It's a confusing industry, no doubt about it.

Landscape Architects are trained to do large projects, will know all about drainage, grading, proper installation of paving, etc. Some who do mostly large commercial or municipal projects may not be interested in your project, others will be. I've heard that some LAs are not as interested in or experienced with garden design, having most of their experience in bigger projects, but I'm sure there are plenty who do a lot of residential work and are very plant savvy. As with any profession, there will be great LAs, and there will be hacks. At the very least, they will be licensed by the state and will have passed a test.

A landscape designer may or may not have any formal training or credentials. Some may have degrees in horticulture and a keen interest in design. Some may be self taught, or learned from on the job experience with another designer. Some may know how to do drainage and hardscape planning, some may be winging it. Some may have been a guy with a truck and a mower last year, and a designer this year. All of the above may be either very good, very bad, or somewhere in between, in terms of experience and the quality of their work.

The guy with the backhoe, if he has done lots of driveways in the past, will probably know how to correctly install a driveway so that you can drive on it. Will he have any imagination when it comes to placement, shape, material, and integration with other landscape elements? Maybe, if he's done installations on high end jobs for designers in the past. Maybe not. So many driveways and walks are poorly thought out when installed by builders and contractors, even though technically correct as far as installation in concerned.

A trained designer, whether an LA or an LD, or one who was born with a good eye and has experience, may be able to make suggestions for subtle details that could make the difference between functional and beautiful without driving the cost too high.

The design-build guy can do the design for free for a couple of possible reasons. Either it's not much of a design, so he doesn't lose much time doing it, or he can make up the cost when he does the job. There is more profit in the markup on plants, materials and labor than he will make on a design fee.

It's possible you can find a designer, whose work you love, to create a design for you for a fee, and then get your own prices for contractors to do the work. Usually, if designers have installers they use regularly, they know the quality of the company's work, and whether they show up when they're supposed to, etc. On your own, you may get someone who will do a sloppy installation or cut corners. Especially if the price is really low.

Or maybe not. You could find someone who can do a great design and install it for a lower price because they're new and they need the work.

It all comes down to finding someone with a portfolio of built work that you can see in person, satisfied customers that will give them a good reference, and a price that you can afford to pay.

There have been some other threads on the topic, do a search of this forum for Landscape Architect, Landscape Designer, Hiring a designer, you'll get some hits you can read through.
I'm sure some of the pros and those who've worked with them will respond here as well.

Being a lanscape installer/contractor for 20 years without a degree I must say that experience is better than paper.
I remember when I was 25 and the crew and I would laugh at the silly ideas the Landscape achitect would come up with. We fixed many a drainage issue while they whined that thier plan wasnt being followed.

Rule of thumb, if the guy hasnt spent a few dozen or hundred hours on the buisness end of a shovel you most likely dont need him.

The trick is finding a good quality landscape contractor that has put in hundreds of good landscapes. He can give you a good design and install it without the added cost you get from an achitect. Of course the people holding the paper with the degree on it will say im wrong. Show me the land and ill give you options for scaping it, no degree, no extra cost. Thats not to say there are no good landscape architects, there are, but any experienced contractor can do what anyone with a degree can do.

A heavy equipment operator is not a landscaper. Most equpiment operators and builders think they are landscapers but few are. You need an experienced landscape contractor, not an equipment operator or an architect. Check references and go look at thier jobs.

"but any experienced contractor can do what anyone with a degree can do."

In the situation you describe, you'd probably be fine with a landscape contractor. Landscape Architects work in much greater detail than landscape contractors and I find the above quote to be both true and untrue. On a basic residential scale- potentially true. On larger, more detailed projects- mostly untrue. For your project, I agree that a landscape contractor is your best bet (disclaimer: I work for a landscape design/build contractor, have a LA degree but not the LA license- I may or may not get the license since I work at a residential scale).

thank you all for really well thought-out responses! that's rare, in my experience.

landscape contractor -- what is that? i haven't heard of that term before. is it a general one, that might be called different things in different places, or a consistent title?

the aesthetic of the final project is what's most important to me. i'd love to have the most made of my property, to look out the window, or approach the house, and see something beautiful. i was cursed with a very picky eye for things, and no talent to design them! it doesn't sound like it's an easy job finding the right person to work with. i guess i just have to expect to do a lot of asking around and interviewing.

