What to Expect During Your Memphis Landscape Design Consultation

Are you dreaming about a new outdoor living area or a similar outdoor project? If you’re thinking about getting started with a landscaping project, then you might be wondering what happens at a landscape consultation.

This first step in getting your project underway is an important one. During the landscape consultation process, you’ll meet with a landscape designer who will discuss your ideas and talk about how they’ll turn them into a reality.

Preparing for a landscape design consultation will help you maximize the success of this meeting.

In this article, we’ll talk about things like what you might expect and how you can prepare, so that you can feel confident about everything.

Jump to:

• What happens at a landscape consultation?

• Preparing for a landscape design consultation

• FAQs about the landscape consultation process

• Choosing landscape design services in Memphis

What happens at a landscape consultation?

The landscape consultation process might look slightly different depending on the different Memphis landscaping services that you might use. We can’t speak for other companies, but we’ll tell you about how Mid South Landscape & Irrigation handles this process and how it might differ from what other companies offer.

At Mid South Landscape & Irrigation, we’ll initially gather some information over the phone about your proposed project to determine if we’re the right fit for you. It is important to note that we take on larger landscaping projects (starting at $15,000), so if you’re just looking for a smaller project (like having a bed replaced and some mulching done), we might refer you to a smaller landscaping company.

Assuming we’re the right fit, our landscape consultation process starts with a face-to-face meeting with Jesse Wisley, Mid South Irrigation & Landscape company Owner and President.

When you begin a landscape project with Mid South Irrigation & Landscape, you are beginning a landscape project with Jesse himself. This is different from the way other Memphis landscaping services likely handle the landscape consultation process. You might have a representative from the company come out to meet with you.

Jesse only takes on two or three projects at a time in order to ensure this is possible and that premium service is provided to his clients. He handles every detail of your project from A to Z, starting with that landscape design consultation. Throughout the duration of your landscaping project with Jesse, you will develop a personal relationship with him, and will always be able to contact him directly. That makes all the difference when it comes to getting the best results.

During the landscape design consultation, Jesse will discuss your ideas with you, providing suggestions and feedback based on his experience and knowledge. There will also be a complete site evaluation and any potential challenges (like drainage) will be noted.

After the landscape design consultation, a design will be completed for your review. Depending on the complexity of your project, most landscape designs are completed within one to two weeks. This gives you something tangible to review as you’ll see exactly how your project will be brought to life.

Sometimes there is some back and forth in this part of the process as you might have tweaks or changes. But once you sign off on the design, we’ll get your project underway with the construction phase.

It’s an important fact that Mid South Irrigation & Landscape handles both the design AND the construction of your project. This is not the case with every Memphis landscaping service.

We do recommend finding a landscaping company that performs BOTH design and build work in-house. This allows for the most seamless experience possible and can help prevent a lot of mistakes and ensure the best results.

Preparing for a landscape design consultation

In order to maximize the value of this important meeting, it does help to prepare ahead of time. Here are a few ways that you can do that.

Know your goals

This is an easy one as most people have been dreaming about their outdoor living area for some time. But it can help to jot notes down and make sure you’re prepared with the goals you have in mind.

Think about how you want to use the space and what’s most important to you. These kinds of details are incredibly important when coming up with your landscape design. Even details about your lifestyle and how you use your yard can help tremendously.

• Do you have kids or pets?
• How do you currently use your yard…and how would you like to use your yard?
• Do you entertain often?
• How many people do you usually host?
• Are there problems you have with your current yard that you’d like to solve?

Be prepared to discuss all of this during the landscape consultation process.

Have pictures ready

As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words! It can be hard to get on exactly the same page when just talking about your ideas. It helps tremendously if you already have some photos of projects or ideas that you like.

There are many places online that you can browse for outdoor living project ideas. But we also recommend checking out our Gallery for inspiration. While we’re not out to recreate the same project twice (we don’t do cookie-cutter designs as your property is unique), you might pull various ideas from various projects. Then you can make them your own!

Be prepared with relevant details

Any details about your property and its boundaries is also helpful. You might have known drainage issues or problems that you’ve dealt with in the past. Tell your landscape designer about these.

If you have a copy of your property’s plot/survey that shows the property lines or easements on-site, that can be really helpful, particularly if you are doing anything up to the border, like a fence. Any paperwork or relevant details about your property can be important as we discuss starting a construction project.

Have at least an idea of budget

Homeowners commonly say they don’t have a budget in mind. But that’s rarely the full truth. Everyone usually has at least a threshold of how much they’d want to spend.

We understand that people don’t know how much landscaping costs. If you have never had a project done before or it’s been a long time, you might have no concept of what costs you should anticipate.

We have worked with many homeowners who have had projects done 10 or 15 years ago and are discouraged by how much more everything costs now. But that’s obviously the case with everything in life these days from going out to eat or buying groceries or fueling our cars.

It does help to at least have some concept of what you want to spend because that can help us give you more specifics about materials we can use or add-ons we can include. Materials cost what they cost, but there are always things that we can do within the confines of a budget to make changes and accommodate what you’re looking for with the finished project.

We can help talk through costs. In general, don’t be afraid to ask your landscape designer questions. This will help ensure everyone is on the same page.

FAQs about the landscape consultation process

Hopefully this has helped give you a better understanding of what happens at a landscape consultation. Here are some additional FAQs we are commonly asked.

What happens during the landscape design consultation?

A landscape consultation typically involves a face-to-face meeting with a landscape designer who will be designing your project. You’ll discuss wants, needs, and goals. Your landscape designer will also evaluate your property during this time. Then, they will create your custom landscape design.

Do I get a design right away?

No, the landscape design will take a little bit of time. Depending on the complexity of your project, most landscape designs are completed within one to two weeks.

Will plants be chosen for my climate?

Yes, that’s an important part of the process and why it’s important to choose a company that has horticultural knowledge and experience. Plants that will perform best for your specific site will be chosen.

What should I have ready for the consultation?

The biggest things to have ready for a landscape design consultation are your ideas and goals, pictures of your inspiration, and a rough idea of your budget.

Choosing landscape design services in Memphis

No matter what type of landscaping project you’re having done, you deserve a finished result that you are proud of and that helps to boost your home’s value. By partnering with the best landscape design services in Memphis, you can bring your ideas to life.

While you have plenty of choices for landscape design/build firms, we hope that you’ll consider Mid South Irrigation & Landscape.

At Mid South Irrigation & Landscape, the process begins with a high-quality and customized landscape design that incorporates your wants, needs, and ideas. It is this detailed process that helps ensure the end result is exactly what you were dreaming of (and then some!).

Once we’ve completed the landscape consultation process, and gotten an approved design back from you, we’ll move into the installation phase. We think it’s critically important to work with a company that can handle everything for you in-house.

Since you’ll also be working directly with our Owner and President, you can feel confident that you’re getting the best services and results.

Soon, you’ll be enjoying more time outside in your beautiful outdoor living space.

Give us a call! We’d love to work with you on your outdoor living space.

Ready to design your dream yard? Request a consultation today.