of space usage is. Outdoor spaces are developed in accordance with the activities that occur within them. Understanding the specifics of a given activity and how many people are expected to attend on the average helps us develop aesthetic and functional specifics.

What are some examples of outdoor spaces that you can enhance with garden elements?
Almost any outdoor structure or special space can play host to a garden of some kind. One of the advantages Houston offers is nice weather for 9 months out of the year. Spas, living rooms, pools, and canopy-covered patios can create environments that are pleasing to your guests. These places can be standing areas or seating areas, depending on your preference, where you can gather together for wine or coffee and enjoy weather.

Does Houston home garden design involve any outdoor architecture?
Yes. As a matter of fact, our style of gardening often relies upon the construction of advanced outdoor buildings such as outdoor living rooms and outdoor terraces. These are very sophisticated structures that introduce a very powerful inorganic presence into a yard. Planting gardens in front of these buildings and to either side of their walls helps soften the architecture and more harmoniously blend it into the landscape.

How can Houston home and garden design be used to develop the landscape of a large yard?
Larger yards can often exceed 3 acres in wealthier neighborhoods and have a great deal of open space in the middle and back of the property. These areas present a number of opportunities for us to build patios, construct lighted trails, construct ponds and fountains, and build outdoor rooms and buildings.

Gardens in these areas can be less formal and more freeform in design. As you move away from the home toward an outdoor fireplace, a quiet morning garden, or a canopy-covered patio in the back of the yard, the wilder elements of nature can function as an invitation to escape from the pressures of life represented by the more structured demands of indoor living and responsibilities.

Outdoor Stone Fireplaces

Where outdoor stone fireplaces normally built?
They are either built in direct relationship with the home or in complete juxtaposition to the home. Outdoor stone fireplaces also play important functional roles in patio seating areas and outdoor kitchens. Sometimes they are built into the kitchen itself, while at others they are constructed on an adjacent patio.

On larger estates, outdoor stone fireplaces are built in the back as getaway destinations, offering shelter under the stars and panoramic 360s of the Houston landscape.

How is an outdoor fireplace designed?
The inside is basically a box in which wood is burned, just like an indoor fireplace. There the similarities end, however, because the design possibilities for an outdoor fireplace are limitless compared to indoor versions. This is because they do not have to be built into a wall for support. Chimneys can be designed in any style or size that is structurally sound and appropriately reflective of home architecture, outdoor buildings, and the distinguishing features of the surrounding Houston landscape.

Are these ever a part of an outdoor room?
Sometimes they are, sometimes they aren’t. They most commonly built as the foothold of an outdoor room. Outdoor rooms typically do not have walls the way we think of walls inside a home. Outdoor room walls are more like boundaries that mark space rather than barriers that block out the Houston landscape.

An outdoor stone fireplace can be the keynote to such an area, because it provides a central structure that acts as a focal point of design. Organic walls of hedges or ground cover plants can then extend from this focal point in either linear angles or radial designs.

What types of stones are used?
Any natural stone will work. Moss stone, sandstone, blue stone, and even brick can be used to construct these unique landmarks of landscape architectural design.

How do these structures support home architecture?
The most important thing they do is to extend the architecture into the yard. Geometric patterns evident in home period architecture and style constitute the conceptual elements of patio and chimney design.

This serves to expand the feeling of the home outdoors. It also make the garden feel more like
part of the home by adding and organic element to Houston outdoor living.

What softscape elements can be integrated into these structures?
You can add a small garden of sorts to an outdoor stone fireplace, although this is not what we normally would call a garden in professional landscaping design. It is more like a planter built into the patio and/or architectural walls surrounding the seating area. Grass, tropical plants, ferns, and flowers are popular vegetation for these plantings.

Stones can also be broken out of the patio and used as space to plant trees or bamboo. Decorative effects can be added by laying down gravel with ornamental stone work or combinations of gravel and drought resistant plants.

Houston Landscaping Creates an Outdoor Dinner Room

What is an outdoor dining room?
An outdoor dining room is an environment that is created through landscaping elements that creates a special space where dining feels appropriate and meals can be enjoyed in comfort. Traditional walls are typically not the norm for enclosing such spaces, although low-level architectural walls made from custom masonry may at times be used. More common enclosures are typically built from hedges that are low to the ground or from columns that set the space apart with a sort of “invisible wall between them” appeal that appears at once both contrasted from the surrounding landscape and simultaneously open to the full view thereof.

What are common furnishings in an outdoor dining room?
Common furnishings include chandeliers, fireplaces, and ceiling fans. Gas lanterns are also popular. Larger outdoor rooms can be decorated with curtains that partially enclose the space and still leave some space open to view the Houston landscape.

What does Exterior Worlds do to make this actually FEEL like an indoor room?
We make sure that the dining room tables have adequate space between the chairs. We set the room up on an axel basis to give it a sense of balance and proportion so that any vantage point looks equivalent to all others within the space. This contributes to a feeling of intimacy in the midst of open spaces.

We also sometimes add decorative stone mosaics beneath able to emulate the patterns seen on indoor rugs. If the room is designed between columns, these stones can also be placed between columns to create a feeling of grand entrance from either of two directions.

Where do you normally build these rooms?
Outdoor dining rooms are normally built near an outdoor kitchen or just behind a house.

Are they usually a part of an outdoor kitchen?
Yes.

Do they always have ceilings and hardscape walls, or can they be courtyard style surrounded by trees and hedges?
When it comes to using the term walls, we want to clearly define this term as meaning more than what you think of when you think of the walls inside your house. Walls that surround outdoor environments can never block the view of the Houston landscape. Instead, they have to be skillfully constructed to actually magnify its appeal by sectioning off a unique area which in turn provides a unique vantage point onto the rest of the Houston landscape.

