The Fragrant Garden

Mitzi VanSant designed a planted garden area appropriate for native prairie of around 3/4 of an acre in the middle of large rural acreage. Mitzi considered my desire for color and variety. She recommended native plants and was thoughtful in her choices. She took into consideration my age and that I tend to travel for weeks at a time, so the garden needed to be self-sustaining as well as beautiful. She also incorporated the look of a photo from a magazine that I had kept for several years. Together, she and I talked through a kitchen garden with hard scape, and plantings around the house and the surrounding area that helped the house blend into the land better. The whole planting is still new, but the roses are already beginning to bloom and there is color on other plants. Due to the weather, the entire project took a year from initial contact until the last plant went into the ground. At every step, I had input and review of plans and my suggestions and desires were always promptly acknowledged and incorporated when possible.

In projects big and small, Mitzi VanSant delightfully captivates our senses—sight, sound and fragrance. With skillful professional detail, she tackles nitty-gritty structural concerns. Even while quilting emotional sensations, she keeps a practical eye on the future where drought, flooding, or chomping critters will share her design. A master at layering dimensions, colors, and plants with wildlife benefits, Mitzi culls from her extensive knowledge of botanical cultivation—historical and contemporary. A good listener and interpreter, she knows just how to turn her clients’ dreams into stunning reality. In her appearances on Central Texas Gardener on KLRU/PBS--broadcast nationally and online--her beautifully wise concepts and designs impact gardeners and designers everywhere!

Mitzi's vast knowledge of plants and design make for the perfect backyard oasis at Prairie Street Heritage House BnB, Facility Rental, and Tea Room. Though we haven't begun the actual preparation and planting, we are excited about the prospect. Her plan is detailed and easy to follow. The sport courts (washers and horseshoes), as well as the plant choice fit our restored old home to a tea. We look forward to our first garden party and backyard rentals. We are also excited about the potential for a Backyard Wildlife Habitat certification. Working with Mitzi is indeed a joy and we look forward to continued communication with her as we tackle the project in 2016.

Mitzi has helped me organize my older garden. She laid out a new rounded lawn in my front yard. I have a lot of shade in my yard and prefer to be as organic as possible. I also am concerned with water conservation and having a yard that is as low maintenance as possible. She is a wonderful listener & very conscientious about my needs. She has provided me with ongoing consultation on how to add plant materials. She is very knowledgeable and realistic. She has helped me keep my desire for "one of everything" somewhat under control (my problem, not hers)! Mitzi is wonderful!

Mitzi worked with us to create a complete yard design. We already had a rock-filled drainage "creek & pond." She designed a low-maintenance shrub garden to complement it, with areas for annuals and a small vegie garden. She worked with us patiently to find out what kinds of shrubs we like best and to introduce us to some that we hadn't previously known. The result is a beautiful yard with shrubs for all seasons - flowers and foliage - and food for birds and butterflies. We love it.

Mitzi took an overgrown, unstructured mess and created a whole new design for our back yard, including patio, stone walkways, a washers pit and trellis. She surrounded a carport with shrubs and trellis so that from the house you see green and not cars. She also created the design for a functional patio with an outdoor kitchen as well as seating toward the back of the yard in the shade. Surrounding everything are fragrant plants meant to last all seasons, so that no matter what time of year, something is blooming. I would recommend The Fragrant Garden and use her again.

Mitzi Van Sant worked up a plan for a natural Hill Country landscape for the front of my house. She was prompt, knowledgeable, responsive and fun to work with. i am very happy with the landscape, which is low maintenance, colorful, and has the unmistakable look of Central Texas. It blooms year round with almost no supplemental water.

Mitzi designed the landscaping for my front and back yards. Her designs were easy to read and implement. Our garden is now in its third year. Every year it gets better! We receive many complements. I would be happy to recommend Mitzi.

After admiring her personal and professional garden designs for years, I hired Mitzi to design a landscape for my rural property. I couldn't be more pleased with the results. She is professional, highly knowledgeable and easy to work with. She took the time to really listen to my thoughts and skillfully combined them with her own lovely aesthetic. Her plan for me perfectly reflected my desire for a country garden landscape with several seating areas, a covered barbeque area, a patio, pathways, flower gardens and a vegetable garden. I highly recommend The Fragrant Garden.

Mitzi met with us over the course of several months to develop a landscaping plan for our front and back yard spaces. She took the time to listen to what we wanted to see in the space, and paid careful attention to how we'd like to use it. She was careful to consider our young son and dogs in designing a space where everyone can enjoy themselves. We particularly appreciated the thorough plant, hardscape, and structure resources that Mitzi had to offer us to help us think about what we really wanted to have in the space. The result is a complete landscape design, including a detailed plant list and places where we can shop, that we will implement over time as we can afford it. We are so excited to undertake the first stage this coming Fall. Thank you, Mitzi!

Mitzi designed a garden, front and back. at my daughter's home approximately five years ago. Each year it is more beautiful. Gina could not be more pleased. My daughter and I wanted native plants with blooms but also not a lot of care. That is exactly what we got! The most important aspect of this gardening project for Gina and myself was to have someone who would listen to our desires and advice us as well on the choice of plants we wanted. Mitzi guided us to plants that are well suited to our area and also would compliment the style of home Gina has. Mitzi is easy to talk to and is always there to answer questions. She did not leave the project until it was complete. We will always recommend Mitzi.

Mitzi Van Sant designed the Texas Quilt Museum's unique, one-of-a-kind historic garden. It is a typical "turn of the century" garden which complements our historic, recently restored buildings from the 1890s. The lot we had to install the garden was full of concrete and rubble and almost no soil. She did a great job cleaning up the site and establishing a great base of soil and soil amendments so our plants, trees, shrubs and vines could flourish. Mitzi was very professional, providing us with detailed site plans. She was on time and pleasant to work with.