--- title: "Argia Designs Landscape Design & Consultation — Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers | Houzz" canonical_html_url: https://www.houzz.com/professionals/landscape-architects-and-landscape-designers/argia-designs-landscape-design-and-consultation-pfvwus-pf~1669427334 markdown_url: https://www.houzz.com/md/professionals/pf~1669427334.md entity_type: LocalBusiness business_name: "Argia Designs Landscape Design & Consultation" category: ["Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers"] image: https://st.hzcdn.com/fimgs/b113b4c90a95cb08_6087-w400-h400-b0-p0--.jpg address: "San Francisco, California 94131, United States" latitude: 37.745 longitude: -122.4383 phone: "(760) 420-2411" website: http://www.argiadesigns.com rating: 5 review_count: 8 best_of_houzz_awards: 2 followers: 176 last_updated: 2026-09-20 --- # Argia Designs Landscape Design & Consultation Original Houzz profile: [Argia Designs Landscape Design & Consultation](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/landscape-architects-and-landscape-designers/argia-designs-landscape-design-and-consultation-pfvwus-pf~1669427334) ## Professional summary - **Primary category:** Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers - **Location:** San Francisco, CA - **Serves:** San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Daly City, Alameda, Palo Alto, South San Francisco, San Bruno, Pacifica, Menlo Park, Foster City, Los Altos, Burlingame, Belmont, Albany, Emeryville, Tamalpais-Homestead Valley, Hillsborough, Tiburon, Sausalito, Brisbane, Broadmoor, Portola Valley, Marin City, Belvedere, Colma, Muir Beach, Belvedere Tiburon - **Houzz rating:** 5.0 out of 5 (8 reviews) - **Best of Houzz:** 2 awards (2015–2016), for Service, Design. ## About ### Houzz Badges - Star Houzzer - Houzz Influencer - Recommended on Houzz - 25,000 Ideabook Saves Landscape designer, consultant and owner/founder of Argia Designs, a California landscape design and consultation firm specializing in regenerative and sustainable landscape design since 2004. Born and raised in San Diego, Morgan has designed residential and commercial gardens, landscapes and hard scapes throughout Southern California and the San Francisco Bay Area. Morgan's work is a blend of art and science - creating beautiful and livable outdoor spaces that also focus on creating healthy, living soils; utilizing climate appropriate plant materials; creating habitat; and reducing environmental impacts. With California's enduring drought and the acute demand for a more sustainable and regenerative approach to landscape design, Morgan's designs are proof of her passion and dedication to sustainable design and conservation. Her work has been featured in UT San Diego’s Home and Garden Magazine and has won "Best of Houzz" in both Design and Service in 2015/2016. Morgan has been a featured speaker on sustainable design at the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, the Landscape Industry Show, the Del Mar Fair Garden Show, and numerous HOAs and garden groups. She has worked with non-profit groups including the Surfrider Foundation, the US Green Building Council and the California Native Plant Society to spread awareness about the importance of water conservation, runoff reduction and other sustainable design practices. ### Services Provided - Landscape Design - Garden Design - Landscape Plans - Patio Design - Drought Tolerant Landscaping - Custom Fire Pits - Custom Water Features - Design Consultation - Drafting - Organic Gardens - Edible Gardens - Custom Bocce Ball Courts - Potted Plants - Interior Plant Design ### Areas Served - San Francisco - Oakland - Berkeley - Daly City - Alameda - Palo Alto - South San Francisco - San Bruno - Pacifica - Menlo Park - Foster City - Los Altos - Burlingame - Belmont - Albany - Emeryville - Tamalpais-Homestead Valley - Hillsborough - Tiburon - Sausalito - Brisbane - Broadmoor - Portola Valley - Marin City - Belvedere - Colma - Muir Beach - Belvedere Tiburon ### Typical Job Cost $300 - 10,000 ## Business Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Business Name | Argia Designs Landscape Design & Consultation | | Address | San Francisco, California 94131, United States | | Phone | (760) 420-2411 | | Website | http://www.argiadesigns.com | | Followers on Houzz | 176 | **Social profiles:** - Facebook — http://www.facebook.com/argiadesigns - X (Twitter) — https://twitter.com/ArgiaDesigns - LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/morgan-feilmeier-8806b710/ - Blog — http://argiadesigns.com/ ## Contact - **Houzz profile:** [Argia Designs Landscape Design & Consultation](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/landscape-architects-and-landscape-designers/argia-designs-landscape-design-and-consultation-pfvwus-pf~1669427334) - **Website:** http://www.argiadesigns.com - **Phone:** (760) 420-2411 ## Credentials **Certifications & Awards** - QWEL (Qualified Water Efficient Landscaper) Certified