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Landscape Design & Installation in Springfield, MO

I'm Kevin Runyon

…and I’ve been the owner of Custom Creations for over 20 years.

I work with clients around Southwest Missouri to create their outdoor vision, while taking into consideration natural limitations like water flow, topography, and long-term functionality.

People ask why I haven’t expanded my business to run multiple crews, and the answer is simple. I expect perfection on every project. By personally managing and working at every job site, I know each client will get the outcome they desire.

I encourage you to set up a consultation to see what we can do for your outdoor space. Unique ideas welcome!

You’ll find many landscaping companies near Springfield, Nixa, Ozark, and Marshfield, MO and we can understand how hard it is to choose a local landscaper. Here’s why our past clients love us:

  • End-to-end landscaping services- from designing your entire project through installation and ongoing landscape preservation, we earn our clients’ trust.
  • Extensive experience- We’ve been creating modern landscapes since 2000. Many lawncare companies are just starting their landscaping journeys. We won’t be practicing on your outdoor space.
  • Customer Satisfaction- we won’t stand for anything less than a perfect landscape. Our reviews tell it all.

Custom residential landscape design

We work with each client to meet their particular needs. Some clients have specific flower and shrub requests. Others want a low maintenance natural landscape installation with evergreens, native plants, or drought-resistant options. We’re long-time landscape designers with experience across all types of garden designs and hardscape installation.

We know backyard and front yard landscaping have different goals too. You want your front yard landscaping to enhance the look of your home, increase its value, create an inviting entrance, or even feature some stunning colors that delight your neighbors. Backyard landscaping design can create privacy, offer you a peaceful place to relax, and make entertaining easier and more fun.

Softscapes

Softscaping is the design and implementation of the plants in your landscape (as opposed to hardscaping which deals with the nonliving portion- see more below).

We start by talking about what you want to achieve with your landscaped yard. Horticulture goals could include:

  • A general aesthetically-pleasing area with flower beds, mulch, or walkways
  • Outstanding color and plants that pop
  • Reducing grass in hard-to-maintain areas
  • Increasing privacy with living fences
  • Creating a low maintenance perennial flower bed that gets better every year
  • Reducing water consumption with drought-tolerant plants
  • Adding border plants to make your outdoor area visually “flow” better
  • Create a habitat for bees or other pollinators
  • Creating a rain garden with wildflowers, grasses, and native plants to help with water retention in your yard
  • Utilizing trees for year-long or seasonal beauty, shade, and energy conservation
  • Make your poolside experience more peaceful or private

We then plan every aspect of your landscape including trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses. We can also customize the ground cover, edging, and walkways with your goals in mind.

Greenscapes

Greenscapes are quickly becoming popular as a way to conserve water, invite wildlife, and be eco-friendly. We can help assess your options for reducing your lawn size. By replacing some of your lawn with native grasses, plants for pollinators (welcome hummingbirds!), and even edible plants, you’ll have fewer lawn maintenance costs. Our on-staff horticulturist can help select the right plants for your soil type, drainage, surrounding area, and shade.

Sod installation

Maybe your yard is weed-ridden and less than lush, or maybe your new build requires a grassy area and you don’t want to wait. Sod is the perfect solution for both. It can also be helpful when selling your home- giving the yard a facelift.

When we install sod, we’ll remove the current vegetation if necessary, then use industry-best practices to lay it. This ensures a beautiful grassy lawn for years to come when taken care of properly.

Hardscapes

Make yard areas more usable

Many of our clients come to us because some portion of their yard is unusable and they want to regain that space. Steep hills can be a pain to mow while unfinished areas are begging to be made into a play area or beautiful flower bed. Whatever your reason for wanting to upgrade your yard, we have the equipment and know-how to make it happen. 

After creating a landscape design for your home, we’ll create the spaces necessary for planting. You’ll need to consider several things when planning:

  • Earthmoving and excavation- if a totally new layout is needed, we have the equipment to level or grade your soil. Your yard can have a totally new look! Additionally, water is a given and we have to plan for it’s retention or diversion.
  • Retaining walls- We build the walls to contain soil so your yard has the perfect setup for your needs.
  • Irrigation- Ensure your lawn gets the water it needs to stay beautiful without manual watering.
  • Walkways- Even the most beautiful space needs room to walk and a ground texture you can walk on.
  • Edging- Edging is the border used to keep materials from mixing (like keeping mulch off your grass).
  • Flower beds- We prep the soil, install a weed barrier, and add a cover like mulch.
  • Lighting- keep your space looking great, even after dark.
  • Water features- They’re a peaceful and beautiful addition to any yard, and they have the added bonus of making water diversion more aesthetically pleasing.
  • Outdoor buildings or covered spaces- Will you need protection from rain, insects, or a cohesive space to enjoy your yard? There are lots of options out there.
  • Outdoor kitchens make entertaining or just whipping up dinner even more fun.

Depending on your goals and lifestyle, we’ll create the perfect setup for your family.

Earthmoving and Excavation

Your yard layout could be the result of not having a plan, or your current elevation may not be a good fit for your outdoor activities. Either way, being intentional about your layout is the first step to getting the outdoor space you want.

We have the design, excavation, and leveling experience to do the job without creating problems down the road.

Retaining walls

Sometimes a retaining wall is in order to ensure the integrity of your elevation changes. Our quality workmanship ensures that your retaining wall will last you generations.

Irrigation

One important aspect of upgrading your yard is water flow. It’s important to have a professional hardscape installer do the work so you don’t end up with standing water or even damage to your home.

We manage installation of sprinkler systems that are easy to use and can be hands-off on your end.

