Inspired by Nature - The Surrounds Blog

Backyard water features, whether large or small, complex or straightforward, infuse your outdoor environment with a kind of music. The sound of water trickling over rocks or splashing into a pond is charming and inviting. While water features such as waterfalls, garden fountains, and backyard ponds bring an additional layer of sensory pleasure to your...

As we mentioned in a previous blog post, when front yard landscaping falls short of expectations, dysfunctional driveway design and blah front walkways are often the culprits. That is because the experience of getting from point A to point B is an essential part of the “arrival experience” that welcomes you home.  If the approach to the house is awkward...

Garden waterfalls, like other water features, are a contrivance of landscape design that come in many styles. When done well, they become works of art on their own.  If you’ve ever vacationed at a beachfront cottage, you know how it feels to wake up in the morning to the sound of gentle surf lapping the shore. The sound of moving water is pleasing and...

Our modern homes have service and utility equipment that takes up space outdoors. This includes housings for electrical and cable service, air conditioning units, backup generators, and pool equipment. Particularly with newly constructed homes there are often curbside service units that are not part of front yard design. You know, the ugly green box...

Wouldn’t it be much easier if you had one company to manage all aspects of your ongoing landscape services? It would for sure be more efficient to have one point of contact at that company, right? People who have fairly complex landscapes will sometimes find themselves working with several companies. They may contract with one landscape service...

Let’s face it. When your home comes into view–whether you are turning into the driveway with a carload of kids and groceries or you’ve just slowed down to an easy jog after a hard three-miler around the neighborhood–you want to feel something. Proud. Pleased. How about welcomed by your front yard landscape design? Here is the problem: Your front yard...

Landscape management is a comprehensive approach to landscape maintenance that places responsibility for the upkeep of your property in the hands of one company.  This “all-in-one” approach encompasses all aspects of the landscape. That includes: Mechanical systems. Maintenance and repair of water features, irrigation, lighting, and outdoor audio systems...

The Purpose of Front Yard Landscaping In both front and backyard landscaping, landscape architects define outdoor space and establish use areas that function independently but fit into the overall landscape picture. Where the goals of front yard landscaping differ from backyard design is the way they function. In the privacy of a backyard, we are often...

Artfully designed garden paths mimic the way it feels to walk in nature. You’ve probably had this experience strolling a woodland path in one of our Northern Virginia regional parks: You pause at an overlook to take in the feeling of space rolling out before you. You sit for a moment and listen to the sounds of a rocky creek where it cuts across the...

If you love your landscape and find joy in all the fine details of it, you deserve a “personal touch” from the garden services company you hire to take care of it.  You want a garden services crew that understands your lawn, garden plants, and trees down to the smallest detail, and who can provide you with an exquisite landscape maintenance and garden...

​The main reason we use annual plants in our Northern Virginia landscapes is that they grow vigorously, bloom prolifically and are versatile. That’s a pretty good reason. In addition to flowering annuals, there are many non-flowering annuals that like shade and present a show of colorful foliage.  At Surrounds we use annuals to supplement your permanent...

When developing a garden design, we draw from many types of cultivars as well as native plants to create a healthy, diverse landscape. Using cultivars gives our landscape architects a much broader aesthetic palette to work with. And, most importantly, gives us a wider range of plants that will adapt successfully to our Mid-Atlantic climate zone. What...

See your lawn and gardens come roaring back to life Spring is THE time to perform routine lawn care and garden maintenance services in the landscape. Why? Our garden management people would say precisely because your landscape is a garden. And a garden is nature planned, nature composed, and nature tended. In this article we are going to offer our expert...

Plants that flower in winter? Yes! We tend to think mostly of spring, summer, and fall when we plan our gardens to have something in bloom for every season. But winter in Northern Virginia can be far more interesting and colorful than you might imagine. Winter flowering plants can contribute unexpected pops of color in January and February – and...

When we talk to our Northern Virginia landscape maintenance clients about garden irrigation systems, we don’t limit the discussion to lawn irrigation. We present ideas for an overall landscape irrigation design plan that employs multiple devices in multiple zones to apply water to turf, garden beds, trees, and shrubs that have different moisture needs...

Do we need premium landscape maintenance services for our property?  If you have invested in a landscape design that includes specialty plantings, hardscaping, and other personalized design elements – yes.  Yes, because you will want to protect your investment. To keep your outdoor spaces attractive, healthy, and vibrant, hiring a company whose personnel...

Pruning at the right time and in the right way is an essential component of a sound landscape maintenance and garden care program. Artful pruning requires horticultural knowledge and a specialized skill set from the crews performing day-to-day garden care tasks. Our garden managers and landscape maintenance staff at Surrounds share a commitment to our...

Garden management crews perform dormant pruning and cutbacks, and inspect for winter damage Consistently cold weather is good for plants in winter when they are dormant.  It gives them time to “rest” between growing seasons. However, if the temperatures are inconsistent, that can cause problems. An unusually warm winter with irregular temperature swings...

Koi Pond Winter Care Winters have become increasingly mild here in Northern Virginia, but winter is still the season when your koi fish and your pond equipment are most vulnerable.  Here are the answers to some common questions about winter koi pond maintenance and koi fish care. We hope this information will help you choose the right kind of company...

©Morgan Howarth Photography How do we perfect the look of our landscaping? Many landscaping services companies in Northern Virginia offer a standard menu of seasonal garden care. The best companies are proactive. They customize their service offerings to address the changes they observe in your landscape. They recommend garden enhancements, updates,...