since 2021 - Best of Houzz 2015 "Design" and 2016 "Service", San Diego Spring Home and Garden Show "Best San Diego Adapted Garden" 2010, San Diego Spring Home and Garden Show "Best Art Feature" 2009, Lakewood Beautiful Garden Award - **Best of Houzz:** 2 awards (2015–2016), for Service, Design. ## Reviews **Overall rating: 5.0 out of 5 — 8 reviews** ### All 8 reviews **★★★★★ — 1mariposita, Feb. 2016** > We are so glad we found Morgan to help us redo our front and back yards. We wanted native plant, drought tolerant features and Morgan was extremely knowledgeable about all of these needs. She was very communicative and patient with all of our details and questions. She made sure the design was beautiful, but also functional for our family as we grow through different stages. We are thrilled with the result! **★★★★★ — mmatteson56, Feb. 2016** > Morgan did an awesome job designing our backyard. She had many creative ideas and also easy to work with. We highly recommend Morgan and would not hesitate to work with her in the future. **★★★★★ — laurabaedeker, Oct. 2015** > We were complete newbies at the whole landscape design thing, and I knew from our first meeting we would be in fantastic hands with Morgan. She is absolutely the best. Not only is she super knowledgable and skilled in her field, she's also great at channeling what \*you\* want and need in a project. Her aesthetic sense is superb and her resourcefulness makes actually bringing the vision to life so much easier. Bonus: she's just wonderful to hang out in your yard with. My highest recommendation. **★★★★★ — lawellens, Jan. 2015** > Have worked with Morgan of Argia Designs two times - two different properties and two very different designs. Morgan was really skilled at including everything we wanted in a landscape and tailoring it to the style of the property. Currently, we live in an old, rustic Spanish Bungalow. Morgan's design was perfect. All of the elements came together in the best way. Love her attention to detail and the way our landscape compliments our home. **★★★★★ — Andrea Jarrell, Jan. 2015** > I can't write enough wonderful things about Morgan and Argia Designs. We did a complete remodel on a home and horse barn on 4 acres. 4 barren acres! Morgan's vision created an oasis for my family. It's drought tolerant, easy to maintain but aesthetically stunning and perfect for outdoor entertaining. We live outside and love and use every piece of our outdoors from the outdoor movie theater at the barn, to the pool, to the firepit to the edible gardens. Morgan is enthusiastic, reliable, and has an amazing eye. Thank you, Morgan, for making our property our dream home. **★★★★★ — virhyd, Jan. 2015** > Morgan listened carefully to what I wanted in my yard re-design and seemed to understand intuitively. The design she created couldn't have been more beautiful or better-suited to the appearance of my house. I wanted native plants and she chose ones (many manzanitas) that remain lovely all year long. She added in design elements--pebble pathways, boulders. The resulting design has unity, grace, simplicity rather than clutter, and a kind of subtle symmetry. Her design was prepared promptly and she provided ample large copies of the plans. I am very pleased with her work! **★★★★★ — mel3boys, April 2013** > Morgan is creative, I loved her spare aesthetic ,beautiful fence design and nothing overdone or over planted . She is easy to work with and listens! To her client's needs and wants. She is reasonably priced too. We got more comments on our yard from strangers driving or walking by, so we were not the olnly people impressed with her designs **★★★★★ — leo6, March 2013** > I first met Morgan at the Garden Show in Del Mar about 4 years ago. I was immediately drawn to her sense of design & use of materials. > I felt like she had a "less is more" approach to Landscape Design, which I was drawn to. > Morgan helped take my ideas for a frontyard re-model and refined them into a working plan that fit my vision perfectly. > She is talented, organized and extremely enjoyable to work with. > I will not hesitate to hire Morgan again in the future. ## Selected projects - [Burlingame Backyard Haven](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/burlingame-backyard-haven-pj-vj~7100620) - Location: Burlingame, CA - Photos: 16 - [Sustainable Modern Ranch](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/sustainable-modern-ranch-pj-vj~589173) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 19 - [Soledad Mountain Mid Century Modern](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/soledad-mountain-mid-century-modern-pj-vj~756384) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 4 - [Ocean Friendly Duplex](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/ocean-friendly-duplex-pj-vj~203901) - Location: Oceanside, CA - Photos: 12 - Description: This garden was designed by Argia Designs to come up to the sustainability standards of the