Landscape Design

Great landscapes don’t just happen.
They begin with a plan.

A quaint brick walkway with stone steps is surrounded by a wide variety of flowering plants, colorful foliage and texture. An example of good garden design services provided in Wauwatosa, WI, the front yard entrance shows beautiful and cohesive texture, form and color.

Cohesive floral and foliage colors complement a quaint brick walkway entrance in Wauwatosa, WI. The varied scale and textures of the plantings add visual interest and balance, accentuating the entryway with four-season appeal.

Our Design Process

a decorative butterfly floats near the text.

Landscape design is the foundation of every successful outdoor space. Our thoughtful design process ensures that each element is crafted with imagination and purpose to create a beautiful, functional environment.

We design landscapes that reflect your personality and tastes while complementing the architecture of your home. Through intentional use of lines, textures, forms and colors, we create cohesive and visually stunning gardens. With interesting, eye-catching plant combinations and naturally beautiful hardscaping materials, Bloom! transforms yards into lush, colorful outdoor destinations.

Let us bring inspiring ideas to life at your home. Contact Us to start your landscape design and installation process!

“Bloom! has transformed my yard from the ordinary to the spectacular.”

Bloom! has transformed my yard from the ordinary to the spectacular. I am so pleased with the results of your design and plantings. The colors and textures are well organized and appealing to me and others who have seen my yard. The selection of perennials, shrubs and trees brings surprises throughout the year. The color changes are dramatic and inspiring. Thank you for a job well done.
— Tom Mueller, Greenfield

a backyard relaxation destination designed by Bloom! landscaping features a beautiful iron patio set on a brick patio, with a natural stone seat wall and formal planting beds

A large brick patio with natural stone seat walls offers residents and their guests a peaceful place to eat, relax and enjoy the blooming flowers. The gentle rustle of leaves adds to the tranquility of this sweet Wauwatosa, WI garden, which beautifully reflects the owner’s personality.

Step 1: Getting Acquainted

Landscape Design Questionnaire & Timing

Once you reach out, we will call you to learn about your project goals. If your project sounds like a potential match, we will invite you to complete a Landscape Design Questionnaire right away. This form helps us discover information about the people and pets that will be using the space, details about the scope of work, and personal preferences like colors palettes, gardening interests and what you like and dislike about your property.

We typically work on designs in the order they are received and ask that you return the completed questionnaire within one week, ensuring we have all the information needed to move forward. After submission, we will schedule a meeting with all project decision-makers to discuss your ideas in detail and answer any initial questions.

On-site Consultation

During this visit, your landscape designer will walk the site with you, exploring how you envision living in your outdoor spaces. We’ll talk about your preferences, review potential solutions and share preliminary ideas about maximizing your landscape’s potential.

For example, if you’re concerned about privacy, we may discuss fencing or what kind of screening plants can work in your lighting conditions and how quickly they can grow. If you’re interested in entertaining, we’ll discuss options for patios and other potential seating areas to enjoy all of your garden views. We’ll discuss your budget and provide rough cost estimates to help you gauge feasibility.

Design Proposal

Once the scope of work is established, a design proposal will be provided soon after meeting. The proposal will outline the landscape features to be included in the landscape design. Design fees are based on the time required for site analysis, measurements and development of your final master plan or garden design.

a garden design by Bloom! Landscaping solves a water issue with a dry river bed of gray granite field stone a smooth river pebbles winding along a lannon stone stepper pathway

This vignette from a garden design evokes the image of a tranquil river meandering through a Wauwatosa property. The charming dry riverbed winds alongside a Lannon stone stepper pathway leading to a massive tree stump, now a reading seat. A dry riverbed is used to channel water away from the house in a flat area. The solution becomes a unique garden feature artfully constructed with a delightful sensory contrast of textured WI field stone (hand selected) and soothing, smooth river pebbles.

“designed so thoughtfully…with such deep knowledge of horticulture, landscape design…soil, climate, and wildlife”

I love the landscape Kristyn designed for me so much. She took care to find out about what I wanted, how my family would use the space, and what level of care we could give it. I wasn’t sure how much could be done with a small Wauwatosa yard, and if it would be possible to have both a traditional English cottage garden and a kitchen garden to grow our favorite vegetables.

The whole space is designed so thoughtfully, though, and with such deep knowledge of horticulture, landscape design, and the region’s soil, climate, and wildlife, that I didn’t have to choose between them. I’m amazed at how a little bit of earth can be transformed into a suite of wonderful garden rooms with winding paths and a shifting kaleidoscope of blooms that draw butterflies, bees, and an entertaining assortment of backyard birds.

