This guide covers what a landscape designer actually does, what separates a thorough one from a quick sketch, and the questions worth asking before you sign anything.
Most people only ever hire a landscape designer once. It usually happens at the end of a build or renovation, the budget has been stretched, and the garden is the last piece standing between you and actually living in your home. Which means you're making a decision you've never made before, at the exact moment it's hardest to get wrong.
What a landscape designer actually does
A landscape designer plans your garden before anyone touches a shovel. That means the layout, the levels, the materials, the planting, and how it all connects to the way your family lives. The result is a documented design that a landscaper can price accurately and build without guesswork.
That last part matters more than most people realise. A garden built from a vague plan gets improvised on site, and improvisation is where budgets blow out and plants end up in the wrong place. A garden built from proper documentation gets built once, correctly.
If you're weighing up a designer against a landscape architect, the roles overlap more than the titles suggest. We've broken down the differences in our guide to landscape designers vs landscape architects.
Five things to look for
1. Plant knowledge that goes past the standard palette
Brisbane is a demanding climate. Subtropical summers, humidity, storm season, and clay soils in half the suburbs. A designer who knows plants will talk about what thrives on your specific site, not just what photographs well. Ask where their plant knowledge comes from. Ours started in a nursery, learning what survives South East Queensland the slow way.
2. An understanding of how gardens get built
Design and construction are different trades, and a designer who has never built anything can draw things that don't work on real sites. Retaining that ignores the levels. Paving with nowhere to drain. A construction background means the plan that looks good on paper is also the plan a landscaper can build to last.
3. Documentation you can actually build from
Ask to see a real example of what you'll receive. A proper landscape plan includes layout, levels, materials, and a full planting schedule. If the deliverable is a single concept image, the detail gets worked out on site, at your expense. We've published examples of real landscape plans so you can see what buildable documentation looks like.
4. Local knowledge
Council overlays, soil types, aspect, and what the afternoon storms do to an exposed western boundary. A designer working in their own region designs for conditions they know first hand. We design across Brisbane and South East Queensland, and every plan is grounded in those conditions.
5. Someone who stays involved
The design phase is the start of the journey, not the end of it. Ask what happens once construction begins. Our answer is design implementation: we brief the trades, attend setout day, and solve design questions as the build unfolds, so the garden you approved is the garden you get.
Eight questions to ask before you engage
- What will I actually receive, and can I see an example?
- Have you designed gardens like mine, on sites like mine?
- Where does your plant knowledge come from?
- Have you worked in construction, or with landscapers, and how does that shape your plans?
- How do you handle council requirements if my project needs approvals?
- Will my landscaper be able to price this plan without allowances and guesses?
- Do you stay involved during construction?
- How do fees work, and what affects them?
A designer who is confident in their process will enjoy answering these. Hesitation on the documentation or construction questions tells you something useful.
What about cost?
Design fees vary with the size and complexity of the project, and a well-documented design consistently earns its fee back through accurate builder pricing and the absence of expensive on-site surprises. We've written a full breakdown in our guide to landscaping costs in Brisbane.
How we work
We're a Brisbane landscape design studio creating plant-rich, functional gardens across South East Queensland, and our Birkdale project won Bronze at the LDI Awards 2025. The process starts with an on-site consultation. We walk the garden together, talk through how you want to live in it, and capture the full brief before any design work begins.
If you're comparing designers for your project, we're happy to be one of them. Tell us about your garden and we'll tell you straight if we're the right fit. If we're not, we'll point you in the right direction.
Frequently asked questions
What does a landscape designer do?
A landscape designer plans your whole garden: layout, levels, materials, and planting, documented so a landscaper can price and build it accurately. The designer turns how you want to live outdoors into a plan that works on your specific site.
Do I need a landscape designer or a landscape architect?
For most residential gardens in Brisbane, a landscape designer covers everything you need. Landscape architects typically work on large-scale public and commercial projects. See our full comparison of designers and landscape architects.
How much does landscape design cost in Brisbane?
Fees depend on the size of the site and the level of documentation your project needs. Our Brisbane landscaping cost guide breaks down design fees and construction costs in detail.
What should a landscape design include?
At minimum: a scaled layout plan, levels, a materials palette, and a complete planting schedule with species and quantities. Anything less leaves your landscaper guessing, and guesses cost money on site.
Does the designer stay involved during construction?
Some do, some hand over the plan and step away. We stay through the build with our design implementation service, briefing trades and resolving questions on site so the finished garden matches the approved design.