We have used Golden Gate Gardens multiple times, they have been honest, affordable and provide…read moregreat results.

I want to give a big shout-out to Brett Begbie, owner of Golden Gate Gardens, a Benicia landscape…read morecontractor who recently did an extraordinary job putting in our new backyard. When we first met with Brett, we explained that our goals were to completely re-do our existing yard and to transform it into a garden that would be beautiful, drought-resistant, low-maintenance, and safe for the two resident seniors - my husband and me. Brett and the hard-working crew at Golden Gate Gardens fulfilled these goals and exceeded all our expectations. We interviewed several contractors before selecting Golden Gate Gardens. Several things impressed us about Brett's bid: First, Golden Gate Gardens is a full-service contractor - they handle everything including demolition, hardscape, plants, irrigation, lighting and gazebo construction. Second, the bid was extremely complete so there were no surprise charges at the end of the project. Third, the pricing was competitive and fair. The crew at Golden Gate Gardens did a fantastic job. All their work was performed to the highest standards. They started the project on the agreed-to date and completed the project on time. They were flexible enough to also complete several add-ons that we requested. The crew was on-site nearly every business day for approximately six weeks and were always hardworking and professional. With the job complete, we feel like we have a beautiful park in our backyard.

I ordered over 500 sqft of Sod. The ordering process was pretty easy and the person who took my…read moreorder was knowledgeable and friendly. I was happy with the company up until it was time for the delivery. There was no option to pick up the sod on my own at my convenience. Then the delivery was scheduled between 6am and 8am on a Saturday morning which was not ideal for my project to begin with but what can you do? To make matters worse, the sod was delivered just after 4am (nearly 2 hours before the delivery window) which woke up probably half the neighborhood including me. I got up to direct the delivery person where to place the sod and noticed the delivery person had already left and made no attempt to make contact with me before dropping the pallet off on the street (public property). Very disappointing!

Not only did Kim answer at 10pm, when I thought I was just going to leave a message, she took my…read moreorder and made an appointment to meet the next day. I could either pay the credit card fee or pay cash to avoid the card fee. The grass is greener than other ones I've seen. This is the Elite Plus, great quality!

These guys are great! Professional, nice and happy while they work. They did a wonderful job with…read moremy front yard and have come back twice for miscellaneous sprinkler repairs. Always thoughtful and wonderful to work with. I always recommend them.

Where do I begin? My front and backyards were a hodge podge of mismatched whimsy and dreams of…read morenearly 30 years. Now as I age I had come to an honest conclusion that required the least amount of physical effort and demands. I started at Mid-City Nursery and received a roster of local landscapers. After talking to a few Aaron Mitchell grabbed my attention and selection with his honest and kind approach to my many questions. Once the work began, he and his crew worked diligently into transforming my mess into something that even my pickiest neighbors were amazed and complimentary. They showed up on time and cleaned up each day. They worked well together as a team. Aaron is a young man with old school values. I felt his bid was well priced for what I received.

Would give more stars if I could! Had a wonderful experience working with Leigh and Javier. We had…read morea mess of a front yard, covered in random concrete and lots of juniper bushes (which I don't love). To me the yard seemed like a serious challenge as it is in 3 sections in retaining walls but Leigh seemed to know right away what to do. She listen to my request to put in easy to manage plants that are drought tolerate. I really loved her plant selection. Her contractor, Javier came in and did some serious cleaning out and putting in a proper drainage system in front of the house as well as a irrigation system. Everything was done quicker then expected but very efficient and to a high standard. She was at the higher end of what we expected to pay but I feel it was worth the cost. I'm very happy with the work done and we have a tons of compliments from neighbors and random strangers. Would recommend to anyone!

Leigh is incredibly talented and we couldn't be happier with the work she did…read more We'd been unhappy with our yard for many years--it's an odd-shaped space on a slope, with numerous challenges (strong wind, freeway noise, too much concrete). We were seeking ideas for how to make it into a sanctuary--or just improve it so we actually enjoyed spending time outdoors. We'd consulted with 2 landscape designers previously, but weren't happy with what we heard (no compelling ideas unless we were going to spend enough money to buy a second house). Leigh came over for an initial consultation and literally within minutes, she had a vision for what we could do that was super exciting and within our budget. She came up with clever ideas to block wind and noise, replace the concrete in our yard with a row of pretty trees and bushes, and maximize the part of our yard that was most private to give us that sanctuary. Leigh chose beautiful plants for our yard and was careful to check with us each step of the way to ensure everything was in line with our tastes. The crew she worked with were fast, professional, extremely detail-oriented, and committed to high-quality work. We feel so lucky to have the backyard space we have now--we're outdoors all the time and love it. Thank you, Leigh!

