Frequently Asked Questions

Need support with a specific project? Reach out to discuss how we can help.

Discuss your project

Understanding Landscape Architecture

  • A landscaper installs and maintains plants, lawns, and hardscape features. A landscape architect designs the entire outdoor environment before anything is installed, including grading, drainage, structure, traffic flow, and how the space connects back to your home's architecture. Landscape architects complete a formal degree and, in many states, hold a professional license. Landscapers are not typically trained or licensed to design complex sites. If your project involves more than plant selection, a landscape architect should be involved before a landscaper ever picks up a shovel.

  • A pool contractor can design a beautiful pool. What they're not positioned to do is plan how that pool relates to the rest of your property: where the seating areas go, how the grading handles water, where the sightlines from inside your home are, and how the whole space reads as one composition instead of a collection of separate projects. A landscape architect designs the whole environment first, so every piece that gets built afterward fits into a plan instead of getting added on.

  • At Addison Group, the process moves through two main phases. Schematic Design is where we take everything we've learned about how you want to live in the space and translate it into a master plan, including 3D renderings so you can see the space before anything is built. Construction Documents follow, where that plan becomes the detailed drawings your contractors need to build it correctly, including grading and drainage specifications. Throughout both phases, we coordinate directly with your builder, pool contractor, or installer so the plan actually gets built the way it was designed.

  • Design fees vary based on the size and complexity of the property and the scope of the project. What matters most is understanding that the design fee is separate from installation costs, and that a clear plan up front almost always costs less than fixing piecemeal work later. We're happy to walk through what a project like yours would typically involve during an initial consultation, with no obligation.

  • Your architect designs the house. Your interior designer shapes the inside. A landscape architect does the same level of intentional design work for everything outside your walls, the part of the property most homeowners eventually admit they didn't plan for. Many of our clients come to us on a direct recommendation from their architect, because the two disciplines work best when they're coordinated from the start rather than treated as separate projects.

  • Building without a master plan. It's the single most common regret we hear about: a patio goes in one year, plantings the next, a pool later, and none of it was designed to work together. By the time a homeowner realizes the yard doesn't flow, they're often paying to redo work that was just completed. A master plan solves this before the first shovel goes in the ground.

Nashville-Specific Questions

  • The Addison Group has been designing luxury outdoor environments in Greater Nashville for over 14 years, with a focus on areas and neighborhoods such as: Metro Nashville, Brentwood, College Grove, Green Hills, Arrington, Belle Meade, Forest Hills, Oak Hill, Franklin, Thompson’s Station, West Meade, Hillsboro Village, The Grove, Troubadour, Rosebrooke. What sets a good fit apart isn't just portfolio style, it's whether the firm understands Middle Tennessee's specific soil, drainage, and climate conditions, and whether they have real relationships with the builders and contractors who will bring the design to life.

  • Nashville sits on a limestone shelf, and much of the region has dense clay soil that holds water instead of draining it. Homeowners who plant the way they did in their last city, especially transplants from other regions, often lose plants they assumed would thrive here. New construction sites have an added problem: heavy equipment compacts the native clay during the build, so the soil underneath a thin layer of topsoil can behave almost like concrete. A landscape architect who designs specifically for Nashville's soil and drainage conditions from the start avoids the expensive trial and error.

  • Welcome to Middle Tennessee! The two things that catch most newcomers off guard are the clay soil and the limestone shelf beneath much of the region, both of which affect drainage and what will actually grow here long term. What worked in your last home's climate may not translate. We build Nashville-specific soil and plant knowledge into every design from the first conversation, so you're not learning this the hard way.

  • As early as possible, ideally before the house has started construction. New construction sites in Nashville are especially prone to compacted soil and drainage issues from the building process itself, and coordinating the landscape design with your builder's timeline prevents the common problem of the outdoor budget getting exhausted before the yard is even addressed. Many of our builder partners bring us in during framing rather than close-out for exactly this reason.

