Ronald J. Allison Landscape Architect

Plants have been my life long passion. As a small child I watched and learned as my father planted our garden. As a boy of 10 or 11, my favorite part of the State Fair was not the Midway but rather the marvelous old Hall of Flowers, with it's towering waterfalls, beautiful tuberous begonias, huge dahlia blooms and the sweet fragrance of orchids; all of which left lasting impressions. Those childhood experiences grew into hanging out in a local nursery and trying to grow anything and everything in our yard. I would ask strangers for cuttings from their plants and an inspection of my pockets at any time could reveal seeds carefully tucked away to take home and plant. That early passion grew into a desire to use all those plants to create places for people to enjoy -- using the plants like notes on a musical score to compose a garden symphony with rhythm, texture, focus, seasonal crescendos, and even to tell stories. And like music, gardens come in many genres from simple folk gardens loaded with cultural significance, to grand operas such as Versailles where the best a culture has to offer is presented for all to see. My goal, as a design professional, is to extract from my clients that genre or lifestyle in which they wish to be emersed, merge that with how they plan to use those surroundings with family activities and entertaining and the opportunities afforded by their site. Then embark on a process to show them the array of possibilities available in creating that environment, however large or small their space may be, culminating in the creation of their unique corner of the world.