Do I need to be knowledgeable in landscape yard design to add curb appeal to my property?
No.  You just need to work with a professional landscaping company that can do more with your yard than simply maintain the grass and flower bed.  Think about working with a team who can take the essence of your personal lifestyle and turn that into tangible form. 
 
What are the basic principles that your company brings to the table?
The difference between yard services and professional landscape yard design lies within the set of principles that work to create a unity between house, yard, outdoor architecture, and garden design.

• Thematic unity is maintained by strict adherence to a landscape master plan.
• We also usesimple garden designs in many places to create pockets of beauty and interest that captivate the senses. 
• Transition is another major component of our landscape design, because movement to point to point is essential to the outdoor experience. 
• Balance is created so that from every vantage point the yard in general looks

What is a landscape master plan?
It consists of any number of hardscape and softscape features that express various states of consciousness and emotion that directly correspond to your personal values, dreams, and preferences.  The success of landscape yard design depends almost entirely on having such a master plan to work with.  This is because the plan both details the individual features as they must be built, and it establishes relationships between individual forms to create a theme that supports home architecture and extends personal lifestyle beyond the boundaries of the walls of the house. 

How do you achieve unity in landscape yard design?
Unity is the thematic bond that exists between the home and all hardscape and softscape elements of the landscape master plan.  It requires impeccable design skills to achieve because landscape yard design on a larger property may involve many different elements that are highly diverse in nature.  A large estate may have fountains, trees, gardens, paths, outdoor lighting, patios, gazebos, kitchens, swimming pools, spas, arbors, and courtyards all with very sophisticated designs of their own.  In order to create a sense of connectedness, so to speak, we have to use repeating geometry, colors,masonry, stonework, woodwork, and tile work to suggest correlation on an unconscious level. 

What do you mean by simplicity in garden design?
In garden design, simplicity is most often achieved by choosing two or three colors and creating a repeating pattern throughout the design.  Vegetation by its very nature is dynamic and emergent, so overdoing a garden is the most common mistake do-it-yourselfers make.  It is much better to focus on the design and pattern of a garden rather than the impulse to fill it with as many different plants and colors as possible.  Experts know how to create effect without overkill and balance form and content into an aesthetic that catches the eye but does not overwhelm the senses.

How do you create balance in landscape yard design?
There are two types of balance: symmetrical and asymmetrical. 

Symmetrical balance is based upon similar or identical elements.  Parterre gardens, for example, rely upon symmetry to establish a sense of order and system.  This is often done to create a linear compliment to a nearby structure, such as a custom patio or the wall of the home.

Asymmetrical balance is more complex and subtle.  Asymmetrical balance does not try to create direct correspondence between elements.  Instead, it correlates motifs more in a subtle manner that has a more emotional impact on the subconscious mind than it does the conscious mind.  Geometry is woven into hardscape and softscape so as to compliment home architecture and link structure to vegetation.  Motifs are more freeform in expression, with basic patterns and colors used to complement one another rather than directly relate as mirror images, per se.

How do you create transition in landscape yard design?
Anything that motivates movement of the eye or body through a property can be technically termed transition.  Any type of gradual change can create transition.  Something as subtle as varied plant creates a sense of perspective where distance and depth are altered.  A large yard can be divided into less intimidating zones of interest this way, or a smaller yard can be made to look much larger than it is.

This technique can also be used to create subliminal pathways that pull the eye and the body toward a secluded morning garden, an outdoor fireplace, or a natural pond lighted with LED underwater illumination. 

Other forms of transition used in landscape yard design are much more obvious.  Entry gardens, for example, transform unused space to the side of a home into a gateway that leads into both a special area and into the backyard beyond.  Steps leading to and from patios, gazebos, terraces, spas, and outdoor kitchens lend a sense of drama and interest to the scene.  Nothing quite compares to ascending blue stone steps from a heated swimming pool onto an elevated terrace with a sunken luxury spa with underwater lighting and controllable water jets that massage the skin from a reclined perspective that surveys the entirety of the Houston landscape.