What are common flooring materials?
We want these environments to be as comfortable as possible. Formality is something that nine times out of ten the homeowner prefers we avoid. Since a more casual environment is therefore preferable, any number of simple materials can be used to build a solid, attractive, floor surface that is workable and aesthetic enough to create mood—but never so overdone as to draw attention away from the moment and down to the ground.

What would be the point of that?

Do you place climate controls in these?
Normally we do not place climate controls in outdoor kitchens. Outdoor buildings like summer kitchens and entertainment rooms are better suited for AC and Heating. There have been exceptions to this per homeowner request, with the understanding that cooled air in such an enclosure is immediately lost to the environment.

Do you have restrooms in them?
Sometimes, yes.

What entertainment media, if any, goes into these rooms?
We can easily configure audio distribution centers, iPod connections, and television sets with all weather equipment.

Concealed Custom Drainage Systems that Protect the Houston Landscape

How would you define the term, unique irrigation as opposed to irrigation?
A concealed custom drainage system, by definition, is one that is designed to address all the needs of a home or a business in a way that doesn’t disrupt the paving or the terrain of the Houston landscape with severe slopes.

What components are used to make a custom drainage system?
The typical system is made of a network of basins and pipes. Gravel is often used to conceal the basins. Gravel provides an ideal compliment to both hardscape elements and softscape forms.

How do you design such a system without it being an obvious eyesore?
We have to use very creative design ideas. We look for ways to conceal drains and pipes in the very fabric of the land itself. Sometimes we even use special materials to conceal our systems in a way that ultimately improves the aesthetics of the Houston landscape.

What areas of the Houston landscape need concealed, custom drainage systems the most?
Lawns in particular need quality drainage. The worst thing that can happen to a yard is to have pools of water collect without any possibility of runoff. This will kill entire patches of grass, threaten flower beds, and potentially harm trees as well.

There is also a risk to human health when standing water forms like this. The Houston landscape is a favorite breeding ground for mosquitoes due to the heavy rainfall the Texas Gulf Coast receives. In fact, prior to European Colonization, the Karankaway Indians pretty much stayed clear of what is now called Houston because the swarms of mosquitoes the bred in the bayou systems made foraging and hunting uncomfortable even for them.

Building a network of pipes and drains in a lawn is one of the most important steps toward the creation of not only a beautiful landscape, but also a livable and healthy one as well.

How do you conceal drains?
One of our favorite techniques is creating paving solutions that are designed to let the water fall through slots in the pavement. This works very well in the relatively flat Houston landscape. These slots are very small, so the eye will not see them.

What if I don’t want any slots in my pavement?
We can also slope the paving so the water moves to areas that allow for discreet, hidden drain basins or troughs. Sometimes we move the water toward garden areas surrounded by French drains, where just enough water touches plant roots before being drawn through the gravel into the basin.

What Houston neighborhoods need custom drain systems the most?
The landscape throughout the city is flat wherever you go. Therefore, all neighborhoods need this service equally.

How Exterior Worlds Updates Houston Landscape Elements

Both softscape and hardscape elements of the Houston landscape will need updating from time to time. The cycles of updating, of course, differ significantly.

When do people normally want to update their landscape?
A landscape is normally upgraded when the ownership of a property changes hands.

What elements need updating after a period of time?
Plantings need to be update more often than hardscapes because of tree growth. Trees have a tendency to expand. As they do so, shade increases. Plants that require sunlight will suffer if too much shade begins to overshadow them.

As such micro-environments within the Houston landscape shifts, new strategies of garden maintenance must be implemented. Either we have to introduce shade-resistant species in order to adapt to new lighting conditions, or we have to replant gardens in new areas using designs that are customized to specific landscaping zones, areas of interest, or themes latent within residential landscape architecture.

When do you update patios and sidewalks?
Hardscapes need updating less frequently. For elements such as swimming pools, fountains, and patios, the inorganic matrix of these forms tends to be more enduring in length than organic life in general. However, these things too have a lifespan, which, while longer in length, ultimately runs its course and ends in the same deterioration we all ultimately face.

This is not intended to sound gloomy. It is only intended to point out the need that even the most “mainstay” elements of any given Houston landscape will ultimately need to be upgraded at some point in time.

How does Exterior Worlds do this in a way that increases property value?
We evaluate the project and compare the needed improvements with the potential return on investment. Many times the return isn’t the issues. Rather, it is just good judgment that is needed to determined the proper level on investment for a Houston landscape renovation.

We do feel is very important to discuss the capital improvements and potential associated cost / over the return. Most client aren’t concern about return on the investment but must always be a point that should be discussed anytime we are making major changes to a property.

Is there anything that is always updated no matter what?
Pools and drainage networks are almost always remodeled to some extent, if not completely renovated. Swimming pools are focal points of interest and deserve the most sophisticated and deserve special attention in any residential landscape design project.

Good drainage is a mandatory element that we can never afford to ignore. Because the Houston landscape is so flat, garden species and outdoor architecture are significantly at risk of flood damage if strategies for water runoff are not conceptualized and successfully constructed.

Mapping underground plumbing and electrical conduits prior to implementing any of these upgrades is also a very important part of what we do. Damage to any of these systems creates more headache and expense for homeowners and for us—something we certainly do not want to face if at all possible.

What Are the Pros and Cons of Houston Soil?

What is the constituency of Houston soil?
The constituency of the soil in the Houston landscape is unique. It is composed of mostly clay. As such, it offers the landscapers some very unique opportunities for lawn and garden designs. In some ways, even, it makes the landscape designer’s job all the more easy.

How does this make the landscaper’s job easy?
The soil in the Houston landscape makes our job easier in the sense that we do not have to deal with rocks in the soil the way landscapers do in other parts of the country. For instance, installing a pipe or preparing a garden in Austin will often call for the landscape architect to literally have to saw through rock.

