From the trees lining a commercial development to the walkways guiding people through a property, landscape architecture is about much more than deciding where to plant a few shrubs.
For Ecoland Design Group, landscape architecture is one piece of a much larger process. The full-service design firm works with developers, builders, architects, and other professionals on everything from landscape architecture and irrigation consulting to land development planning. The team’s goal is to create spaces that are beautiful and functional—working with natural features when they can—while also navigating the practical requirements that make a project possible.
Founded by Bradley (BJ) Jones in 2009, Ecoland has worked on commercial developments across the nation, with the majority of their work happening right here in Texas. Ecoland’s specialties range from schools and public parks to shopping centers, office projects, multifamily developments, and subdivisions. But for Jones, the work begins long before anyone sees the finished landscape.
“We get out on site, do our work, put our boots on,” Jones says. “Sometimes it’s hot, rainy, muddy. And we’re working through the site looking for things that we want to preserve. We’re looking for issues that may come up later on.”
That early detective work is a critical part of Ecoland’s role. While a finished landscape may appear effortless, getting there can require months, and sometimes years, of planning, coordination, and problem-solving behind the scenes.
“Our goal as a commercial landscape architecture firm is to find obstacles before they appear and keep the landscape side from becoming an issue,” Jones says. “Landscape-related issues not addressed early on can bring a project to a hard stop.”
Before a project can move forward, Ecoland may be walking heavily wooded properties, identifying existing features, and determining what can and should be preserved. The team also has to understand the requirements of the particular city or jurisdiction where a project is being built.
Those requirements can vary significantly—and sometimes a single tree can change the entire trajectory of a development.
Heritage trees, for example, are certain native trees that reach a specified size and receive special protection under local regulations. Unique processes are in place to work with these features, including special care, construction methods, additional approvals, and presentations to community and city council.
“If a heritage tree is right in the middle of your site, there’s a good chance you’ll need to work around it,” Jones says.
Ecoland recently faced that particular challenge on a complicated Central Texas project. The site contained roughly 10 heritage trees, and several of them would be impacted according to the initial site plan design.
In addition to discovering the heritage trees, this project had an ambitious timeline. A typical commercial project can take 12 to 18 months to get permitted, but this particular timeline was even quicker.
So Ecoland got to work.
The team worked closely with city staff, the development director, and the mayor, providing regular updates, navigating challenges, and brainstorming creative solutions to keep the project moving forward. Eventually, Ecoland helped guide the plans through city council, all while working through the heritage tree requirements and the client’s vision for the property.
The result: The majority of the heritage trees were preserved, with only a couple removed for health reasons. A process that could have taken 18 months was completed in just six, allowing the project to receive approval and move into construction. A win for all.
“It was a heavily coordinated project with some higher-level people,” Jones says. “Instead of trying to clean-cut the site, we were able to get all parties to sit down and work out a solution.”
That kind of problem solving is becoming increasingly important as Texas communities grow and developers encounter more complicated environmental, infrastructure, and regulatory considerations. Water resources, in particular, are a growing concern.
For Ecoland, designing landscapes responsibly means thinking beyond what looks good today and considering how a property will function over time.
“I think the best way to approach it is just to be smarter about how we’re doing things,” Jones says.
That mindset—balancing aesthetics with safety, accessibility, sustainability, and practicality—is ultimately what Ecoland brings to the table.
Landscape architecture may be the visible result, but the real work often happens long before anyone sees the finished space.
And perhaps that’s what clients can be most thankful for: knowing someone is already looking ahead, navigating the details, solving the problems, and making sure the green space they envisioned has a clear path from concept to completion.
EcolandDesignGroup.com | @ecolanddesigngroup
More Than Meets the Eye
A beautiful landscape is only part of what Ecoland Design Group creates. Before a project ever reaches the construction phase, the team may evaluate existing trees, navigate city requirements, coordinate with other professionals, and address environmental or utility concerns. Water resources have also become an increasingly important consideration in Texas development, making smart, sustainable landscape planning essential. For BJ Jones and his team, the goal is to create spaces that work for both the people who use them and the communities where they are built. Sometimes, the best landscape design is about solving the problems you never knew were there.
That mindset—balancing aesthetics with safety, accessibility, sustainability, and practicality—is ultimately what Ecoland brings to the table.