Landscape design construction in Boise, Idaho

You have a design, or you're about to, and now the question is who's going to build it right. Landscape design construction in Boise is where a good plan either comes to life or falls apart. A yard can look great on paper and still end up with sunken pavers, dead shrubs and a soggy corner if the build is rushed or done out of order.

Landscape design construction is the build side of design. It turns a plan into grading, pipe, stone and plants in the ground. I'm Kabe Hockema. I've been building landscapes since 2012, and I build the yards I design. I'm on every job myself, from the first stake in the ground to the last plant. You can read about the design side on my landscape designer page.

Why build order matters

The order of work on a landscape follows a simple rule. Things that go underground go first. Things that get walked on go next. Things that are alive go last. Skip ahead, and you end up cutting into a finished patio to run a sprinkler line, or trampling new plants to set a wall block.

How a build goes, step by step

• Mark and locate. Underground utilities get marked through 811 before any digging. Then I lay out the plan on the ground with paint and stakes, so you can see the real sizes before anything is built.
• Clear the site. Old sod, rock, broken concrete and dead plants come out and get hauled away.
• Grade. I shape the ground so water moves away from the house and toward spots where it can soak in or drain. On bigger slopes, this is where grading and resloping comes in.
• Drainage and irrigation. Drain lines, sleeves under future paths, irrigation mainlines and valves all go in now. So does the wire for landscape lighting, so nothing has to be cut later.
• Hardscape. Walls, steps, patios and paths go in on a compacted gravel base built for our freeze-thaw winters.
• Soil prep. Planting beds get loosened and amended with compost so roots can push through the clay.
• Planting. Trees first, then shrubs, perennials and groundcover. Drip emitters get set at each plant.
• Lawn and finish. Sod or seed, then mulch or rock, then a full test of the irrigation to check coverage.
• Walkthrough. We walk the yard together. I show you the irrigation controller and how to water through the first summer.

What Treasure Valley ground does to a build

Clay holds water. When wet clay freezes, it swells. That's what heaves pavers and cracks walls. A deeper gravel base and good drainage behind walls keep that from happening.

Builder fill is packed hard. New subdivisions in Meridian, Kuna and Star often have compacted fill under a thin layer of topsoil. I break that up in planting areas before anything goes in.

The soil is alkaline. Some plants turn yellow and stall here. I pick plants that handle it and amend the soil where it helps.

Water comes from different places. Homes on irrigation district water, including the canal and ditch water common in Canyon County, need a filter and a different setup than homes on city water. District water also runs on a season, so planting and irrigation testing get timed around it.

The owner on site, start to finish

With a lot of companies, you meet a salesperson, then a designer, then a crew lead you've never seen before. With me, it's one person. I take on a limited number of projects each season so I can run each one myself, and you get my direct number. If something on site doesn't match the plan, like a buried pipe or a soft spot in the soil, I make the call right there and tell you why.

Why one build costs more than another

• How much has to be torn out and hauled away.
• How much grading and soil work the yard needs.
• The square footage of patios, walls and paths, and the materials you pick.
• Irrigation work, from small changes to a whole new system.
• Site access. A narrow side gate means smaller machines and more hand work.
• The number and size of plants.

I'll go through each of these with you at the consultation.

The pieces a build brings together

Most builds combine several kinds of work. A patio laid out through patio design, a short wall from retaining wall design, and a planting plan from custom landscape design all have to fit together on the same ground. Building them in one job, in the right order, is cheaper and cleaner than three separate projects. You can see finished builds on my projects page.

Where I build

I build in Boise, Garden City, Eagle, Meridian, Star, Kuna, Nampa, Caldwell, Middleton and Hidden Springs. I also take projects in Sun Valley and Ketchum.

Talk about your build

If you want landscape design construction in Boise from someone who will be on site and answer the phone, let's talk. Schedule a consultation and bring your plan, your sketches or just your ideas.