Surfrider Foundation's Ocean Friendly Gardens Program - a program that works with homeowners to teach the basics of sustainable landscape design and installation. The hardscape was installed by Park Care Landscape and the native and drought tolerant plant materials and dry stream were installed by Surfrider Volunteers as a part of the OFG Program. - [Del Mar Contemporary](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/del-mar-contemporary-pj-vj~2859) - Location: Del Mar, CA - Photos: 6 - Description: The owners of this beautiful coastal California home called us when they were ready to renovate their front garden, an old slump stone wall and iceplant leftover from the previous homeowner. We removed portions of the block wall to incorporate horizontal fencing which softened the inner courtyard and allowed for more light and re-finished the rest of the wall with a smooth stucco to compliment the newly painted house. The entry is custom poured concrete slabs and, since street parking in the are… - [Old California Historic Renovation](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/old-california-historic-renovation-pj-vj~756391) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 6 - [Coastal View Cottage](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/coastal-view-cottage-pj-vj~173091) - Location: Carlsbad, CA - Photos: 5 - Description: The owners wanted to replace the thirsty, tired lawn in this west facing garden in Carlsbad. We designed a drought tolerant cottage garden with a bocce ball court, flagstone paths, and gazebo where they can sit on sunny days and enjoy their view of the coast. The native and drought tolerant plant materials include a dymondia lawn, sages, buckwheats and a variety of native and drought tolerant grasses. - [University Native Garden](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/university-native-garden-pj-vj~589195) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 5 - [Birdwatcher's Habitat Garden](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/birdwatcher-s-habitat-garden-pj-vj~13224) - Location: Carlsbad, CA - Photos: 5 - Description: An avid birdwatcher this homeowner wanted to create a habitat garden and relaxing sanctuary to replace the filled in pool that was there when she moved in. - [Clairmont Sustainable Garden](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/clairmont-sustainable-garden-pj-vj~39153) - Location: Clairmont San Diego, CA - Photos: 9 - Description: After remodeling the interior of their Clairmont home the homeowners wanted a new, drought tolerant garden to accent their beautiful interior. We designed a new entry path, covered the existing concrete block wall with new smooth stucco and replaced the decorative concrete blocks with horizontal redwood slats. We also installed a dry stream to collect rainwater and a driveway cut to direct rainwater running off of the driveway into the landscape instead of out to the street. - [Gemologist's Stone Garden](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/gemologist-s-stone-garden-pj-vj~19035) - Location: Carlsbad, CA - Photos: 7 - Description: A love of stone was the inspiration behind this Carlsbad drought tolerant garden. The husband, a gemologist and micro-photographer and wife, an avid lover of wildlife and native and drought tolerant gardens wanted a garden in which they could showcase their passion for geology and nature. Still a work in progress and waiting for the native plant material which will tie it all together! - [Los Alamitos Native Garden](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/los-alamitos-native-garden-pj-vj~2860) - Location: Los Alamitos, CA - Photos: 5 - Description: The owners of this Los Alamitos home wished to convert their lawn with native plantings. We helped them to design a native habitat complete with butterfly and bird plantings, a recirculating water feature for birds and flagstone access paths. This home is now a rental and the homeowners have a new beautiful home for which we designed another native habitat garden for front and back! This garden was 1 year old at time photos were taken. - [Escondido Native Habitat Gardens](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/escondido-native-habitat-gardens-pj-vj~203990) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 5 - Description: The owners of this home above San Diego's San Pascual Valley converted their lawn and water thirsty plantings to native habitat around 10 years ago. Following the 2007 wildfires that surrounded their home and burned many of the slopes surrounding their home, we worked with the homeowner to provide a plan for replacing the burned landscape with native habitat plantings including manzanita and sage. - [San Diego Spring Home and Garden Shows 2009, 2010, 2011](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/san-diego-spring-home-and-garden-shows-2009-2010-2011-pj-vj~19036) - Location: Del Mar, CA - Photos: 7 - Description: Garden Show displays for the Del Mar Spring Home and Garden Shows from 2009-2011. Awards included: Best Art Feature (2009) for our aluminum agave sculpture, made by Morgan from reclaimed aluminum rain gutters and Best San Diego Adapted Garden (2010) for our garden comprised of entirely California native plant materials and reclaimed hardscape materials. - [Burlingame Outdoor Living](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/burlingame-outdoor-living-pj-vj~7575321) - Location: Burlingame, CA [See all 15 projects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/landscape-architects-and-landscape-designers/argia-designs-landscape-design-and-consultation-pfvwus-pf~1669427334) ## Ideabooks - [Inspiration](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/54910500/list/inspiration) — 2 ideas - [Argia](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/54502566/list/argia) — 5 ideas - [Fire](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/42885061/list/fire) — 1 idea [See all 4 ideabooks](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/users/argiadesigns) ## Community Q&A **Q: Grasses** *(in Photo Questions)* What are the grasses you used in your design? A: We used a number of grasses and grass-like plants including Carex sp., Phormium and Stipa/Nassella tenuissima. A note: The feather grass is considered invasive so I don't use adjacent to any natural areas. Aristida purpurea is a native alternative which has a similar and beautiful form. **Q: Rocky soil for lawn - how rocky is too rocky?** *(in California Gardening)* I created a new area in my garden for a lawn. I found it's quite rocky and raked most of the big ones out. However I cannot get all rocks out. The picture I attached has a quarter in it for scale. Anyone know whether the soil is still too rocky for new lawn? I still plan to add top soil for seeding but I don't want to start with a bad base. any advice is appreciated. A: Hi lqynn – those rocks are small enough that they should not present a problem. To grow a healthy lawn you will want to make sure that your soil is not compacted. If your soil is very hard you may want to till about 6-8" down to break it up and allow oxygen and water to permeate deeper. Also for your topsoil I recommend 2-3" of organic compost preferably minus manure which you can till into the soil if you do need to till. Lawns can be both incredibly water wasteful and have the potential to pollute waterways unless maintained organically. There are a number of alternative options that are both lush and green while reducing water use and fertilizer use that you may be interested in. That being said sometimes lawn is the best option if you have children that will be using it to play on in which case maintaining a lawn organically has the benefit of reducing water use as well as eliminating the need for chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 1\. Build healthy soils - till if needed and add compost and water 2\. Use regionally appropriate grass seeds/sod 3\. Water less frequently and more deeply – install efficient irrigation heads with a larger droplet size 4\. Set your mower higher so the grass blades are longer – helps reduce watering 5\. Dethatch and aerate to allow oxygen and moisture down into the soil 6\. Add light layers of compost during off seasons vs. applying chemical fertlizers 7\. Consider overseeding with clover as a natural nitrogen fixer. Best of luck with your project!! **Q: How to do this?** *(in Photo Questions)* Hi, How did you lay the stone pieces? Are there many steps? I'd like to do this myself. Is that DG on the patio area? Thank you! A: Hi Lynneymay, The patio area is stabilized d.g. and the flagstone slabs are just set into the d.g. They are large enough not to need concrete beneath them. The steps are made from railroad ties with decomposed granite landings. Best of luck with your project! **Q: What spacing did you use on the posts?** *(in Photo Questions)* I'm looking to build a similar looking fence around my yard. What spacing did you use on the posts, and what length of boards? A: We designed this project but didn't do that actual installation. I believe the spacing on the posts is approximately 6' but am not sure what the board lengths are. We did use redwood. My recommendation for your project would be to sketch it out to scale and experiment with the spacing to see what works best with your project. Good luck!! **Q: What is the yellow flowering bush in the left foreground of this photo** *(in Photo Questions)* We love this! What is the yellow flowering bush in the left foreground of this photo? A: The plant with yellow blooms is Butterfly Cassia. **Q: Is this just pressure treated wood?** *(in Photo Questions)* Could you please tell me what kind of wood was used on this fence before painting it canyon brown? A: Good Evening, the wood is smooth sawn redwood I believe. --- *Source: Houzz professional profile. Reflects the profile as of 2026-09-20.*