Does the Houston soil present any disadvantage to the garden designer?
In a world of duality, of course there are always disadvantages along with advantages. In our terrain, there is always a need to break up the clay dirt in yards and till it with the right soil mixtures. This is because, to be completely honest with our readership, Houston is not the best place to plant a garden without professional assistance and specific expertise in botany available only through firms with trained landscaping professionals.

The clay soil is too compact for plant roots to easily expand through the soil. This makes it difficult to grow. The soil also doesn’t drain very well, which can cause plants to drown.

Can anything be done to overcome these problems?
This is not a difficult thing at all for an experienced Houston landscape design firm such as Exterior Worlds to accomplish. However, do-it-yourselfers often fail to break the soil up sufficiently and/or over fertilize it with the wrong compounds.

What starts out as a beautiful gardening soon withers and dies, requiring us to rework the soil until it is ready for more professional garden design that will endure the elements and contribute enduring beauty to the Houston landscape.

How is this type of soil good for tree growth?
If we are talking about exotic tree species, honestly, this is not the best soil to plant in. Trees from other parts of the world are not used to having to spread root systems through clay-based soil and often end up being stunted in their growth cycles when transplanted to this environment.

In some respects, however, this can be advantageous in certain forms of landscape architecture. For example, when we are working to make a small yard look larger than it actually is, smaller tree growth actually work in favor of enlarging an otherwise diminutive lot.

Also, we can always mix the soil with other soil types to accommodate non-native species. Or, even better, we can simply work with trees like Magnolias, Oak, and Pine which already proliferate the Houston landscape and have evolved over time to thrive in this particular climate and soil content.

How well does this soil type work for outdoor architecture?
"Stabilized" clay provides good support for footing and piers which are required for almost all outdoor structures. These are especially needed in custom swimming pool construction. Because clay is an expansive soil, it absorbs water and expands in a way that can raise or lower a pool. We have to install piers under the pool that go deeper into the earth—into the stabilized clay itself—to keep the pool stable.

Houston Area Landscaping

Houston Area Landscaping Services by Exterior Worlds have been improving the Houston Landscape for the past 20 years. Our landscape design professionals focus on helping people who have always had vision of a landscape that speaks uniquely to who they are, but who lack the resources, materials, time, and skills to build that landscape on their own.

Our experts do more than garden and lawn maintenance like many of the companies that advertise themselves as landscaping outfits. Our employees are degreed professionals with training in botany, irrigation science, construction, and outdoor lighting techniques.

These multi-specialists often devote up to seven years of their lives in undergraduate and graduate school in order to master the skills necessary to create truly luxury landscape designs. They realize that there is a lot more to Houston area landscaping than planting colorful gardens and developing innovative softscape designs.

True luxury living is created when homeowner fantasy becomes outdoor landscape architectural reality.

Only then can we claim that we have truly developed a unique and highly personalized residential landscape design.

This process begins with designers sitting down with Exterior Worlds clients and helping them to articulate ideas that come in the form of visualizations and epiphanies. Sometimes such ideas may come from something as elementary as a picture cut out from a magazine.

In other instances, people may have originally seen something online that looked like a workable do-it-yourself project—only to realize at second glance that if they hire us to do it, they can have an even more magnificent outcome that will transform the entire aesthetic of their front yard and back yard, and also add value to their home itself in the long run.

The intention behind such a systematic approach to consultation is to make Houston area landscaping highly personalized to the homeowner and appropriate to the individual neighborhood in which the home is located. We want the home to stand out in the neighborhood as a premier example of what that neighborhood is known for, but we never want the property we work in to clash with surrounding themes in a harsh or contradictory way.

In a part of town like West University Place, for example, Houston area landscaping may take on the dimensions of creating special sanctuaries such as morning gardens in quiet corners of the yard. We may also use a skillful selection of plant material in order to create a very clear boundary between one home and another, but organic at the same time in a way that makes the two properties look aesthetically balanced when viewed from the street.

In a neighborhood like Bellaire, on the other hand, we may focus extensively on building a custom swimming pool surrounded by an elaborate custom patio, an outdoor kitchen that compliments the home, and an arbor to compliment the stately trees that Bellaire is famous for throughout the Houston area.

Houston Area Landscaping in Tanglewood and River Oaks is always going to speak of discriminating high quality and refined taste, whether it be in garden designs, courtyards, entry gardens, or even graded motor courts that allow parked cars to actually blend a bit into the landscape.

Similar strategies and aesthetic qualities are also applicable to all other Houston area neighborhoods services by the landscaping designers of Exterior Worlds.

How do your Concealed Irrigation Systems Contribute to the Houston Landscape?

How would you define the term, unique irrigation as opposed to irrigation?
We define an irrigation system as unique when it is designed in such a way as to maximize control over the Houston landscape.

What are the key elements to designing such a system?
There are two things that must be addressed any time we build such a system. The first is dividing the property into sections, known in landscape design as zones that will allow us to deliver specific amounts to water to specific areas of the yard and to a variety of divergent plant species.

The second key component is concealment. In order to preserve the aesthetic of the Houston landscape, we must build our water delivery system in such a way that the casual eye never notices its physical presence or feels disturbed by its carefully timed operation.

Why would a Houston home need irrigation to begin with?
This is a very good question that is asked by almost every client that comes to us. Many people assume that with all the heavy rains that naturally fall on the Houston landscape that a yard would never need professionally designed irrigation.

This is not the case. Natural rain water does not fall in controlled amounts or predictable cycles. As wet as some times of year may be, other times of year are very dry. We need to control the amount of water that each plant species gets, and this requires a sophisticate system of timing and delivery.

What areas of the yard need irrigation the most?
Lawn areas are always in need of controlled water delivery. Grasses that lie in the shade need additional water to offset the lack of sunlight. Also, grasses that border flower beds and gardens may end up competing for water with garden plants. Irrigating these areas prevents this competitive situation from arising.

