Satori Garden Design

Hooray for Arleen and Satori Garden Design. Our 1921 craftsman in Santa Monica was in dire need of a front yard update. We are on a corner lot and over the years had a miss mash of styles and frankly weeds that needed to go. On my daily walk in the neighborhood I saw her sign on her own garden and knew right there and then that we wanted to use her talents. Living in Santa Monica we are fortunate that the city has a rebate program for removing lawn and planting a sustainable landscape. Arleen has done many of these over the years so knows all of the requirements for both the plants and irrigation system. Arleen was patient and listened to all of our concerns and paid close attention to the types of plants we were attracted to planting. She took our suggestions and added her own artistic ideas and came through with a beautiful design. She was even able to repurpose tree trunks from two trees which needed to be removed into the design which truly made our yard unique. Arleen gave us stellar recommendations for the tree removal and the installation. Abelino and his crew were extremely hard working, courteous, efficient, knowledgeable and left everyday with the yard looking spotless. We are so happy with our new yard. Thank you Arleen.

Am I glad we used Satori Garden Designs—YES! Did I like Arleen (the owner/designer)—YES! Do the people in our neighborhood continually say what a wonderful new front yard we have—YES! What all the reviewers say is true. Arleen is wonderful to work with. She listens to your wants and needs, does a great job on her design and her costs are reasonable. For those who want more details, my yard is somewhat complicated since we have areas with sun but also large areas that have deep shade. I wanted a drought-tolerant landscape and plants that provided some color. Since most drought tolerant plants are for sunny areas, our yard can be challenging. That was no problem for Arleen. She was able to build a front and back yard that works beautifully throughout and is thriving in both the sunny and shady areas. Moreover, she is familiar with various rebates available for changing to drought tolerant landscaping so she makes sure her designs will meet rebate requirements. I also wanted a new entry from the street that made it more inviting to guests. She provided this in her design along with a rain garden that gives the appearance that it is a dry creek under the new walkway. I was planning to have a simple backyard since we already have a deck. However, her plans turned the rest of the backyard into a nice retreat by using the driveway concrete that we were replacing to make a casual patio and walkway. (Reuse of existing materials meant a cost savings as well as great recycling that resulted in a beautiful backyard!) Arleen also used a landscape contractor named Abelino and he and his staff are hardworking, do a good job and leave the area neat at the end of the day. In addition to preparing the yard, handling the irrigation installation, planting and lighting, he and his workers also did an outstanding job on some brick work that was required. They carefully matched existing brick so you cannot tell which is the old and which is the new brick.

Arleen is exceptional in her knowledge of plants and gardening. Shes a master of her craft! She truly enjoys what she is doing and its very obvious.

Arleen Ferrera from Satori Garden Design did an excellent job with our front lawn and parkway. We hired her based upon the recommendation of another homeowner in the neighborhood whose front lawn landscape we admired. Arleen was lovely to work with. She came up with a beautiful design of climate-appropriate, non-invasive plants, and recommended a gardening service to remove our existing plants and install drip irrigation (computer controlled). She also supervised their installation of the plants, mulch, decomposed granite, and a flagstone walkway. And, she fulfilled all the requirements so we could receive a landscape rebate from the City of Santa Monica. Because we’ve watched other drought-resistant landscapes in the neighborhood deteriorate after they were installed, we decided to pay the gardening service to come by once a month. Other than that, we don’t have to do anything but enjoy watching the plants mature. It’s been delightful, and we’re very pleased.

Working with Arleen at Satori Garden Design was a simple pleasure from beginning to end. Arleen came prepared with pad and pen ready to listen to my wishes and ideas. After a short while she offered suggestions and made some simple sketches of possibilities. It felt like a collaboration because she responded to all of my concerns. Her follow up drawings reflected our initial site visit. We made a few adjustments and agreed on a schedule for the installation. There were no delays and no budget overruns. Everything was accomplished in a highly professional manner and now my beautiful drought tolerant garden is thriving. Thank you, Arleen

Satori Design transformed my run of the mill San Fernando Valley front yard from a thatch-infested lawn with old-fashioned garden beds into a sprawling, modern drought tolerant beauty. I constantly get compliments from neighbors and people passing by. Arleen has a keen sense of design combined with a thorough understanding of plants and their tolerances. Anyone looking to re-landscape needs to look no further than Satori Design.

Arleen Satori was excellent to work with. She was thoughtful, thorough, and had great resources. Arleen assisted us with the re landscaping of our backyard, including putting in a new patio, fireplace and plants, all while accommodating our plans to host a wedding of 150 people in our backyard within 8 months of our retainment of her services. Her suggested design was beautiful and we are so very happy with it. Arleen was very timely, responding to emails quickly and stayed right on top of our project. She was extremely knowledgeable about all aspects of the project, from pavers and flagstone to laying gas lines, drought resistance plants, irrigation, fruit trees, and more. We highly recommend Arleen and Satori Garden Design.

I hired Arleen of Satori Garden Design to design and plant for me a sustainable low-water usage back garden at my home. I was looking to transform a small backyard behind a pool and patio that had just been torn up and was a complete "blank slate." We were looking for something easy care, low water usage and looking to use as many local, native California plants as possible. With Arleen's guidance and attention to detail, we were able to submit garden plans to the city of Santa Monica and benefit from a $5,000 low-water usage grant that was available at the time. Not only did she take care of all the administrative details to make this happen, but she was quick, attentive and easy to work with! Highly recommend her!

We had a fantastic experience working with Satori Garden Design. From the brainstorming of what can be done in our garden to the installation of the plants as well as maintenance planning we felt in great hands at all times. A great plus is their knowledge of drought friendly plants' and coordination with city regulations to receive grants.

Satori did an excellent update of my small garden at a very reasonable rate. Arleen is incredibly knowledgeable particularly about sustainable garden options. She was thorough in reviewing my wish list and came up some terrific ideas that didn't break the bank for my small garden makeover. I have since recommended her to several friends without reservation and they too have had great experiences.

We hired Satori Garden Design to freshen up our landscaping a couple of years ago and they were excellent! Creative, resourceful, friendly and well-organized, Satori quickly whipped our Santa Monica landscaping into show-worthy shape! We could not recommend more highly!

Arleen was thoughtful and creative in her design. She took into account water conservation, our budget, and our existing landscape. We love our new landscape!