― Sarah Wadsworth, Wauwatosa, WI

A garden design created by landscape designer, Kristyn Greenfield of Bloom! with brick patio, stone walls, cedar fencing, steel planter displays and dramatic blooming plants in Wauwatosa WI.

“It is my firm conviction,” declared the Wauwatosa Professor, “that a garden of the true English character is an absolute necessity to my happiness.” This, at least, is how the garden designer imagined the request when the professor asked for an English influenced garden that attracts songbirds and other wildlife. Alive with color, the busy hum of bees and the fluttering of fair butterflies, this garden offers constant delight from early spring through winter.

The Tosa Professor further inquired about “several bird feeders, to be much admired by the birds themselves, whilst thwarting squirrels…dreadful creatures with admirable determination, though most inconvenient manners,” the designer envisaged.

Step 2: Landscape Design Prep Work

Site Analysis

After you approve the design proposal, your landscape designer begins with a thorough site analysis. This means the conditions and layout unique to your property are closely evaluated. Special attention is paid to sunlight patterns, how water drains after rain, if existing grades impact design decisions and the types of plants and trees thriving or not prevailing there. Other key aesthetic and functional factors are observed like architectural details, utility locations and neighboring views.

During the site analysis, an inventory is taken of existing plants and any materials that may add value to your future landscape. In cases where the property experiences complex sunlight patterns, as shadows and light shift throughout the day from multiple trees and tall roof peaks, we may conduct light studies to fine tune plant selections.

An English cottage Tudor, a gem in a Wauwatosa neighborhood, underwent a complete makeover. Grading was redirected away from the house by adding a step at the driveway and pitching the backyard gently toward the road. An easy-to-shovel concrete walkway provides a cheerful thoroughfare to and from the house, while a privacy fence, a colorful, yet simpler, planting scheme than the front gardens and a cozy patio suit the owner’s lifestyle beautifully.

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Site Measurements

Your landscape designer’s next step is taking detailed measurements of all windows, doors, utilities and existing hardscape elements relevant to your new landscape design, such as your patio, walkways and driveway. Property lines are located using either your plat of survey or visible property stakes if available. If no plat exists and property line markers aren’t accessible, we may recommend having your property surveyed if needed for installing structures like fences on or near property lines.

Base Plan

The site measurements are then used to prepare a base plan drawing of your property. This plan converts property measurements into a scaled, bird’s eye view of your property’s existing layout. It identifies buildings, property lines, utilities, trees and hardscapes like the driveway, walkways an d patio. The base plan helps your landscape designer determine optimal use of spaces, circulation patterns and aesthetic views of your property from different vantage points both inside and outside your home.

“a gorgeous landscape that feels peaceful and inviting, beautifully designed from every angle”

Kristyn brings an incredible level of care, knowledge, and intention to every detail. You can truly see her heart in the master plan she designed and implemented. I appreciate how thoughtfully each plant is chosen – nothing is random. Every perennial, shrub and tree is selected for color harmony, pollinator attraction and continual waves of blooms all season long. As one plant fades, another begins, so there is always something fresh and colorful to enjoy.

She didn’t just plant flowers, but considered how I move in my yard, where I sit, what I enjoy seeing from inside the house, and how each area connects. Kristyn redesigned my deck to be more functional and built a beautiful stone patio to gather, perfect for sitting around the fire table and enjoying evenings outside. She incorporated an attractive, functional storage area under my deck for garden tools, keeping things organized without sacrificing beauty.

All of the gardens and outdoor spaces are connected with creative transitions, using a variety of thoughtfully designed paths. Each area flows naturally into the next, making the entire landscape feel cohesive and welcoming, and even a little whimsical.

The result is a gorgeous landscape that feels peaceful and inviting, beautifully designed from every angle. I wholeheartedly recommend Bloom! Landscaping to anyone looking for creative, high-quality landscaping with true attention to detail.

― Johnna Sachtschale, Franklin, WI>

Roses, lavender and a variety of timed perennials bloom together throughout the season, filling this formal garden in Wauwatosa, WI with vibrant flowers and colorful foliage. To make morning coffee a happier way to start the day and reduce bending while gardening, matching cast stone garden benches sit at either end of the garden facing east and west. The English garden charm is enhanced by decorative aggregate pathways lined with hardy lavender. As she runs her fingers through the plants, releasing lavender oils, on her way to take a seat, the intoxicating aromatherapy clings to the owner’s skin and drifts though the air with gentle breezes.