My wife and I worked with Linda on landscape plans for our front and back yard. The landscaping was…read morecompleted in March and we are incredibly delighted with everything Linda designed. We met with Linda several times during the design process, and while the design is both professional and modern, it is clear that she incorporated our personal feedback in very thoughtful ways throughout the yard. Our back yard had existing walls and hardscape that would have been costly to demolish and landscape from scratch. We were impressed by Linda's ability to frame her design around the existing infrastructure in clever and resourceful ways. Using Linda's design, the contractor was able to repurpose masonry blocks and rock from unused parts of the yard to totally transform another part of the yard. Equally as impressive, Linda tailored her design to our budgetary constraints, and the contractor's estimate came in on-target. The plans Linda produced were accurate, easy to read, and beautifully artistic. The contractor had very few questions for us about the design, and Linda was on-site a few times during construction to check on the progress. We used a contractor recommended by Linda, and were impressed by their teamwork on the project. A couple months after completion, the plants are in full bloom and the yard has become our favorite part of the house, by far! The landscaping is low-maintenance, and since Linda used mostly drought tolerant plants, our water usage is surprisingly low given the vibrant growth. We would highly recommend Linda to anyone looking for landscape design, without question.

We had a great experience with Linda, owner at Sunrise Garden Design. She patiently listened to our…read moredreams and desires, and helped us land on a backyard design that was practical and beautiful. She clearly communicated her expertise and when our questions drifted to the actual execution of the work, she would always say "that is for the contractor to decide". While some may think this response abrupt or uncaring, Linda is clear in what she does (design) and does not do (installation). We did end up tweaking some design elements to lower installation cost but overall followed her plan. Even when we asked for different plants after her main design was completed, she helped us out at no additional cost. It was a good learning experience for us and we are happy with the final result. Thanks Linda for your great service!

Stephen is truly a master at his craft. We've loved his work and designs so much, we've now done…read moretwo yards with him! We specifically enjoyed Stephen's approach because it was so "design" minded, compared to other landscaping companies that want you to have your own plan/design in mind- Stephen really takes the time to think through what you want, translate what you're looking for, and put it into a design that really works both aesthetically and functionally. He didn't hesitate to let us know when something we said we wanted, actually didn't match up with our goals - I appreciated the honesty and transparency.

Our backyard was a clay bound mess. If it rained during the winter, sorrel and other weeds would…read morecome out in the spring and it would become a hay field filled with knee high weeds. By the time the warm weather came around, our hardy weeds would wear down to a brown dust on top of packed clay soil. We might have tried parking cars on the hard pack. It was a hot dusty mess. When the rain came, one day of rain could turn the hard pack into a morass of sticky gooey mud which was hard to clean off the feet, and hard to clean off the dog. Our backyard was unusable about 3/4 of the year. Finally, we had a couple of slopes in the backyard that were a challenge to know what to do with...it was not an easy place, full of work. The best thing (among many) is that Steve is knowledgeable about plants, how they respond to the weather, and where they will grow. He is also willing to work with you, listen to you, incorporate your ideas, convictions, wishes and desires for the planning of your landscape. I do believe Steve was tired of seeing our number on his caller ID when we called, but he always got back to us, answered our questions and made adjustments as he went. We were definitely heard in our wishes. LIving Earth Gardens handled our soil construction (where they turned it from clingy, muddy cement to soil that would grow stuff) They cleared brush, the planted trees, fruit trees, and put in a drip system to help us water it all. From start to finish they had the tools and know how. They also put in some stairs to make the slope navigable. You will find the whole staff energetic, positive and conscientious. We are pleased with our yard and the effort that was made to get us there.

