Mature lots
This page is for yards that already have a history, not for bare builder dirt.
Established LWR yards
When the original planting has outgrown the house, it is time for a refresh — not another trim.
A Lakewood Ranch house that is five, ten, or fifteen years old often has a different problem than a new lot: shrubs that hide the windows, bed lines that never got redrawn, and a palette that made sense to a builder and no longer makes sense to you. We'll redesign that yard and build the refresh with the same crew.
Keep what still works
Good palms and trees stay when they still serve the house. What has gone woody or wild comes out.
Still HOA-aware
A refresh has to live on the same street, with the same association, as the original yard did.
What 'overgrown' usually means
The plants did their job too well, or they were the wrong plants.
Foundation shrubs that were cute at three feet and are now over the sills, hedges that have been sheared into boxes, a side yard that became a tunnel — those are design problems, not a failure to prune often enough.
Claire Franks described a very unstructured and overgrown yard that became a clean, cohesive, thoughtfully designed outdoor space. Jack Strack wrote about a front yard and pool area that had not been attended to for a long time, and about keeping the best of what was there. That is the work of a refresh.
What we keep
A mature lot already has bones. Use them.
An established LWR yard may have palms, a tree with real presence, or a hardscape line that is still right. We start there. The refresh is a new composition, not a fashionable wipe-out.
Association rules still apply. A new front has to fit the neighborhood even if the old one has been there for a decade. Bring the guidelines if the look is going to change a lot from the street.
Walk the mature yard
We look at what has gotten out of scale, what is still beautiful, and what the association will expect from a new front.
Decide what stays
The estimate is as much about removals as additions: a new layout, a tighter palette, and the trees worth keeping.
Rebuild the beds, then walk them
The same crew does the refresh. We stay through the final walkthrough.
4.8 from 15 Google reviews
The folks at Sarasota Landscaping came highly recommended by a friend, and they did not disappoint. The team was very professional, arrived each day when they said they would, and finished the project on time. They far exceeded my expectations! Our backyard and lanai area looks fantastic!
Brenda Vollman
Beautiful backyard landscaping. All my neighbors and friends rave about it!! Colorful!!
Sue Lee
Used company twice. One of the few landscape contractors that provides great service and design. On-site crew was on time and worked tirelessly to complete both projects. I certainly recommend for your next small, or large landscaping project.
David Fountain
From the Google listing for Sarasota Landscaping Inc.. Read them on Google.
Can you just prune everything back?
Sometimes pruning is enough. Often the plants are simply the wrong size or species for the place they were put. The visit is how we tell the difference.
Will I lose all my existing palms?
Not by default. Palms and trees that still fit the house are usually kept. Ones that are failing or badly placed are a different conversation.
How is this different from the other two Lakewood Ranch pages?
lakewoodranchlandscaping.com is the general LWR site. landscapinglakewoodranch.com is for new construction. This page is for established yards that need a redesign, not a first planting.
Do you redo backyards as well as fronts?
Yes. Many refreshes are a front that has hidden the house and a back that was never really finished. You can do both, or phase them.
The yard has grown up. Let's redesign it.
Book a free site visit. We'll walk the existing planting with you and call to set a time.
- Landscape renovation
- Overgrown bed refresh
- Replacing tired builder planting
By Sarasota Landscaping Inc.. We design the work and the same crew builds it.