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Step 3: Creating Your Design Plan

Functional Diagrams: Initial Concepts

Once your designer has drawn the base plan and analyzed space availability, conceptual sketches are created. Functional diagrams are prepared on overlays of the base plan. They offer a general visualization of how your outdoor spaces can be organized for optimal use and enjoyment. These sketches illustrate circulation patterns and designate areas for planting beds, lawns and hardscaping features. For example, a typical backyard may show pathways connecting a patio to a lawn area and garden beds, ensuring each space is accessible and functional.

A vibrant Wauwatosa pollinator garden planted in mid May appears established by mid August. Excellent plant stock and skilled perennial transplants create immediate visual impact. The garden is alive with movement as butterflies and bees add fascination and joyfulness to the owners’ gardening experience.

This garden design uses floral and foliage color to create rhythm and balance, intermixed with stunning foliage textures. Tall, narrow plantings are used to provide future four-season screening of the garages and neighboring views.

Drafting the Master Plan

After reviewing the initial concepts and selecting a preferred direction, your designer moves forward by drafting the landscape plan. Our designs are hand-drawn, ensuring a personal touch and clarity in communicating layout and features. Your designer will be in communication for input on any key preferences and placement of plants and features that drive the design. As needed, options are shown with overlays (transparent paper) on the main drawing to help you compare choices.

Balance in garden design allows the eye to take in this entire view at a glance. The three Annabelle Hydrangeas serve as a strong focal anchor, grounding this vignette while highlighting the surrounding plants and layered textures. Their structure and repetition create harmony, inviting immediate appreciation of the scene.

Landscape Plan Review Meeting

Next, you and your designer will meet to review the initial draft plan. During this collaborative session, you’ll see photos of plant selections and samples of proposed hardscape materials, discuss potential adjustments and ensure the design aligns with your vision. A typical meeting includes walking through each section of the plan, reviewing plant palettes and confirming details you want for different features. This process ensures both functional and aesthetic aspects are addressed, making your outdoor space both beautiful and practical.

Once concealed by pine trees, the entrance to this home now turns heads with changing color throughout the seasons. The architecture of the house is mirrored in the front planting bed, where steppers guide the eye naturally toward the front door. In a few years, the wooden swing bench will be hidden from street view, becoming one of many secret gardens within the landscape.

Though it reads as a single garden space, the area spans conditions, from full shade to full sun, and everything in between. With constantly shifting patterns of light cast by mature oak trees, careful light studies guided plant selection in this garden design, ensuring each plant receives the right balance of sun and shade to thrive and look its best.

Step 4: Final Landscape Design & Cost Estimates

Once all project details are confirmed, your designer prepares a comprehensive and clearly labeled final landscape design plan that will be black and white. This plan reflects your chosen features and specifications, ready for installation. For example, you’ll receive a breakdown of costs for items like plantings, patio construction, and fence installation, allowing you to understand the overall investment and options for phased implementation. To ensure transparency and understanding, a meeting is scheduled to present the final design plan, answer any remaining questions and outline next steps for installation.

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Landscape Design Definitions

What is a Plat of Survey

A plat of survey is a map of your property created by a certified surveyor. It identifies your property’s boundaries, utility right-of-ways and buildings. The document is usually found with your real estate documents and is filed with your municipality.

What is Hardscaping & Softscaping

Softscaping means any planting beds or areas with plants, soils and mulch.

Hardscaping is any landscaping structure made with brick, stone, concrete, metal, wood and other elements that are not plants, soils or mulch. Patios, walkways, steps, walls, fences, landscape lighting, landscape irrigation and stone pathways are all examples of hardscapes.

What is a Dry Riverbed

A dry riverbed is a long, narrow channel or shallowly excavated trench lined with boulders, rocks and decorative gravel that mimics the appearance of a natural, rocky river. It can be designed to prevent soil erosion in areas regularly washed out by rain and sump pumps. Additionally, it functions to move excessive rain water away from buildings where there isn’t adequate pitch to slope the ground away from a house. A dry riverbed usually remains dry most of the time except during periods of extreme soil saturation and rain.

The walkway, steps, stoop, iron railing and cast stone urn are all examples of hardscaping elements. The hibiscus plant is an example of softscaping.

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Specialty Garden Design:

Bird & Wildlife Gardens
Children’s Play Spaces
Kitchen Gardens
Native Gardens
Pollinator Gardens
Asian-inspired Gardens
Rain Gardens
Vegetable Gardens

Part of a container kitchen garden, these custom planter boxes screen the driveway from view while forming a natural entrance into this inviting outdoor room.

Residential Garden Design: Areas of Service

Bloom! is located in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin and offers residential landscape design and installation services in Wauwatosa, Brookfield, Whitefish Bay and throughout the greater Milwaukee area. Please Contact Us or call 414-793-8988 to inquire about beginning the landscape design and installation process.

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