Sloped areas also need irrigation because natural rain water will tend to run off their surfaces very quickly. While they do not occur that frequently in the Houston landscape, they are often developed by professionals in order to add nuance and interest.

How do you conceal irrigation?
Irrigation systems are virtually all underground. We can even mitigate the visible risers, which are so often used to reduce the cost of installation.

How do you control irrigation automatically?
We used a time system/ control box. They are best mounted outside where service people can get to them.
How do you allow homeowners to control it manually?
The control has option for manual operation.

What home do not need an irrigation system?
We do not need irrigation in a yard all drought resistant plants.

What components comprise an irrigation system?
A typical system will be made of pipes, spray heads, control timer, rain sensor, PVB (pressure vacuum breaker) which is a city code to prevent contaminated water from the Houston landscape from entering the drinking water.

Houston Garden Services

A convenience that we offer the Exterior Worlds’ client is the unbundling of services. For example, you can hire us to perform garden services only. Beautiful gardens afford you with an ever-changing, ever-constant source of pleasure—the exchange of light and shadow, the interplay of textures and colors, the wondrous creatures of nature that are attracted to gardens, such as butterflies, birds and dragonflies. Additionally, gardens can be quite sensible. When it comes time to sell your home, a well-maintained landscape makes your house stand out to prospective buyers, giving you an advantage over other houses in your market.

Our garden services contract involves hiring us to perform the countless tasks required of a multi-layered garden, excluding the maintenance and care of lawn and turf. This type of contract works well for clients who have a maintenance crew already in place with whom they are pleased. While this crew does the upkeep of the grass areas, however, they do little—or cursory—care of the garden beds, bushes, trees and hardscapes. Hence the need for an Exterior Worlds’ garden services contract.

At Exterior Worlds, we believe in delivering unique, personalized services while creating landscapes and gardens filled with natural hospitality and warmth. An extension of that philosophy is that a regular, well-executed landscape maintenance plan helps you to protect your landscaping investment.

A short list of our garden services includes:

• Prune annual flowers to maximize the bloom cycle.
• Train roses, vines and other climbing cultivars on garden archs, garden arbors and trellises.
• Trim ground covers and shrubs. We work conscientiously to maintain the original intent of the landscape design.
• Mulch. It is important to not put too much mulch on the base of plants. While it is terrible for the plants, we unfortunately find that it is a common problem that we often have to correct for new clients.
• Pull weeds, as needed.
• Cover plants in advance of freezes.
• Treat for fungus, weeds and insects. Fungicides and insecticides are applied two to four times per year. Exterior Worlds is licensed by the Texas Structural Pest Control Board, License # 12015. (Texas Structural Pest Control Board, P.O. Box 1927, Austin, TX 78767-1927. 512-305-8250.)
• Fertilize and feed. For a Houston landscape, flowers require fertilization every six weeks.

Impeccable and wide-ranging landscape services are our specialties. Exterior Worlds is a full service, high-end landscape design and maintenance firm, in business in Houston since 1987. We employ all our years of experience for each design project and each landscape maintenance contract. Our residential clients live in the Memorial Villages, Bellaire, Tanglewood, River Oaks, West University, and other communities in the greater Houston metropolitan area.

After spending the time and money on your landscape design and installation, it makes perfect sense to protect it and make sure it develops as intended. And that’s where a maintenance program such as discussed here can be used. We provide the level of intricate care that a sophisticated garden needs and deserves. Further, joining our garden services with a pre-existing turf crew is cost-effective for you and makes the best use of your time.

West University Landscaping

When you think of West University landscaping, you think in terms of comfortable and luxurious, refined and sophisticated. For more than two decades, Exterior Worlds has installed custom ornamental iron fencing and wrought iron garden gates, plush outdoor rooms, deluxe outdoor kitchens and interesting plant materials in West University landscaping.

It is a long way from the 1920s when West University, also known by its proper name West University Place and by the shortened West U, was established. In those days, a 100’ x 200’ lot cost about $1,000. The early residents found themselves basically living in a swamp. Their daily challenges included poor drainage, muddy streets and no fire protection.

But from these questionable beginnings, an exemplary city developed. Now sitting in the midst of Houston’s 610 Loop, West University is its own unique city. Upscale homes on tree-lined streets now characterize this community. Residents find West University attractive for its favorable location in relation to cultural attractions, scientific facilities such as the Texas Medical Center, a diverse business community, and educational institutions, including its own highly-regarded school system and Rice University.

Exterior Worlds prides itself on its familiarity with West University’s rules and regulations covering landscape projects. This city code governs all aspects of building, including general permitting, the height and location of structures, tree removal and excavation equipment and usage, a set of rules that protects everyone’s property value. For example, one city ordinance concerns the lot coverage percentage, which is the calculation of the amount of the property that can be covered with impervious materials. This percentage actually manages drainage problems before they occur, a proactive stance that would surely make the first residents of West University very proud.

Over the years, we have found that it is essential for West University residents to hire professional landscapers and contractors who understand these rules and will abide by them. To do otherwise invites delays, budget over-runs, frustrations, fines and upset neighbors.

Additionally, today’s West University homeowners have found that a drainage system is fundamental to their landscape design. This part of the country has two natural conditions to deal with:

• Regular torrential rain that leaves standing water in low-lying areas. These pools of water serve as incubators for that dreaded native inhabitant, the mosquito, and create problems for a house’s foundation.
• Alternating wet and dry periods that turn the region’s clay soil into a nearly-impenetrable surface, further aggravating drainage issues.

For West University landscaping, a well-designed drainage system from Exterior Worlds is your solution.