  • Yes. Addison Group has long-standing partnerships with custom home builders throughout Williamson County, including Brentwood, Franklin, and communities like The Grove and Troubadour. If you're building with a custom homebuilder and want a landscape architect who already knows how to coordinate with your construction timeline, ask your builder if they work with us, or reach out directly.

  • Often, yes. A home's interior can be immaculate and still lose value on the listing if the outdoor space looks unfinished or disconnected. If you're on a tight timeline before listing, a focused landscape plan that addresses curb appeal and the primary outdoor living areas can be scoped specifically around that deadline. Reach out early so we can talk through what's realistic for your timeframe.

Charleston-Specific Questions

  • Yes. Addison Group is licensed in South Carolina and actively serving Daniel Island, Downtown Charleston Historic District, Mount Pleasant, Isle of Palms, Sullivan’s Island, Johns Island, James Island, Folly Beach, Folly Island, Kiawah Island, Seabrook Island, Park Circle, North Charleston. We are bringing the same design approach we've built in Nashville over 14 years to Charleston's luxury residential market.

  • Coastal Charleston brings its own set of site conditions: sandy and often poorly draining soil in some areas, salt exposure near the water, high humidity, and hurricane season considerations that affect both plant selection and hardscape materials. A landscape architect who designs specifically for Lowcountry conditions will plan for these from the start rather than defaulting to plants and materials that work inland but struggle near the coast.

  • That's a common starting point, especially for homeowners relocating from other markets who had a trusted landscape professional back home. The Addison Group has recently expanded into Charleston specifically to bring that same kind of long-term design relationship to homeowners who are starting fresh here. An initial consultation is a good first step, with no pressure or obligation.

  • Waterfront and near-coastal properties come with design considerations that go beyond typical residential landscaping: flood elevation, salt-tolerant plantings, drainage that accounts for storm surge, and materials that hold up in a marine environment. These are exactly the kind of site-specific conditions a licensed landscape architect is trained to plan for, which makes the investment particularly worthwhile in these submarkets.

  • Yes, and we're actively building those relationships as part of our expansion into the Greater Charleston market. If you're a builder or pool contractor in the Charleston area looking for a licensed Landscape Architecture partner, we'd welcome the conversation.

Process, Timeline & Investment

  • Timelines vary based on the size and complexity of the project, but most custom residential projects move through schematic design over several weeks, followed by construction documentation. We'll give you a realistic timeline specific to your project during the proposal stage, including key milestones so you always know what's coming next.

  • Our proposals cover the design phases: Schematic Design and Construction Documents. During construction, we stay coordinated with your contractor to make sure the plan is being executed correctly, and many of our clients tell us this ongoing availability, even after the drawings are delivered, is one of the things they valued most.

  • Done right, it's the opposite. A clear, buildable plan prevents the delays that happen when contractors are improvising without direction or when work has to be redone because it wasn't planned to fit together. We coordinate directly with your builder or contractor throughout the process specifically to keep the timeline moving, not to hold it up.

  • Both. We work with homeowners renovating an existing outdoor space as well as those building new. The same master planning approach applies either way: understanding the full property before designing any single element.

For Builders & Contractors

  • Fourteen years of coordinating directly with builders throughout Greater Nashville, including a named project liaison who stays in contact with your team through the construction phase. We understand that a beautiful design that arrives late or doesn't account for site conditions your crew already flagged is worse than no design at all. Responsiveness and buildability are built into how we work, not an afterthought.

  • That experience is more common than it should be, and it's usually the same pattern: a designer who goes quiet mid-project, a plan that doesn't reflect actual site conditions, or drawings that create rework instead of preventing it. We stay in direct, ongoing contact with your team through construction, and our named project liaison exists specifically so you always have one person to call.

  • Yes. We build our design timeline around your construction schedule, not the other way around, and we coordinate directly with your team throughout the build so the landscape plan supports your timeline instead of creating delays.

  • Reach out directly to set up an introductory conversation. We're happy to talk through how a partnership would work for your upcoming projects, in Nashville or in our expanding Charleston market.