Susan Els Garden & Landscape Design

Thank you, thank you for adding your much needed magic. The gardens are wonderful, beautiful, captivating and spectacular. You gave the old girl some new dresses . She looks fantastic. We are totally in love. So great working with you, a real pleasure!

I could not have worked with a better landscape designer - not only is Susan fun to work with, her design is very well thought out and incredibly beautiful! Layout and shape of the design was what impressed me at first, and as I did the work over a few years I discovered the beauty of the design through the color and texture of the various plants. And the curve of the front walkway was not easy to do, but now my heart jumps with joy every time I look at it. Thanks to Susan our garden looks amazing!

Susan turned our back yard from a sloping area with no defined area to sit into an enchanted get away for relaxation and entertainment! It’s hard to imagine that at a time I considered a deck – 90 degree angles and flat, plain wood - instead of the beautiful patio that is “built in” to the added lush landscaping and blends from the house into the outdoors beautifully. What Susan created for us is a work of backyard art! Working with Susan was a great partnership as she listened to what we wanted, prodded us with questions to gather more information, and added her expertise and creativity for an incredible result all within budget and planned time frame. In the spring/summer/fall the space gives us an additional “room” that is used constantly for relaxation, family dinners, and entertaining friends. The landscaping provides screening from the drive and privacy from passersby. The choice of plantings have created a rich quilt of color and texture that has performed beautifully in our yard shaded by deep-rooted trees. Perhaps my favorite feature is the whimsy of the entry-a unique, artistic feature envisioned by Susan. Walking down the path, under the vine covered metal arbors, and popping out into an entrancing area with ample space to gather for meals, areas just to sit and rock, or to gather by the fire is an adventure in itself! The outcome of this project far exceeded our expectations. We remain thrilled, and the envy of all who are lucky enough to enjoy the area, with the distinctive, creative, perfectly suited space created for us by Susan.

I hired Susan to pull together the various aspects of my yard so that it flows and has a more cohesive look. On my wish list was a patio off my kitchen and screen porch and another patio with a low stone wall and fire pit where both the perennial garden and vegetable can be viewed. Also on my list was to simplify the plantings. My husband and I love to garden but we are busy professionals and the large sprawling gardens we had left little time for other recreation. Susan captured it all beautifully in concept and execution. She even incorporated stone brought back from my parents former home. I plan to hire Susan again this year for phase two - creating an enclosure for the outdoor shower and landscaping this area.

I became acquainted with Susan Els' work while on a garden tour years ago. I loved her style, so when we moved to a house whose property was a blank slate, Susan Els Garden & Landscape Design was the landscape professional we called. The goals of the project were to create privacy with plantings, and to build outdoor rooms for dining, seating, cooking, and a fire pit. In the fall of 2010, we began by meeting and talking about our needs and her design ideas. Over the next 6-8 months, we accepted Susan's design and settled on a budget. Because of the extent of the project, Susan was accommodating to our wish to construct in phases. In the summer of 2011, Susan and her amazing team built the extensive Phase 1 of the project in 3 weeks. It is a work of art and nature, and functions amazingly well while the plantings continue to mature. Phase 2 was built in 3 days in the summer of 2012. Phase 3 is on schedule for summer 2014. Susan Els and her team bring creative and beautiful design, smart plant selections, exceptional attention to detail, and incredible work ethic to the table. Working through summer heat and rain to finish on time and on budget is the way they do business. We were completely comfortable placing our trust in Susan's team. The combination of her easy personality, design vision and project management skills are what set her firm apart. We loved the design on paper, but what she and her team actually built exceeded our expectations on every level! We gave her control, and she came through with amazing results. I strongly recommend Susan Els Garden and Landscape Design.

Susan has the gift of artistic vision, that amazing ability to see promise and possibility where others see a blank canvas or problems. When we purchased our condo, the backyard had been untended for some years and was very overgrown, on top of having a serious drainage problem. Heavy rains would actually flood the backyard as the 3 adjacent properties drained into ours! Susan carefully determined the full scope of the situation. She first recommended we remove three mature trees to allow more light to the yard; then she drew up a plan which called for two French drains (one beneath a gravel walkway and another beneath open lawn). She asked lots of questions of us and listened carefully. As I recall, we told her we wanted something “simple and lovely” and would require minimal care on our part. Beyond that we were happy to let her design every aspect of it. She saw that we would want color and texture during each season of the year, and she chose plantings that certainly afford that. We trusted her to know the what and the where for the plants, and trees and marvelous boulders which she chose with care and foresight. She is enthusiastic and very reliable. After the plan was approved by the condo board, she went out of her way to explain the plan and answer the concerns of our immediate neighbors. Our garden was completed in August of 2012, according to plan, within budget and on schedule. We couldn’t be more pleased,-- and recommend Susan highly. Diane and Rob Warneck

Susan Els has designed both the back and the front gardens of my condominium townhouse. She is an imaginative and true artist who paints and sculpts with plants. I met her when I took advantage of the offer of a local garden center to obtain 30 minutes of free garden design consultation and one of the staff recommended that I make sure Susan would be my consultant. Realizing I was in over my head, I asked if she could both design and install the garden I was contemplating. The result was so beautiful that several years later, after I had studied at UVM and become a Master Gardener so as to be able to maintain my Els-designed garden, it was chosen to be one of those featured in the Flynn Garden Tour, an annual tour of special gardens that supports the educational program of the Flynn. I hired Susan to design and install changes to my front garden four years after the first contract. She is generous, easy to work with, reliable, listens carefully and keeps to budget. The only thing I would warn you about is that she never stops thinking about ways to make your project even more beautiful. If you are in a condo community and need to have signoff on a garden plan, you must be careful to hew closely to the plan for which you obtain initial approval. That is something a true artist might have trouble doing. If you are in a flexible situation, however, you will benefit tremendously from having Susan as your designer.

Susan has done an incredible job landscaping the front of our home. The design fits the profile of our home and our needs for privacy in our neighborhood. The installation was on time and on budget. I would not hesitate to recommend her (in fact I already have). She is flexible, listens to the client, and incorporates design ideas of the homeowner.