Landscape architects, contractors enhance business

Ask landscape architect J. Steve Ownby of Ownby Associates to define his work, and his answer is precise. "Landscape is a term dealing with cosmetics and plants," he said. "Landscape architecture is a combination of architecture, engineering and all the living processes of nature. My role is to bring them all together for the benefit of people who will be on the site, both in the present and in the future."

Ownby has been designing landscapes since 1965. Many of his projects are familiar to Ozarkers.

He has been the landscape designer for the Charlie Pride Theater, the Moon River Theatre and the Showboat Branson Belle White River Landing on Table Rock Lake, all in Branson. He also designed the Nixa Stroll Garden and Public Works Facility, as well as projects for Southwest Missouri State University, City Utilities, the Park Central Renovation, Alltel, KY3 and the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce.

His latest designs include the Wonders of Wildlife Museum, Evangel College, the Jefferson Street Footbridge Plaza and the Greene County Justice Center.

Ownby's son, Steven Cory Ownby, is following in his father's footsteps, working in the company as an associate landscape architect. He will take his registration exam this spring.

After more than 35 years, the senior Ownby has definite ideas to share.

"Too often, people think about the landscaping after the building is up and they think it's ugly," he said. "The landscaping then is cosmetic. I feel that if the building architect, the landscape architect and the site engineer or other specialists work as a team from the start, we end up having a much better finished project."

The process is complex and time-consuming, he said. It all starts with a client interview and site analysis, which means hearing what the client wants and seeing what the land actually looks like.

The architect must consider topography and nature because maintaining existing trees and plants means causing less erosion and other damage to the site.

Through trial and error, with sketches and diagrams, client ideas and all of the existing features of the site, the architect can bring the site together, Ownby said. Next come schematic drawings that along with verbal descriptions convey the architect's concepts to the client.

"Usually we provide several concepts, because most people don't know what they want until they actually see it," Ownby said. "And a three-dimensional object still has a fourth dimension time which will change how it looks."

Next, contractors construct the building from blueprints created by the building architect.

The site engineer then plans engineered structures such as bridges.

The landscape architect has typically created the preliminary site design showing grading, paved areas, terraces, site furnishing such as benches and trash receptacles, and plantings. The landscaping contractor comes in last and plants.

"Good landscaping improves the value of a site from a real estate standpoint," Ownby said. "We consider the slopes, the sun angles, the views. Clients want properties that are attractive, livable, user-friendly. Tourist venues demand strong curb appeal. Visual impact comes from choosing compatible building materials paving patterns, retaining wall material, lighting fixtures, signs, and plantings."

But having made the point that the landscape architect handles far more than just plant materials, Ownby talked about the use of natural materials in landscaping.

"One tendency people have myself included is to want to use plants that aren't quite adapted to our climate," he said. "We go through weather cycles here and need to be careful that plants have a proven track record. This winter, for example, did more damage to plants here than I've seen in 15 years."

Ownby said that he tends to select specific plants for specific applications, but he confessed to a fondness for Japanese maples, "which make a delightful accent if not overused. I prefer dwarf, broadleaf evergreens as foundation plants because they don't overgrow the size of the space, and they maintain a natural look. I also like smaller, ornamental trees because they don't dominate. But, of course, on a large site, you need a canopy tree.

"I like to mass plants to create an organized palette, rather than set out little individual plants. And placement can be critical. When you put a plant in the wrong place and it grows too large, you need to cut it. You end up with what, at best, does not look like a natural plant."

Jane Doney, project landscape architect at Scott Consulting Engineers, picked up Ownby's themes of teamwork and the need to educate people regarding the profession. "Landscape architecture is so much more than plantings," she said. "It includes land use for example, planning a multi-use site so the residential area flows into office buildings into commercial usage, or laying out a subdivision to best utilize the land for streets and sewers. And when we do site planning for a single tract," she continued, "we work as a team architects and engineers to figure out the best placement for the building, where to locate parking, how to bring in utilities. We like to capitalize on natural features, things like streams and trees already in place."

"Ecologically," Doney added, "it's nice to have green space within urban areas. It's visually refreshing, and of course, plants give us oxygen, so they're something of a necessity. Unfortunately, landscaping is often used to simply solve a functional issue, or to meet city criteria. The city zoning ordinances set requirements for parking lots, for example, and depending on the lot's location, the owner may have to plant a certain amount of trees and shrubs. Sometimes the consideration is aesthetic particularly with anything aimed at tourists but foundation plantings are the extras, and landscaping is always the last item on the budget, and subject to budget cuts."

It's landscape contractors who actually put in the finishing touches.

Don Fesperman Jr., owner of Maplewood Gardens and a landscape contractor himself, said that architects put the landscaping projects up for bid, often before the building is erected.

Once a contract is signed, Fesperman starts rounding up plants and other materials for the job, which may include mulches, topsoils, stone or block. "If the general contractor is running behind, it makes our lives miserable," Fesperman said. "And weather plays a huge role. Currently, we're doing a retirement home in Branson. We were ready to go last week, and we got an inch of rain. We have all the materials here we just keep 'em tagged off and hold them until we can go."

Josh Hirsch of Hirsch Landscape and Design, Ozark, on the other hand, is a landscaper who prefers to design both his commercial and residential landscapes himself.

A self-described "landscape grunt who worked his way up to foreman," Hirsch started his own company several years ago. Blessed with a good eye for design, bosses who taught him the trade, and a strong back, he said he is able to take projects from sketch to completion, creating ponds, rock walls, and any sort of planted environment.

"My first commercial job was a St. John's Clinic in Marshfield," he said, "where I did some general landscaping trees, berms, foundation plantings. Since then I've done a number of other clinics and hospital buildings for St. John's. They like what I design, they like the execution, and they call me when they need me. I've also done some work for small office complexes around town."

Hirsch said about 25 percent of his workload is commercial landscaping, which accounts for about 35 percent of his business income.

In his projects he gets the site plan directly from the client, studies the land, and then follows city regulations to determine the number of trees and shrubs required.

Hirsch's favorite plants for commercial projects, he said, are maple and pin oaks for hardiness and color, flowering crabapples for ornamentals, yews and barberry shrubs, Stella D'Oro variety daylilies, and monkey grass, a short, green, leafy groundcover grass with seasonal pink flowers.

He picks plantings that are fairly low-maintenance and can tolerate the Ozarks climate.

"Commercial clients usually give you a lot of decision-making power," Hirsch said. "I do residential work, too, and home landscaping is done primarily for visual appeal, with clients having a lot of input, especially about color. They want to lead you. Commercial landscaping demands hardy plants, because they won't get the TLC home-owners will give.

"Small office complexes want something unique, but as a general rule, the big commercial clients want shade, they want something green. They know I'll make it look good, so they're happy to let me decide what the plantings will be."