Garden and landscape design
From our head office in Belgium, the attraction of Wirtz International has spread across Europe, Asia and the United States. What’s our competitive advantage? Respect for the existing situation, climate zones and plant habitats, the excellent design, the constant focus on well-balanced sustainability, attention for details and supervision from the beginning to the completion of every project. With this, Wirtz International has outshone the efforts of its competitors and continues to arouse intense interest in its work.
Thanks to years of collaboration with their sister construction company, Wirtz Tuinarchitectuur, the design studio Wirtz International has acquired valuable field experience with typical complexities and challenges. This translates into exclusive designs, with high standards of finish that are greatly appreciated by our clientele.
Furthermore, this close collaboration results in a rather down-to-earth attitude and focus on reality during the design process. A deep-rooted passion for unexpected plant selections is a constant, present in all projects.
Wirtz designs private gardens, business gardens and roof gardens, from a town garden to an estate.
Our design process
Each landscape design made by Wirtz is unique, but the design process itself follows a well-defined path to ensure our quality standards. During the schematic design process, we talk with our client to determine the project requirements and the clients wishes. We will then start with rough study drawings which will illustrate the concept of our design.
Once the schematic design has been finalized, and the client has approved the design, there are still numerous details which have to be worked out. During the Design Development phase we can start refining and translating the schematic design into AutoCAD. Decisions about materials and suitable plant species are made within this phase of the design process.
These two phases are the ones which require the most feedback from and communication with our clients. Once our design proposal has been approved and finalized, and we have concluded that it fits with the agreed budget, we turn a little more inward and get down to the work of preparing the detailed construction drawings for the contractors to use in bringing our designs to reality.
Frequently asked questions
How does a garden design by Wirtz begin?
Every project opens with a conversation on site. Wirtz International walks the grounds with the client, listens to how the garden will be used and reads the existing situation: soil, light, levels and the planting already present. From that reading come the first rough study drawings that set out the concept.
What does Wirtz need before the drawing starts?
Wirtz works from a survey of the plot, with levels, boundaries, existing trees and services. The client brief weighs just as heavily: how the family or the staff will use the space, which views count and which seasons matter most. With that material Wirtz can judge what the site will carry.
Which gardens does Wirtz International design?
Wirtz designs private gardens, business gardens and roof gardens, from a narrow town garden to an estate, and public space as well. Scale is less decisive than the brief: a courtyard receives the same attention to levels, structure and plant selection as a park.
Does Wirtz International work outside Belgium?
Yes. From the head office in Schoten, Wirtz International has designed gardens across Europe, in Asia and in the United States. Wirtz travels to the site for the survey and for the supervision, and works with local contractors and growers where the climate zone and the plant supply call for it.
What does Wirtz deliver at the end of the design process?
After the schematic design and the design development phase, Wirtz International prepares detailed construction drawings in AutoCAD, together with the material choices and the planting plan. A contractor builds from those drawings, and they carry the level of detail Wirtz expects on site.
Does Wirtz also build the gardens it designs?
Wirtz Tuinarchitectuur, the sister company, carries out the garden construction in the Benelux. Beyond that region Wirtz International supervises the contractor. That shared history is why the drawings stay buildable: the design studio knows from the field what a detail asks of the people who have to make it.