A landscape contractor is someone who intalls hardscape or plants or both. They may or may not get involved in the design phase. Your design build guy would be a contractor who also designs, whether or not there is someone there with formal training doing the designs and how good they are can vary considerably.

The contractor that I worked with on some of my landscaping does does all of the brick, stone, and concrete work, lighting and irrigation rough-in and planting. He refers people to a designer for complex hardscapes and planting plans, subs out fences and electrical tie-in work, and anything he can't do with a bobcat.

Each one does what they know how to do, hopefully, and subs out the rest, and it can be different from one company to another.

It sounds like the design is important to you. I would ask around at nurseries for names of designers and LAs in your area. Ask landscape contractors who install the designs of others who they would recommend.

I used a well-known designer for my overall layout a few years ago by checking out his website and arranging for a consultation when he was in CT on a speaking engagement, and I was very pleased with the results.

saypoint is on I would say. Skills do vary considerably. Getting references and checking the jobs a contractor or designer has done is important. Once you see thier work and talk to thier clients you will know if they are what you are looking for.

Also, good designers and LA's will push to have installers who they are most comfortable working with and get good results with. One of the results of this is that "not so elite" LAs and designers and their projects are much more ikely to be seen and bid on by a larger group of varying levels of contractors.

If Joe's Lawn Care has bid on an LAs job, you could probably assume that it is not a well established LA. Then Joe will say "Every LA plan I have seen is terrible. They don't know plants, they don't leave access for mowing, .....". Joe is speaking the truth, but Joe is not getting invited to bid on good jobs either.

That makes working with very reputable designers and LAs difficult because they want their work to come out just the way it is meant to be. That means they need to select the contractor and manage the project which also means more expense. They find that this is not something they can do for everyone, so they only market to people who are likely to be able to have them do this. Then they are called elitist snobs because they won't bother with jobs on houses under a million. The reason is that they know that they are much less likely to get the job, so they do not want to spend the time meeting the client, hearing what they want, and writing up a proposal only to have it be a waste of time. A designer may get five calls outside of their demographic for each within it. If they made proposals for all, they would be keeping themselves from working productively. After a while, they realise this and start "profiling" or "prescreening" clients so that they market to a more likely client base.

Then people get upset because they won't come out to visit.

It never hurts to ask at at GC or nursery, but don't be surprised if they refuse to recommend specific designers. I work at a GC and while we have a space where we let people leave cards, we don't make recommendations. Actually, we aren't ALLOWED to make recommendations. Store policy.

There are a couple of reasons for this.

1) If we recommend an LA or LD and the client is unhappy with the final result, we don't want to be linked in a potential customer's mind with that negative result.

2) We supply many of the LD's and LA's in town; we don't want to be seen as "playing favorites."

When someone asks me for a rec, I point them to the "card catalog" as a first resource. I also suggest the yellow pages. Then I tell them to start asking their friends and acquaintances for suggestions. Local garden clubs can be a good source for leads. As can the garden tour...

Oh, and DON'T try picking Garden Center employees' brains on a Saturday or Sunday in planting season. We are too insane this time of year to be of any use. If you really want some undivided attention...go to the GC on a weekday morning. Before it gets hot.

melanie

I'd suggest you contact APLD (Association of Professional Landscape Designers), which is as close to any regulated/certification process for an LD as you are likely to find. This is a pretty active, national organization with an established set of standards and a great source for locating an experienced professional designer. There doesn't seem to be a specific chapter for New York, but depending on your location, either the New Jersey or New England chapters may be appropriate. Or a search of their website should turn up a local contact.

Here is a link that might be useful: APLD chapter contacts