Ecological Landscape Design by C. Darren Butler
      I believe that the longevity of a civilization can be estimated by looking at how it manages its soil, as soil is the foundation of all civilization. In our urban and agricultural lands we pollute and destroy soil at the rate of billions of tons per year in the United States alone.

      Ecological landscape design (both for new landscapes and retrofits) is an alternative to the unsustainable methods typically used in our urban landscapes.

      The list of potential techniques and approaches to ecological landscape design is too long to address here, but would generally include establishing localized resource use and cycling; imitating natural systems to create low-maintenance landscapes; placement of trees and plants for multiple functions, including food production, beauty, and passive solar heating and cooling; integrating food forestry, perennial food plantings, and alternate energy systems when possible to create environments that are functional and sustaining in times of disaster or interruption of distribution; including humans at the site as part of set of functioning, mutually supportive systems that imitate natural systems; developing the landscape for water retention and reduced water use; collection of rainwater and using graywater; and much more.

      I tailor my ecological designs and retrofits to individuals and individual landscapes, personalizing them at a human scale. Projects within the past two years include design of a garden that appears Japanese in style but uses strictly California native and drought-tolerant plants; retrofit of a modernist landscape for low-water use and to increase both sustainability and beauty; lawn replacement with food-bearing or low-water/low-maintenance plants; and design of edible landscapes that provide both beauty and ample food.

   Please see “about me” for a list of some of my licenses, certifications, and qualifications. My comprehensive expertise allows me to consider an unusually broad range of subject areas in my designs, from extensive horticultural and arboricultural knowledge to permaculture design to use of alternative irrigation/rainwater collection/graywater, and much more.

      My current rates are $150 for any site visit up to one hour, plus $85 per additional hour or for followup offsite work, billed in increments of 15 minutes. For areas beyond Los Angeles to the south, Pasadena to the east, Newhall to the north, and Pacific Palisades to the west, an additional charge for driving time may apply.

   Day rates and out-of-county rates are available. Please contact Darren Butler at 818 271 0963 or allnet@pobox.com for more information.



Special Discounted Consulting Rates for residences and estates transitioning toward sustainability.