Roots of Resilience: Celebrating a Year of Growth in Native Landscaping
As 2024 has come to a close, we find ourselves grateful for another incredible year in the world of native landscaping and growing eco-functional awareness. We’re thankful for our wonderful clients who have entrusted Spirited Gardener to bring their visions to life and for our talented team whose hard work and dedication make everything possible. Together, we’re not only creating beautiful spaces but also fostering hope for the environment and a sense of purpose in what we can do to address climate change challenges. Every garden we design and build is one more step toward a healthier, more sustainable future and more optimism for our shared ecosystems.
This past year was full of inspiring projects, and we will be sharing more about them in the coming months. Each project has its own story, challenges, and triumphs, and seeing them come to life reminds me why I love this work. This process which we share with our clients. The three properties highlighted show the variety and impact of our efforts:
This client's garden is a prime example of how native plants blossom after a year of love
Bernstein – Year 2: Thriving Through Stewardship
It’s been inspiring to see how the Bernstein garden has evolved in its second year. This project highlights the incredible potential of native gardens when paired with committed stewardship. The client has taken an active role in maintaining and nurturing their garden, and the results speak for themselves. What began as a carefully planned mix of planted areas were then strategically seeded into by the client with the more mature plantings of the previous year anchoring the newly evolving biodiverse ecosystem as Nature took over and began to run its course. Butterflies, birds, and pollinators have all found a home here, and our client delighted in watching and guiding the process. He truly has grown a relationship to the plants and their relationships to the dryness and wetness of different areas of the garden. The garden has become a vibrant reflection of what’s possible with patience and attentive response to what Nature is directing.
Dadey: Collaborating to Enhance a Vision
This project was all about collaboration and refinement. The client already had a native garden she’d created herself, which
From left: Part of clients existing garden, and front garden redesign.
showed her passion and commitment to supporting local ecosystems. However, she wanted guidance to make the design more intentional, impactful and utilizing the water that came off the downspout in ways that had not been considered prior to our collaboration. Together, we worked to amend her existing garden by adding new layers of structure and functionality. One of the key additions was a rain garden, designed to manage stormwater while adding an eye-catching feature to the landscape. We also reorganized her plants at the entrance beds to the right of the entrance to create a stronger design flow, ensuring each area felt purposeful and cohesive. The result is a garden that not only supports nature but also brings the client’s vision to life in a more organized way.
Jacobson: Creating and Sustaining Beauty
The Jacobsen project beautifully demonstrates how native gardening can blend functionality with ecological beauty. This client had another contractor install a wheelchair-friendly hardscape to create an accessible entrance that supports aging in place. We were brought in to complement this hardscape with a native plant design that harmonizes with the surroundings. Our goal was to create a landscape that would be both pleasing to the neighbors and be a haven for wildlife. The design included adding all season blooms some to attract specifically hummingbirds, some native ephemerals to nourish newly emerging insects in spring and a field of Oak Sedge to replace the lawn. With ongoing stewardship, this garden will continue to grow and flourish, serving as an example of how thoughtful design can balance aesthetics, accessibility, and sustainability.
Each of these gardens tells a unique story, and we’re so amazed at what we’ve accomplished this year in collaboration with our clients. These projects reflect the heart of what native gardening is all about: creating spaces that are as beneficial for the environment as they are beautiful and functional for people.
As we look ahead to 2025, we are eager to continue building meaningful connections with our clients, nature, and community, creating gardens that inspire and nurture. And might we add that growing food is also a part of this vision for a more integrated home landscape. Thank you for being part of this journey, and here’s to another year of growing together!
This past year was full of inspiring projects, and we will be sharing more about them in the coming months. Each project has its own story, challenges, and triumphs, and seeing them come to life reminds me why I love this work. This process which we share with our clients. The three properties highlighted show the variety and impact of our efforts:
This client's garden is a prime example of how native plants blossom after a year of love
Bernstein – Year 2: Thriving Through StewardshipIt’s been inspiring to see how the Bernstein garden has evolved in its second year. This project highlights the incredible potential of native gardens when paired with committed stewardship. The client has taken an active role in maintaining and nurturing their garden, and the results speak for themselves. What began as a carefully planned mix of planted areas were then strategically seeded into by the client with the more mature plantings of the previous year anchoring the newly evolving biodiverse ecosystem as Nature took over and began to run its course. Butterflies, birds, and pollinators have all found a home here, and our client delighted in watching and guiding the process. He truly has grown a relationship to the plants and their relationships to the dryness and wetness of different areas of the garden. The garden has become a vibrant reflection of what’s possible with patience and attentive response to what Nature is directing.
Dadey: Collaborating to Enhance a Vision
This project was all about collaboration and refinement. The client already had a native garden she’d created herself, which
From left: Part of clients existing garden, and front garden redesign.
showed her passion and commitment to supporting local ecosystems. However, she wanted guidance to make the design more intentional, impactful and utilizing the water that came off the downspout in ways that had not been considered prior to our collaboration. Together, we worked to amend her existing garden by adding new layers of structure and functionality. One of the key additions was a rain garden, designed to manage stormwater while adding an eye-catching feature to the landscape. We also reorganized her plants at the entrance beds to the right of the entrance to create a stronger design flow, ensuring each area felt purposeful and cohesive. The result is a garden that not only supports nature but also brings the client’s vision to life in a more organized way.
Jacobson: Creating and Sustaining BeautyThe Jacobsen project beautifully demonstrates how native gardening can blend functionality with ecological beauty. This client had another contractor install a wheelchair-friendly hardscape to create an accessible entrance that supports aging in place. We were brought in to complement this hardscape with a native plant design that harmonizes with the surroundings. Our goal was to create a landscape that would be both pleasing to the neighbors and be a haven for wildlife. The design included adding all season blooms some to attract specifically hummingbirds, some native ephemerals to nourish newly emerging insects in spring and a field of Oak Sedge to replace the lawn. With ongoing stewardship, this garden will continue to grow and flourish, serving as an example of how thoughtful design can balance aesthetics, accessibility, and sustainability.
Each of these gardens tells a unique story, and we’re so amazed at what we’ve accomplished this year in collaboration with our clients. These projects reflect the heart of what native gardening is all about: creating spaces that are as beneficial for the environment as they are beautiful and functional for people.
As we look ahead to 2025, we are eager to continue building meaningful connections with our clients, nature, and community, creating gardens that inspire and nurture. And might we add that growing food is also a part of this vision for a more integrated home landscape. Thank you for being part of this journey, and here’s to another year of growing together!
Jan 10, 2025 by
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