Tree preservation represents another area of expertise for Exterior Worlds. We employ many techniques, both pre-construction and during construction, to mitigate the damage to any existing trees on a site. Setting up temporary irrigation systems and hand-digging around roots, just to name two.

West U has much to be proud of these days. And West University landscaping communicates that pride and sense of luxury. It is conveyed with classy outdoor accoutrements and simple details, rich material choices and interesting softscapes—lush but always appropriate.

Bellaire Landscaping Houston

“Bellaire” means good air and this phrase paints a good picture of the atmosphere in the special city of Bellaire, a city within the city limits of Houston. Since 1987, Exterior Worlds has contributed to its exceptional ambiance by putting a deft mix of luxury design elements and materials in Bellaire landscaping.

Known for its luxury landscape designs, Bellaire landscaping is a vital part of this community’s attraction. Well-maintained yards with mature trees, luxury swimming pools, outdoor kitchens and plush patio designs are just some of the features found in Bellaire landscaping.

Composed of about 6,000 households, Bellaire is desired for its upscale homes within a short commute to central Houston. Also noteworthy are its active parks and recreational areas and quality schools. It was founded in 1908 on land that was part of the original ranch that belonged to William Marsh Rice, the namesake of Rice University. During the building boom that followed World War II, the city adopted its home rule charter, thereby deciding to remain apart from Houston.

In landscaping matters, tree preservation is taken seriously in Bellaire. We believe trees are valuable assets on your property, good for you and good for the environment. During building and remodeling projects, they need special TLC, such as temporary irrigation systems and judicious digging around root systems.

As is true of the entire Houston area, drainage issues are of concern in Bellaire. Exterior Worlds recommends a properly designed drainage system as a smart investment to our Bellaire clients. It helps combat problems cause by our volatile weather and this region’s clay soil that can become easily compacted.

The City of Bellaire has an extensive set of rules and regulations that govern residential and commercial landscaping. These guidelines include the location of structures and their height, excavation methods and equipment usage, and general permitting. Lot coverage percentage is also regulated by city ordinances. This figure relates to drainage issues and is defined as the ratio of the lot that can be covered with impervious materials. During our years in business, Exterior Worlds has become an expert on all these rules.

As strict as they are, these regulations protect everyone’s property value. For homeowners planning landscaping projects, selecting the right professional landscaper or contractor is a critical aspect of Bellaire landscaping. If you go with someone who is unfamiliar with the rules and regulations, you could end up in a frustrating and costly fix.

One real life example that Exterior Worlds was called on to remedy: a homeowner hired an inexperienced pool contractor to install a pool in the backyard. The contractor didn’t know the regulations about tree preservation and carelessly tore up tree roots. They even used an axe at one point. In compliance with city regulations, inspectors stopped the work. They then required the homeowner to replace a lost tree with a mature tree, something that can cost several thousand dollars depending on the species. Further, they fined the homeowner about $2,500 for noncompliance with city ordinances.

The homeowner ended up hiring Exterior Worlds to fix the damages and complete the work. Frustrating and costly, to say the least.

For high-end landscape design and services in Bellaire and other fine neighborhoods in the Houston area, call Exterior Worlds, 713-827-2255.

Residential Landscaping

Residential landscaping by Exterior Worlds provides the discriminating Houstonian with an outdoor living environment that functions as a virtual home outside the home and that generate a higher yield property value investment by creating a sustainable environment that can be passed on to future homeowners.

Organic elements constitute the essence of residential landscaping.
Without greenery, landscapes appear sterile and devoid of energy. Even styles like modern landscaping need some natural form to punctuate the abstract designs of the manmade. In more traditional landscape styles, vegetation forms the core essence of the outdoor experience and consists of several important elements.

• Garden design is perhaps the most varied and complex element of residential landscaping. Almost every culture in the world has its own style of gardening that can be duplicated in the Houston area.
• Any one of these styles can be customized to specific properties as a unique, living expression of homeowner taste and a direct compliment to the house and surrounding property.
• Trees of any type or size can be trucked in and planted. Trees give landscapes everything from shade to borders between one lot and the other

Just as organic elements establish the tone of residential landscaping, hardscape design helps give form and function to its design.

• Patios are built to host specific events and accommodate expected numbers of attendees.
• Courtyards help establish varying levels of privacy and conviviality by their size, geometry, and positioning in relationship to the rest of the yard.
• Decorative masonry serves a similar function by making a yard look much bigger than it normally and providing vertical surfaces to which flower beds, smaller fountains, and decorative statuary can be added at will.
• Outdoor buildings of all varieties can then be added to host specific occasions and to pay tribute to home architecture.

The ultimate success of a residential landscaping plan is often determined by the type and variety of water features that are then added to the property.

• Custom swimming pools are constructed to the geometry and sensibility of the house and to create visual linkage between the house and the entirety of the property.
• Pools can very formal, or they can be built to mimic natural ponds like the ones we commonly see in wilderness areas.
• Residential landscaping also work very hard to use water as a decorative feature by building fountains provide everything from focal points for public seating areas to private spots for contemplation, meditation, and repose.

Outdoor lighting plays not only an important role in residential landscaping, but in many senses of the term, a defining one as well.

• Architectural lighting illuminates the house as the preeminent feature on the property and sets the tone for landscape aesthetic.
• Garden lighting allows you to see the most minute of details in the most ornate and formal plantings even on the darkest of nights.
• Underwater lights illuminate pools and fountains from within to create a myriad of special effects that will contribute ambience and mood to outdoor gatherings and special occasions.

Houston Landscape Services

We want to hire a Houston landscape service company, like Exterior Worlds. How do we begin the process?
As a premier Houston landscape services company, Exterior Worlds provides a full range of services including consultation, design services, installation and ongoing maintenance. If you are interested in any of these landscape services, Exterior Worlds of Houston has more than 20 years of experience providing these services to the greater Houston area.

