From Concept to Care: A Complete Guide to Outdoor Space Management
Bret-Mar Landscape, Inc. has spent over 40 years helping homeowners across Naperville and the Chicagoland area navigate every phase of their outdoor space, from the very first sketch of a design concept to the ongoing care that keeps a landscape looking exceptional year after year.
The outdoor spaces that hold their beauty and value over decades are not the ones that were installed and forgotten. They're the ones that were thoughtfully designed, expertly built, and consistently maintained. This guide walks through what that full journey looks like when it's done right.
Phase One: Concept and Design
Every outstanding outdoor space starts with a clear vision. Not just an aesthetic preference, but a genuine understanding of how the homeowner wants to live outside. The design phase is where the most important decisions are made, and it's where the expertise of a licensed landscape architect makes the greatest difference.
Starting With a Consultation Built Around Your Life
At Bret-Mar, every project begins with a design consultation where we listen carefully to your vision, style, and how you want to use your outdoor space. We ask the right questions. Do you want a space for hosting gatherings or a private garden retreat? Are you looking for low-maintenance plantings or rich seasonal variety? Do you want outdoor cooking facilities, a fire feature, water elements, or all three?
We also ask clients to bring a copy of their plat of survey to the first meeting. This document shows exact property lines, the location of all structures, easements, and the measurements we need to design accurately from the start. We'll also ask for inspiration photos and consider your favorite colors, plants, and how you entertain, because the best designs begin with real information about real lives.
3D Design and Virtual Walkthrough
All of our designs are completed using computer software that develops full 3D imagery and virtual walkthrough mode. Our presentation meetings take place at our Homer Glen office, where clients view their new design on large televisions and enjoy a stroll through our display gardens. You see exactly what your Naperville outdoor space will look like before any installation decision is finalized.
This transparency is intentional. Poor design decisions, low-end materials, and short-sighted planning can leave you with regrets and repairs. You only get one chance to do it right, and with Bret-Mar, you will.
Related: The Long-Term Benefits of Custom Landscape and Hardscape Design
Phase Two: Installation and Build
Once the design is approved and a commitment for installation is made, our in-house team takes over. This is where the vision becomes reality.
Landscaping: Planting Design That Lasts
Our landscaping services cover planting design that is tailored to your specific property and aesthetic goals as well as the practical realities of the Midwest climate. Illinois's clay-heavy soils, temperature extremes, and freeze-thaw cycles all inform how we select and position plant material.
We use trees and plants that are native and locally sourced wherever possible, and we use fertilizers and materials that are safe and responsible. We also recycle all pots, baskets, trays, and plastics we use. Trees and shrubs are warrantied for one year with one replacement, which reflects the quality of our material and the care of our installation process.
Hardscaping: Engineered for the Midwest
Our hardscaping services cover patios, walkways, driveways, retaining walls, and stonework, all installed by our in-house team on properly engineered base systems designed to perform through Midwest freeze-thaw cycles. We are a Unilock Authorized Contractor, which reflects a commitment to rigorous installation standards, and our hardscape base warranty covers a period of two years.
Brick pavers and light fixtures carry additional manufacturer warranties, which are disclosed on every individual proposal. There are no surprises at Bret-Mar, only clarity.
Landscape and hardscape installations are overseen and completed by our in-house team. Partner contractors are brought in only for specialty items such as electrical, plumbing, and carpentry, ensuring quality control across every element of the project.
Outdoor Living Spaces: Where Function Meets Beauty
For Naperville homeowners who want to truly transform how they live at home, our outdoor living space services cover outdoor kitchens, fire pits, water features, and landscape lighting. These elements extend how you use your property across three seasons and create the signature outdoor experience that a well-designed landscape delivers.
Whether you dream of hosting unforgettable gatherings under the stars, relaxing in a tranquil garden, or pulling into a driveway that makes you proud, your landscape should match the lifestyle you've worked hard to create.
Related: Garden Maintenance Tips to Keep Your Landscape Looking Its Best
Phase Three: Ongoing Care and Maintenance
Installation is not the end of a great landscape. It's the beginning. The outdoor spaces that look extraordinary season after season are the ones that receive consistent, knowledgeable maintenance from people who understand both the plants and the design intent behind them.
Comprehensive Maintenance Programs
Bret-Mar offers two maintenance options for clients in Naperville and surrounding communities. Our all-inclusive maintenance program offers three to eight visits per year and covers the full scope of seasonal care: pruning, bed maintenance, weed control, plant health monitoring, and seasonal clean-up. Our single maintenance visit option allows clients to request care on an as-needed basis.
Many of our Naperville clients choose to start each season with a spring clean-up visit to address winter damage, refresh mulch, and prepare the landscape for the growing season ahead.
Why Consistent Maintenance Protects the Investment
A landscape that was designed and installed correctly still needs professional care to maintain the performance and visual quality it was built to deliver. Mulch that depletes loses its weed-suppression and moisture-retention benefits. Shrubs that go unpruned lose their form and begin to crowd adjacent plantings. Hardscape joints that thin out with erosion allow weeds to establish and pavers to shift.
Our maintenance programs are designed to address these realities proactively, keeping small issues from becoming larger ones and ensuring your Naperville outdoor space looks as intentional in its fifth year as it did in its first.
The Bret-Mar Three-Step Process
The full journey from concept to care follows a simple, clear framework that takes the complexity out of getting started.
Step 1: Schedule a Design Consultation. Tell us about your space, your style, and how you want to live outside. No charge for consultations or designs.
Step 2: Get a Custom Plan and Quote. We create a personalized design vision and a roadmap to make it real, presented in 3D at our Homer Glen office.
Step 3: Build Your Dream Landscape. Watch your outdoors transform into a space that enhances your home for decades to come.
Our minimum project size is $4,000. We are happy to have an upfront conversation about investment levels to find the right balance between your vision and your budget.
Related: How to Design a Luxury Landscape That Balances Beauty and Function
Start Your Naperville Outdoor Space Transformation Today
Bret-Mar Landscape, Inc. is a second-generation, family-owned landscape architecture firm that has been creating beautiful, lasting outdoor spaces for Naperville homeowners and families across the Chicagoland area since 1985. Led by licensed landscape architects Ashley, Kurt, and Sharon, and completed by an experienced in-house installation team, we bring the expertise of a professional design firm and the warmth of a family business to every project we touch.
Our awards include the Excellence in Landscape recognition and Best of Houzz, and we are proud members of the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association with 35 years of membership.
Contact Bret-Mar Landscape today at (708) 301-2225 or email info@bretmarlandscape.com to schedule your free design consultation. Our office is located at 15000 S. Will Cook Road, Homer Glen, IL 60491. We proudly serve Naperville and all surrounding Chicagoland communities.
