If you’ve never done a landscape project before, the process can feel opaque. You call a designer, and then… what? Every firm explains it differently. Some describe it in poetic terms. Some rush you through timelines you don’t understand. Here’s what actually happens on a residential landscape design-build project in Chattanooga, from your first phone call to a finished install.
We’re describing our own process, but most of it maps to how any reputable design-build firm operates. If a designer you’re talking to walks you through something significantly different, ask them why.
Phase 1: The first conversation
This is a phone call or email. Fifteen to thirty minutes.
The goal is to learn what you’re actually trying to accomplish, whether we’re the right fit, and rough scope. We’re listening for what you want the space to do, not what materials you’ve seen on Pinterest. Those come later.
By the end of this call we should both know if it’s worth scheduling a site visit.
Phase 2: The site visit
We come to your property. Sixty to ninety minutes on site.
We walk the whole property with you. We look at slope, drainage, soil conditions, sun exposure, existing plants, and any structural issues that will affect the project. We ask a lot of questions about how you use the space today and how you want to use it.
You should come away from this visit understanding your own project better than you did going in. If a designer visits and doesn’t ask questions that make you think, that’s a warning sign.
We usually give you a rough budget range at the end of this visit. Not a quote. A range.
Phase 3: The design
If you decide to move forward, you sign a design agreement and pay a design fee. (If we’re rolling design into a design-build project, we begin the design work as part of the total project fee.)
This is where the real thinking happens. We take everything from the site visit and start putting a design together. This includes plant selection, hardscape layout, drainage plan, lighting plan if applicable, and irrigation approach.
You get initial design drafts within three to four weeks of the site visit. We meet to review them. You mark up what you like and what you want to change. We revise.
Most projects go through one or two rounds of revisions. Some go through three. If revisions keep multiplying, that usually means the underlying scope wasn’t clear at the start. Better to slow down and realign than to keep producing new versions.
Phase 4: Contract and scheduling
Once you’ve approved the design, we build a detailed contract with specific line items: materials, quantities, labor, timeline, payment schedule. Nothing is hidden in bulk phrases.
You’ll pay a deposit to hold your slot on the schedule. From here, timing depends on our current book and the season. In Chattanooga, projects contracted in June and July typically install in August through October. Projects contracted in fall install in early spring.
Phase 5: Installation
The work happens.
For most residential projects, installation runs one to four weeks depending on scope. A patio and planting refresh might be a week. A full design-build with major hardscape, irrigation, and lighting might be three or four weeks with breaks between phases.
We stay in touch during install. You’ll know who’s on site each day and what they’re doing. Weather delays happen. We’ll tell you why and when we’re back on.
When the crew is done for the day, the site is left cleaner than most homeowners expect. That’s not a favor. That’s our standard.
Phase 6: Walk-through and warranty
When install is finished, we walk the property with you. We show you what was installed, how to operate any systems (irrigation controllers, lighting timers), and what maintenance the plants need for the first year.
Plants come with a one-year warranty if they were part of the install. Hardscape and irrigation come with longer warranties, spelled out in your contract. If something fails within the warranty period and it’s on us, we fix it.
We also send you a care package: a document with instructions specific to your project. Care schedules, watering guidance, links to reach us. This is where a lot of the ongoing value of working with a designer shows up. You’re not left holding a finished yard with no idea how to maintain it.
Realistic timeline
From first phone call to finished install: usually four to eight months for a mid-size project, depending on when in the season you call and how much design iteration is needed.
First call to site visit: one to two weeks. Site visit to first design draft: three to four weeks. Design revisions and approval: two to four weeks. Contract to install start: two weeks to four months, depending on season and book. Installation: one to four weeks.
If someone tells you they can compress this significantly, either the project is very small or the process is being rushed. Rushed landscape projects fail more often than they succeed.
Signs the process is going well
You feel informed at every step. Nobody dodges your questions. The designer challenges some of your assumptions and explains why. Costs make sense when broken down. Timelines are realistic. When something changes, you hear about it quickly.
Signs it isn’t
Vague quotes with no line items. Timelines that keep slipping without clear reasons. Materials substituted without asking you. Pressure to make decisions faster than you’re comfortable with. If any of these show up, ask direct questions.
The starting point
If you’re thinking about a project and want to know how ours would work for your site specifically, we start with a phone call. Fifteen minutes tells us both whether it’s worth going further.
Schedule a design consultation here.
Written by the team at Monolith Landscape Design, Chattanooga TN. Residential landscape design, design-build, planting, hardscape, and irrigation across Chattanooga, Signal Mountain, Lookout Mountain, Hixson, Ooltewah, East Brainerd, Red Bank, and East Ridge.