In general, Houston landscape service companies specialize in one or more areas while subcontracting out other landscape elements such as irrigation systems, drainage systems, patio design and deck design, luxury swimming pools, outdoor water fountains, garden structures, and landscape lighting. In choosing a Houston landscape service firm, you need a high degree of good understanding, two-way communication and comfort level with them.

When beginning a new landscape design, you start with an initial discovery meeting. Here you discuss overall intent, landscape elements, permitting issues, design approach and aesthetic. The next step usually includes landscape designs, planting plans and budget considerations.

In providing landscape services, Exterior Worlds works diligently and patiently to help you determine the scope of your project, the project phasing, scheduling, coordination, selection of all materials and final budget.

What happens during the installation phase?
During the installation phase, the landscape service provider usually includes all plant material, hardscape, irrigation, drainage and lighting installation in their contract. In a typical project, the landscape irrigation and lighting contractors start first, followed by the installation of other hardscapes. Then comes the planting of all shrubs, groundcover and seasonal color. The irrigation and lighting contractors return for adjustments. Final mulch and cleanup commence, and then the installation is complete.

Tree preservation is critical during construction. Preconstruction activities may include protective tree fencing, temporary drainage, borer applications on sensitive trees, and elevated walks to protect tree roots. A change in grade impacts mature trees, so make sure your landscape service provider is well versed in this expertise.

As mentioned earlier, many landscape service companies act as the general contractor and oversee the entire installation. The fee for these services is usually charged as a percentage of the total project’s cost. While some homeowners want to act as general contractor to save money, our experience tells us that it can lead to real problems. Confusion results from misunderstandings of trade terminology, scheduling and coordination, unique requirements due to selection of materials, installation techniques, material availability and construction methods employed.

What can we expect regarding ongoing maintenance?
To insure that your landscape investment develops into a mature and beautiful outdoor environment, you want a landscape service firm that also handles maintenance. Exterior World’s maintenance contracts include mowing of all lawn areas, proper trimming of plant material, and a chemical program to insure plant health. The feeding program may also include spring and fall aeration of lawn areas with the application of fall rye grass. Regular inspection and diagnosis of plant pests and diseases are the last part of a proactive maintenance program. We also provide continual inspection of the irrigation controller, heads, and seasonal watering times since water management is the foundation of plant health.

Landscape Remodeling

Exterior Worlds takes an extensive and systematic approach to landscape remodeling because our experience has taught us that home values significantly increase when the surrounding yard looks like a unified reflection of the house. When potential buyers come to look at the house, they will also be looking at the yard to see if they will enjoy living outside as much as they do inside.

It is here that a home sale can often be either made or broken, because nothing looks worse than incongruent landscape features that may have been constructed well as structures and elements within themselves, but offer little sense of relationship to one another and therefore lack harmony in the eyes of the viewer.

Landscape remodeling requires carefully redesign of outdoor structures both functional and aesthetic. It must be approached with a mindset of balance and proportion that ultimately points all elements back to the home as the preeminent feature on the lot. Outdoor buildings often require significant renovation. Swimming pools and patios almost always require reconstruction in order to appear truly proportional and complimentary to the house and surrounding landscape.

In these areas, we can offer much help to Houston homeowners who are looking to significantly raise property values and ensure the highest possible return on investment. While this is seldom done low cost, we do have ways of making this work within the budget of any client. This is called Landscape Phasing and involves developing a master plan for the project first, then completing portions of the plan incrementally according to the available funding that the homeowner has to invest in each part of the project.

Some examples of what we do in a phased landscape remodeling follow:

• We redesign the swimming pool. More than likely the pool works fine as an element in its own right, but was not constructed aesthetically appropriate or sized proportional to the landscape. We can redesign the look and functionality of a pool and bring our own pool contractors in to handle the reconstruction under our close supervision.
• Outdoor buildings were likewise probably built just like the pool. They work well within themselves but do little if anything to complement home architecture or home value. Exterior Worlds will remodel every building on the landscape to correct this problem and lend the entire property more of a sense of true outdoor living space.
• We can add new features like summer kitchens, outdoor rooms, outdoor fire places, custom patios, and entry gardens.
• We practice careful tree preservation techniques and make certain to work around all subsurface utility lines and conduits.
  

Again, we must stress that this does not have to be done all at once. Each phase of our landscape remodeling plan can be performed separately from the rest, and it can be invoiced at a price point that is well within the comfortable budget of our client. The total investment is well worth it when one considers the intrinsic return on investment that each phase of the project brings to home and property resale value.

Houston Texas Gardens

A Houston garden by Exterior Worlds does a lot for your property. It reflects your home architecture first and foremost. It complements the canopy of tree branches and leaves with a carefully developed geometric patterns of organic vitality. Outdoor buildings and hardscapes look a lot better too with a garden growing with shrubs and flowering plants growing around them. The presence of life linked to construction helps unite the manmade with the natural in any front or back yard.

Such statements may seem like bold claims to a confident do-it-yourselfer or someone who is characteristically skeptical. However, please keep in mind that we are talking about more than flower beds and hedges when we talk about a professionally designed Houston garden. More than a mere decoration in the front or back yard, it most often is the foundational element of the master plan of the professional landscaper.

In order to make a Houston garden look truly proportional to everything else in the yard, professionals often have to do some pretty advanced mathematically calculations and rely on sophisticated computer design software. Without these methods and tools, even landscaper developers would be unable to fulfill their own ambitions.

Professional service companies can also provide you with a higher grade of materials than you can obtain on your own. Commercial entities like Exterior Worlds have better access to plants, fertilizers, and irrigation construction materials than do retail stores and typical online channels. A garden that is planted with better quality plant material, soil mixtures, and fertilizer will immediately show its value on the first morning following installation.

