GARDENS BY THE YARD

I wanted to create a more inviting backyard but wasn’t able to do it on my own. Leisha understood what I was looking for and created an outdoor space that was better than I could even imagine. My patio is now surrounded by a gorgeous perennial garden, lattice and thuja combined provide a buffer from our busy street, and new hardscape has been added to move the grill out of the traffic area. Leisha had so many wonderful ideas that we ended up implementing. The people who worked on our yard were meticulous and hard working save for one subcontractor. Leisha let him go and made up for his errors out of her own pocket. We couldn’t be happier with our new outdoor space.

Gardens By the Yard, owner Leisha Johnson and her hard working and enthusiastic crew were hired for a large project which involved transforming most of our property. Lawn was significantly reduced and natural gardens were designed and installed that are ecologically sensitive and very creative. Invasive species were identified and safely removed. Leisha was great to collaborate with and she and her well-trained crew have significant horticultural knowledge. The firm was also able to coordinate bringing in knowledgeable and trusted associates for hardscape, irrigation and outdoor lighting work. Communication was constant, timely and clear. The scope of the project required many months of work and Leisha and all crews went above and beyond in investing themselves in the outcome. They were always respectful of our home, property and neighborhood. Work will resume in the spring, but we now have landscape to be proud of and proof that environmentally sensitive gardens can be beautiful.

We are thrilled with the work done by Gardens By The Yard. We had a recent home renovation that left an already sad yard in great disrepair. Gardens By The Yard literally transformed the space into an incredible area that has everything we ever wanted--grass for playing, a basketball court, fenced in areas for our new puppy, and beautiful garden spaces. Working with the team has been so smooth, and Leisha worked hard to accommodate our schedules to make sure we were in excellent communication all along the way. We chose them originally because of the focus on ecology, and the team did not disappoint as they made this the focus of the whole project. They took our input, including input from our kids, and worked with us to help us find the perfect outcome. All the crews that came to work on the house were so kind, with excellent work quality. We could not be more pleased with the outcome of this project!!

Leisha and the team at Garden’s by the Yard helped me address some very difficult landscaping issues. Our lot borders conservation land and is slopped and extremely rocky. In addition, it is not accessible to heavy machinery. We experienced significant drainage and erosion issues. The team put in two French drains to help with erosion and Leisha developed a planting plan that leaned toward natives, would provide multiple season colors, aid in water control and would thrive in our complex soil conditions. They also installed an irrigation system to help set us up for success. The team has returned multiple times to check on the plantings and provide additional upkeep and guidance The yard turned out beautiful and I am extremely pleased. Leisha and her team were knowledgeable and easy to work with. The crews were hard-working and extremely respectful of our property.

We have been thrilled with Leisha, her team, and collaborators. Leisha’s knowledge of horticulture is vast, and she really listens to the client about their goals for the space. I especially appreciated her ability to balance my desire to reuse healthy plants on the property with a new design that is visually appealing, increasing ‘curb appeal’. We discussed goals for use and visual design, concerns about wildlife impact, water runoff, etc. Leisha is very collaborative. She’ll explain why something you had envisioned may or may not work, and also provide alternative ideas that get at the spirit of what you want. This makes her an extremely valuable partner. Her team is prompt, careful, and leaves everything looking beautiful. It’s easy to check in with them if I have a question. People walking down the street love the garden, and when I am outside many folks stop and say how beautiful and lush the garden looks. I have referred several people!

We are extremely pleased with the work, communication, dedication, and knowledge brought to this large project by Leisha and her whole Gardens by the Yard team. As explained below, we were starting with a clean slate, giving us the opportunity to create a new and different landscaping from the one that we inherited when we bought the property. With Leisha’s guidance, we jointly designed a landscape that addressed practicality, traditional expectations, and environmental concerns simultaneously. It was definitely a process! We became educated about native plants, pollinators and their host plants, and lawn alternatives. We had as much – or as little – input into the design as we wanted. Thankfully, if we opted out and asked Leisha to just do what she felt was best, she’d come through for us. As always, the crew was great! We appreciate their knowledge, respect, and dedication. We especially enjoy their ability to work with us in a team effort to create a place of peace and joy.

Leisha and her crew at Gardens By the Yard provide superior care of our landscaping. Her employees are incredibly knowledgeable and friendly and passionate about their work. Our yard has never looked better. GBTY is the best landscaping company with whom we have ever worked. Highly recommend!

The project was a tremendous experience. Leisha and her team took a shaded area where nothing was growing and transformed it into beautiful woodland garden. She showed me that with the right selection and installation of native plants I could have an attractive, low maintenace garden that supports birds and pollinators. She’s an expert gardener and designer and has a team that are considerate and professional. I can’t recommend them highly enough.

Leisha and her crew were wonderful! She is a wonderful listener and her expertise was just what I needed. The crew were hard working, consistent and talented.

Leisha and team turned our dream into reality! She worked with us through concept, design, and implementation of our project. Our yard was crab grass surrounded by a falling down fence that had been savaged by our kids. It is relatively small and we wanted to make it more livable and amenable to entertaining. Work done included laying of two patios, a custom designed grill station and outdoor table, pergola, shed, outdoor lighting, irrigation, new stairs, fence, and lots of plantings. It is completely transformed! We even find excuses to socialize in our new outdoor living space in the winter. Attention to detail was 10/10 and she was always an email, text message, or phone call away. Cost and budget was straightforward and not billed until all work was complete (including the details). I highly recommend Leisha and Gardens by the Yard.