Walkways

There are several way to achieve what you want with your walkway design:

  • Pea gravel helps to keep the weeds at bay on walkways and driveways, and offers a longer lifespan since it doesn’t decompose.  It’s great at preventing erosion, but it’s more expensive than mulch. We use pea gravel in low traffic areas because it’s more cost effective than concrete, while providing ample drainage and water retention beneath. It’s perfect for playgrounds, too. Sometimes pea gravel is used alongside pavers to create a walkway.
  • Mulch can also be used as a walkway, but it’s best to pair it with stepping stones for a more stable walking surface.
  • Stone walkways can be created for higher traffic areas. Depending on the type of stone used, they can convey a sophisticated feel or a down-to-earth space ready for outdoor fun.

Edging

Landscape edging helps materials and plants stay where you put them in the first place. It creates a visual separation as well. There are several landscape edging borders we can discuss to keep your yard looking beautiful:

  • Metal landscape edging is a long-lasting garden edging option. Steel edging is especially resistant to bending and erosion; however, it can rust after many years in use. Aluminum edging doesn’t rust, but can show dents over time.
  • Stone pavers, bricks, or concrete blocks offer weather-resistant durability as flower bed edging, but can be more expensive.
  • Landscape timber edging offers affordability, but with that comes decay over a long period of time. You also need to be aware of the chemicals that leech from treated wood if you’re using it as vegetable garden edging.
  • Plastic edging is affordable and long-lasting but may not have the appearance that matches certain designs.

Flower Beds

We ensure that your landscape design lasts as long as possible without constant weeding. We lay down a weed barrier, then choose a cover to use in between plants. Most flower beds will utilize mulch as a weed barrier. Living ground cover can also be used, which consists of lower trailing plants that grow to fill in between your more showy pieces.

Lighting

A well-lit outdoor space allows you to enjoy the beauty even after dark. It also enhances the safety of your yard. We install landscape lighting that showcases your home’s appearance. We can also assist with lighting so your after-hours patio or pool party can go on past sundown.

We use low voltage LED lighting by FX Luminaire.  They are very high quality with solid brass and copper fixtures with a wide array of finishes and styles.  We install a transformer to convert the current 120 volts coming from the home electrical panel down to 12 volts to run the lighting.  This keeps the outside of the home well lit and beautiful without breaking the bank on the electric bill.

Water features

Installing water features may be one of our favorite parts of landscaping. A large yard with drainage issues may benefit from a creek bed with decorative pebbles that diverts water. Adding a pond with a stone fountain can help you achieve an elevated look and peaceful sound next to your outdoor kitchen. Whatever direction you ultimately choose, a water feature can add utility or enjoyment to your outdoor space.

Outdoor spaces

Outdoor structures

How are you envisioning your time outdoors? Adding a structure like a gazebo, patio, or deck can create the space you want. There are so many options for enhancing your outdoor space:

  • A gazebo creates a free-standing space where you can enjoy a cool breeze and hide from the afternoon sun. Perfect for curling up with a book!
  • Patios can be installed next to your home, or in a separate yard area- complete with a firepit, seating, and railings. You’ll want to decide whether you want your patio covered, and if you want it screened-in to keep bugs out. You can also choose from a variety of materials like concrete, brick, flagstone, and tile.
  • Decks offer an outdoor space that’s usually on the same elevation as your home. It becomes an extension of your indoor living space. While we don’t install wooden decks, we can refer a great local team and include it in the overall design of your outdoor space.
  • Arbors and trellises create a visual space in your yard. You can incorporate them with trailing plants, or add seating underneath.
  • Pergolas are the grown-up version of arbors. They can be open or closed, and can feature a retractable shade. There are so many different ways to design your pergola, but we can help you find a design that your family will love.

Outdoor kitchens

Outdoor kitchens are becoming more and more popular. Our company offers patio and bbq kitchen services from design to installation. We’ll work with your plans, design aesthetic, and yard layout to create a kitchen that you’ll love spending time in. 

Whether it’s the installation of a simple outdoor pizza oven for regular get-togethers, or a complete bbq kitchen with an outdoor oven, outdoor kitchen island and outdoor kitchen cabinets, we’ll find the perfect setup for you. We can even help choose your outdoor countertops, weather-proof fridge, and outdoor-safe kitchen appliances that will make cooking in your backyard a breeze.

Lawncare

Our fertilization team keeps your grass green and lush year after year. It’s a completely hands-off approach for those who value their time and the integrity of their lawn. See our Lawncare Fertilizing Program page to learn more.

Landscape preservation

We want to ensure that your investment in your outdoor space is protected. Without regular maintenance, you’ll be hiring us to rip out and reinstall portions of your landscaping in a few years’ time. To combat this, we offer landscape preservation services. This can include tree trimming, re-mulching, updating plants, and ot

Request a Quote

With On-Site Consultation

Fill out the form below for a place on our Consultation List. I will call a few days beforehand to confirm the date, time, and what you’re wanting to accomplish. You’re welcome to be there during the walkthrough, but it’s fine if you have to be away.

I do charge a $25 fee for quotes. Consultation fees allow me to work with clients who are serious about their projects. It also allows me to provide more value in each consultation I do. I can spend more time discussing your property including drainage issues, tree/plant evaluations, taking measurements, and discussing improvement options. I create detailed notes and keep them on file so you have a plan to reference in the future.

If you have a specific question or concern about your project, be sure to detail it in the form and I’ll contact you to discuss.

Download our free eBook: 21 Outdoor Living Ideas

Download our free eBook:
21 Outdoor Living Ideas

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