Two other crucial elements of any healthy Houston garden--irrigation and drainage—absolutely have to be done by a professional landscaper. Unpredictability seems to be the nature of the weather in Houston, so all garden design must take into account the need to deliver water to plants when rain is scarce, and to drain excess water in times of heavy rains, seasonal storms, and occasionally floods.

A landscape maintenance contract is an added value that every one of our Houston garden clients should look toward investing in. Insects and fungi can destroy a multitude of plants and flowers, particularly roses, and have to be controlled with regular insecticide and fungicide treatments best left in the hands of experts. Also, soil must be aerated properly on occasions, and different types of plants need different types and measures of fertilizer that are best mixed and delivered by professionals.

As far as the actual design of your Houston garden goes there are many from which you can choose. These include French, Italian, Mediterranean, Japanese Water, Contemporary, Modern, and Zen designs—all of which create unique aesthetic expressions in their own respect and provide specific complimentary presence to the many other landscaping elements our team can develop in your front and back yards.

Luxury Landscape Design

“Luxury” in a luxury landscape design can be communicated in several ways. The sense of luxury is conveyed with softscapes, the combination of plant forms, colors and textures. It also shows in your material choices and the way they contrast to and complement your home. It can also be seen in simple details such as a custom wrought iron design element inserted into a fence. At Exterior Worlds, we strive for lush, but always appropriate, exteriors.

In our design process, the spatial layout is directed by the outdoor usage. We also use the strength of geometric lines to create interesting landscapes. Perhaps, it’s the use a pathway to create a spine across the space. This path thus serves to divide the space and also direct movement from one zone to another.

Other facets of a luxury landscape design for you to consider:

• Lounge areas. These delightful outdoor spaces enlarge your living area. They become another room on your home and give you an opportunity to enjoy the out-of-doors year round. Outdoor rooms are ideal places to build an outdoor fireplace or install another fire element.
• Outdoor kitchens. You know how company likes to hang out in the indoor kitchen? You’ll find that it’s true for the outdoor kitchen, too. Outdoor kitchens are the heart of luxury landscape design. We encourage our clients to think through seating arrangements, including built-in benches. A fundamental design element, lighting also serves a functional purpose. So, in addition to planning accent light, we always plan for plenty of coverage in the prep areas.
• Custom swimming pools. Water, in pools and outdoor water fountains, are magnets—for activities and for viewing pleasure. Exterior Worlds works hard to integrate the pool area with the surroundings by creating smooth transitions with the yard and background sceneries. Spas, waterfalls and slides add to the fun. We’ve even built several waterfalls over some pools. We’ve also designed and built pool water fountains that are…well, very cool. Literally.
• Garden structures. Our clients have found that these garden elements add focal points to their landscape design. Ideas include: garden arches, a wrought iron trellis, garden gazebo, and pergolas. When wired with landscape lighting, they become magical settings at night.
• Worry-free maintenance. “Staycation” is a popular term right now and refers to turning your home into your very own five-star hotel. However, one of the downfalls of this ideal is that, since it’s your home, you never escape the sense of responsibility for it to achieve that carefree vacation feeling. A comprehensive residential maintenance contract with Exterior Worlds addresses that drawback nicely. Let us do the work while you have your at-home vacation.

Exterior Worlds has more than two decades worth of experience in providing luxury landscape design and services to the Houston area. We welcome both new construction and remodeling projects. We also encourage clients to consider landscape phasing—doing different projects in incremental steps over a long period of time—in order to ease the financial impact.

Lawn And Garden Services

Exterior Worlds’ lawn and garden services begins with a garden’s infrastructure. The soil comes first. We have the botanical science training that allows us to mix soil with fertilizers to arrive at a compound suitable for our particular topography and climate. We often find with new clients that a brand-name fertilizer, something developed for popular plant species, was used. The lawn and gardens are under-performing because the fertilizer doesn’t provide the nutrition required by plants that must withstand our unique climate and soil.

The second step for a high-quality lawn and garden services program is installing an irrigation system. A premier irrigation system uses a combination of controller technology, heads and zones to create a site-specific system for your garden landscape.

The third step we recommend in the infrastructure stage: a drainage system. A well-designed storm drainage system employs proper grading and drainage solutions to pull water away from structures and surfaces.
As for Houston lawn service, the elements of our maintenance program include:

• Mowing and trimming. For March through October, we recommend weekly service and bi-weekly service November through February.
• Chemical treatments. Fertilizer types include fast-release, slow release, winterizer and organic. Fungicides and insecticides tackle insect and fungus infestations, enemies of healthy grass.
• Lawn aeration. Aeration improves compacted and heavily-used turf.
• • Over-seeding with winter grass, also called rye grass. This practice keeps grass green throughout the winter months.
• Dethatching. Thinning out thick grass to ensure vigorous growth.

The components of our garden services include:

• Paying attention to the intent of the original design. Most of our designs use a variety of plant species in order to create a singular garden based on your aesthetic. Styles include: modern landscape design, Japanese garden and English garden design.
• Clipping, pruning and trimming. With our understanding of form and use of best practices for maintaining your plants’ appearances, we think these necessary tasks ensure maximum vitality of your garden.
• Feeding. Flowers should be fertilized every six weeks.
• Weeding and mulching. Weeding is done as needed. Mulch helps the soil retain moisture.

The final piece of lawn and garden services is the maintenance contract. A basic contact should cover lawn mowing, plus all the recommended lawn care as detailed above. Also, you will want your ground cover, shrubs and vines trimmed and trained to maintain an orderly appearance. Your trees require attention, too, items such as trimming small trees and inspecting for disease and insect infestations. Flower beds need regular care, plus any seasonal change-outs that you might want. Finally all surfaces—driveways, sidewalks, ponds, custom swimming pools, patios and outdoor water fountains—should be cleared of debris after each service call.