Gardens by the Yard worked with us every step of the way, offering design suggestions but never insisting; providing expertise when it came to finicky underground sprinkler systems as well as overall expertise as to what was recommended for sunny and shady areas; responding to last-minute calls for advice and guidance about watering, etc.; and just generally being available. They paid specific attention to our rather unusual request for moss beds. We would like to make a particular shout-out to the Gardens by the Yard crew. Every single member was wonderful to work with: knowledgeable, responsive, friendly and caring when it came to achieving what it was we were aiming for. They also interfaced very well with other contractors (stone masons, irrigation specialists, tree crews, land survey crews, etc.) In short, Gardens by the Yard knows how to achieve a great result and they did. We anticipate that the full impact of our project won't be known until Spring 2023, but we expect it to be a very good one.

I trust Gardens by the Yard. Leisha and her team are dependable and diligent. Even if I had the time, will or skills, I could not do outdoor projects as well as they do.

Better than I ever could imagine. Leisha has been wonderful and her crew is skilled in masonry as well as knowledgeable about trees, plants. Leisha is sensitive, listens well and has a plethora of resources. We are working on finding the perfect water feature

Leisha and here team seamlessly managed the project from start to end, working with a number of local providers (irrigation, fence installation, tree work, seeding) in addition to their own crew. The results have been fabulous - Leisha set a vision that met our needs and presented multiple options and approaches to accommodate budget. She is detailed oriented and keeps the homeowner's preferences top of mind.

I am very happy with the work of Leisha and her team! I wanted to transform a part of our backyard lawn into a pollinator garden. Although this was not a huge piece of land Leisha took the request seriously, came to see the yard and its surroundings and then made a reasonable offer. She designed what plants would be put in and drafted an online plant book for me with more information about the plants. Communication was always easy and quick - I'm very happy with the result and love the view out of the kitchen window now!

Leisha, Robert, and the rest of the GBTY team have completed several landscape projects for us over the past couple years, and they do fantastic work. We had a 20-year-old vegetable garden with timber-framed raised beds on a slope in various stages of wearing out. They replaced and repaired the timbers and walkways in place without tearing down the whole garden. This was a very hard job done well that required careful work around irrigation and fencing in process of replacement as well as preservation of fertile garden soil. We are partway through another project where they have carefully removed invasive species across one side of our property and will be planting a meadow of native plants as an alternative to conventional lawn in the spring. GBTY has also spruced up and helped maintain our many beds of flowering plants. GBTY is a versatile and enthusiastic team that is easy to work with and can tackle any landscape project.

Very nice to work with and great job done on cleanup, pruning and planting

Leisha listened carefully to my wishes and proposed a creative and beautiful native plant garden. She was flexible as we encountered unforeseen challenges and her team did an excellent work installing a wildlife-friendly planting. I am very happy with Leisha and her team. I enthusiastically recommend her for garden design - and especially for anyone considering a rewinding or native plant project.

Work was excellent. I am thrilled with the results. Leisha worked with me to get the results I wanted and her crew is wonderful!

Gardens by the Yard is a a phenomenal landscaping team from its owner and head landscape designer to the entire group of workers. I asked for a low maintenance, perennial garden at the best possible price. Leisha listened carefully to my needs and thought carefully about what would work in a heavily shaded space and what colors would look best with mu house and the overall environment. Consulting me as they went along, her team planted everything perfectly. I have never encountered a more courteous, helpful group. Leisha has designed a gorgeous garden that is giving me immense pleasure and will do so for many years to come--and at a price that I could afford. In short, my experience with Gardens by the Yard was simply terrific!

Leisha and her team are top notch professionals- very knowledgeable about perennials, weed management and water/drainage issues. They are pleasant and hard working. Covid and weather issues (excessive rain and heat) prevented work from being done as initially scheduled but Leisha was a reliable communicator who kept me updated. She was so easy to work with that I ended up expanding the project to include trimming of my hedges along my property line. I was extremely pleased with the finished result of my project and have rehired her to tackle another section of my property. I was especially impressed by her software which made designing the many project details easy to envision.

GBTY was great to work with. Leisha took into account my budget and provided options to choose from. Her landscaping staff was professional, prompt and kept the yard neat during the installation. She has followed-up with me multiple times to make sure the new plants are thriving.

Leisha is extremely knowledgeable in her field and guided us every step of the way. Her prices were reasonable and well documented, her service was excellent and responsive and the results are outstanding

The crew constructing the stone wall was fabulous! All rock came from the property, was split by hand as needed and built into a terraced hillside. Leisha is very knowledgeable about plants and landscape design. She has a wealth of experience in what grows well in different sites and which nurseries are best. Her crew is efficient, delightful to work with and very knowledgeable in their areas of expertise. They not infrequently come up with suggestions on how to improve the project.

Leisha and her Gardens by the Yard team were a pleasure to work with. She is an excellent project manager. She managed her own employees and hired/oversaw excellent independent contractors including irrigation and lighting experts, masons and driveway pavers - and transformed our home with their expert work and fair prices. Leisha was both creative and attentive. And she managed the project/organized the work on time and very close to on budget. She continues to take care of our home with thoughtfulness and pride, as we have hired her to maintain the landscaping she worked so hard to create.