5 star recommendation for TLC! Frank was amazing to work with through the process - very…read moreknowledgeable, gave recommendations, and was very responsive (something I value very much). The quote was very reasonable and scheduling was a quick turnaround. His crew, led by Herman, were professional, punctual and very friendly. They completed the job in 3 days. The team at TLC removed an old large deck and pergola, and replaced with sod, irrigation, and a large pad and walkway of decomposed granite. The team even reused our old mulch to fill in spots I opted to not landscape at this time, and left our yard looking pristine. I had two last minute requests (one being adding a net for gophers 30 minutes before sod installation) and they were so flexible with no hesitation. I truly appreciate the beautiful upgraded yard TLC gave us, and will definitely use them for future work.

I called TLC and had Frank Jr. come out to look at my backyard for an estimate. Frank was…read moreenthusiastic about the work. He was confident and seemed to have a great landscape knowledge base. I had TLC install approx. 1500 ft.² of sod along with the irrigation system. The crew did a great job and worked really hard. The crew foreman, Herman, answered all my questions and provided reassurance. Job was not cheap but TLC provided a solid quality job.

We met Susan from Creative Exteriors Landscape Design when we were enjoying the Walnut Creek Garden…read moreTour a few years ago. She was very friendly and engaging when we met her and we subsequently saw a few of the gardens she had designed while on the tour. When we finally made the decision to update our front and back yards from grass to drought tolerant plant, we met with Susan to discuss what we were looking for. I wanted to have a "desert-scape" look, with a gravel mulch or base, in the front yard and my wife, Mary, wanted a colorful backyard filled with all the color and all of the flowers that we could plant! We were also adding a large 15' x 20' covered patio area to our existing covered patio area and adding additional aggregate patio under the new covered area. We also wanted to add a circular brick patio and fire pit to the back yard in an area that was currently lawn. Susan definitely understood the assignment and went right to work! She took photos of the existing front and back yards and produced a beautiful plan that met both of our desires. We tweaked a few things along the way and Susan helped us make our dream backyard a reality. She recommended a couple of landscape companies to bid on the job and we chose, Steve Gardell of Gardelle Construction to do the job. They were great to work with. Their entire team was amazing! Susan remained in contact during the construction and actually was onsite the day that the plants were delivered to make sure they were placed correctly. When we had concerns a few weeks later about a few of the plant choices we had made, she cheerfully guided us in replacing three or four plants with new varieties that she and my wife picked out. It's been a few months now since everything was finished and we could not be happier! I'm attaching some before and after pics for your review. All of the pictures that have lawn/grass in them are the before picks. If you're contemplating a landscape project, we could not recommend Suan any higher. Please contact her. You will not be sorry!

Confessions of a design snob: those strong opinions extend to garden and landscape design. So, in…read more2005, when we had enough of the juniper and pyracantha dominating the landscape of the original ranch home we had purchased a few years earlier, we started searching for a landscape designer. Of course, landscape architects and designers abound in our neck of the woods. Most were uninspiring. Many offered a "signature" design that they rubber-stamped upon every garden. As if gardens can be purchased off-the-rack. I can't quite recall how we found Susan, but I am so glad we did! She was collaborative, listened carefully to the vision of my land plan, and introduced a sophisticated plant palette that not only worked with my preferences but also the unique conditions of our property. The plant palette flowered and peaked throughout the seasons, introducing visual variety all year long. She helped us select a landscape contractor, showed up at important milestones to ensure that our collective vision was implemented, and helped me spend our limited budget wisely (we acquired a few 15-gallon trees, splurged on key 5-gallon anchor shrubs and 1-gallons; but saved money by purchases dozens upon dozens of 4-inch plants that I installed myself ... after after work, in the dark, with a headlamp on). The prior property owners never installed drainage and therefore caused the soil to be a sodden, stinky, clay-ey mess devoid of nutrients. So the new plants took a few years to establish. Five years later, the garden was drop-dead gorgeous and extraordinary - not only to behold but to enjoy. More importantly, Susan and I had such a fantastic time working together that we've kept in touch for the past 14(!) years ... and adapted the garden (through "garden refreshes") as our needs changed. Our continued collaboration allowed us to enjoy the garden as it evolved from the pristine weekend destination of a gardening enthusiast to a relaxed outdoor space that accommodates family gatherings, a play structure, games, and soccer nets. I have and will continue to recommend Susan to any one who will listen!