A beautiful landscape implies a commitment. It involves prep work that begins before a single plant gets put into the soil. It then requires diligence and careful attention to maintain it in such a way that it flourishes into the landscape you originally envisioned.

The complete lawn and garden services from Exterior Worlds can make it happen for you.

If you are interested in any high-quality landscape services, Exterior Worlds has been providing the high-end residential landscape services and garden design services discussed above for the Houston and the surrounding areas including The Memorial Villages, Tanglewood, River Oaks, West University and the greater Houston (Hou), area since 1987. Contact us at 713-827-2255

Hedwig Village Landscaping

One of the loveliest communities in Houston, Hedwig Village is prized for its charming lifestyle, good schools, advantageous location and upscale homes. Exterior Worlds has offered high-end landscaping solutions and services for Hedwig Village landscaping for more than 20 years. Working with some of the area’s top-notch landscape architects and landscape designers, our landscape designs are specifically tailored to your needs and desires and to the requirements of your property.

Hedwig Village landscaping offers much potential for landscape garden designs. Exterior Worlds uses the basic design principles of balance, harmony, proportion and scale to create these distinctive gardens:

• English garden design. This seemingly casual approach to gardening is actually quite intentional—a gardening principle guided by the idea of profusion and plenty. English gardens have long been popular in the United States and are especially well-suited for Houston’s semi-tropical climate. In this style, Hedwig Village landscaping could make good use of showy rose gardens and vine-covered garden arbors.
• Modern landscape design. For this look, designers use dramatic geometric shapes to convey a point of view that is elegant and effortless. Cool, gray concrete often creates a backdrop for a beguiling focal point such as a contemporary water fountain.
• Classic landscape design. A type of formal landscape design, this garden style uses linearity to create order. Perhaps a row of trees creates a line for the eye to follow or maybe it’s an inviting gravel path. We suggest that any harshness be toned down with perennials and ground cover.
• Japanese garden design. A concept inherent in Japanese gardening is that the garden is a true retreat. Concurrent with retreat is the idea of enclosure—to be sealed away and protected from the outside world. Thus, we use fences, gates and pathways as important elements in a Japanese garden.
• Mediterranean landscape design. Plantings help create this look and the best gardens use any of the lush flowers and shrubs common to the Mediterranean region. Creeping vines may adorn fences and posts, while vegetable and herb gardens are both aromatic and delightful for cooking. With their pleasing sounds, outdoor water fountains make a welcome statement in this style.
• Low maintenance gardens. With a design for low maintenance, we devise gardens that are basically done in any garden style that you choose. But it comes with a twist: we focus on using materials that reduce your cost of ongoing maintenance, which are, watering, trimming, weeding and mulching. For instance, we would avoid planting hedges with boxwood and dwarf yaupons since they need constant pruning.
• Green gardens. “Green” green gardens refer to landscapes that are ecologically sustainable, productive and prudent. Our suggestions include installing drought-tolerant lawns and augmenting your irrigation systems with a water retention pond. French drains work well, too.

A final touch for your Hedwig Village landscaping: the right landscape lighting. It allows you to showcase beautiful trees, an element that the Memorial Villages are known for, and we recommend it as a relatively inexpensive way to increase your property value. At the same time, it provides security and safe access.

Piney Point Village Landscaping

What was once a stop-over for travelers on the way to and from Stephen F. Austin’s headquarters in San Felipe de Austin, Piney Point Village is now a thriving and prosperous city within a city. Luxurious and vital Piney Point Village landscaping is just one of the reasons people want to live here.

Pecan trees, bald cypress, red maples, sweetgums, magnolias, loblolly pines, willow oaks—these are just a few of the tree species to be found within a Piney Point Village landscaping setting. How apt that, in 1824, John D. Taylor took “Piney Point” as the name of the land grant he received from Stephen F. Austin.

Exterior Worlds can help you with expert care for your trees. For instance, if you’re planting new trees, perhaps due to the damage caused in 2008 by Hurricane Ike, planning for a diversity of species within your landscape is one way to safeguard against disease. One rule of thumb is that no single species should compose more than 10 percent of the total tree population in a given area.
Speaking of hurricanes, tropical storms and monsoon-like rains, drainage systems are another smart way to protect your Piney Point Village landscaping. Exterior Worlds understands the high standards set by the Memorial Villages’ regarding drainage systems. We have become pros at devising systems that fit those guidelines. Also, we work with several landscape architects or landscape designers who can assist in integrating hardscapes and other landscape architecture in and amongst your trees.

Tree preservation is an important issue we advise clients on who are undertaking a construction project. Installing temporary irrigation systems, fencing off the root zone and performing deep-root fertilization are just a few of the procedures that will help your trees better handle the stress.

To protect the health of your trees, we also provide professional mulch installation. Mulching has many benefits: it holds back weeds, grass and other plants that compete for moisture and it helps prevent the soil from cracking and compacting. Our crews are careful to avoid piling mulch up along the trunk, even when it means spreading the mulch by hand, because excess mulch is not healthy for trees.

A pro-active disease prevention plan is another best practice that we recommend. We inspect trees for any infestations, especially pine bark beetles and bore insects that are deadly to trees when trees are stressed from construction or when Houston’s weather turns hot.

Just a short drive from downtown Houston, Piney Point Village is as noted today for its upscale homes and dedicated citizenry as by its many trees. However, most property owners are quite serious about providing quality care to those trees. After all, trees are valuable attributes of one’s property.

Trees can be found everywhere in Piney Point Village. The shade they make is welcome relief from the harsh sun. The green canopy creates a soothing exchange of light and shadow. They provide homes to an extended eco-system. Trees thus become the centerpieces in many Piney Point Village landscaping vistas.

Call Exterior Worlds at 713.827.2255 to discuss the care of your trees and other landscaping matters.