Landscape architect Susan Pumphrey

The gang at Behnkes extends a big, friendly “Welcome!” to Susan Pumphrey and her Kalyx Green Landscape Design and Construction.  Located at our Potomac store but serving the entire area, Susan specializes in residential design and has particular expertise in design and installation of ponds and water gardens. She also excels in hardscape installations including stone walls, patios, and garden pathways.  If you want a beautifully designed and installed landscape with stone features, then you can’t go wrong with Susan and her team.  Call 240-473-6683 for an appointment.

About Susan
Susan received her degree in landscape architecture from the University of Maryland – super-local, perfect for her DC-area clients.  And unlike most departments of landscape architecture, Maryland’s was at that time housed in the Horticulture Department, where people know and care about plants, so Susan has a strong background in the plant side of landscaping.  (It’s hard to believe, but many landscape architects have taken as few as one course in plants!)

Plants, in fact, what Susan sees as the primary building material for her designs, and she “leans on growers” to learn more about new ones.  “Do they really perform?  Will I be replacing them after two years?” are two of her frequent questions about new introductions.  Usually she “waits until the market speaks”, weeding out the under-performing plants a year or three after they’re marketed, sometimes to great but short-lasting  hooplah.

Designing with plants is something Susan is constantly doing in her mind.  (We all have our obsessions and dreaming up gardens seems like a mighty nice one to have.)  She has a special love for Asian-style designs, and anything that attracts birds.

Before taking her landscape architecture degree, Susan was co-owner of a construction company near Annapolis that specialized in marine or water-related jobs.  So that’s how she came to be so experienced with not just water features, but construction materials and directing crews of workers, too.  (She’s now working with a “20-wheel-barrow” crew.  At two men per wheel barrow, that means about 40 workers.)

Immediately after receiving her landscape architecture degree, Susan hung out her shingle as a sole practitioner, and clients found her through word of mouth and seeing her gorgeous displays at local garden shows.  Today clients find her mainly through recommendations by happy clients and building contractors who know her work.  And soon, Behnkes customers will be finding her, too.

Designs by Susan Pumphrey

How She Works
Susan takes on designs of any size, from fine estates to tiny townhouses and everything in between.  For most jobs she does a master plan, which can be implemented all at once or over time, as budget allows.  With her office now at Behnkes, she’ll be able to walk through the nursery with clients to point out the plants she’s suggesting for their gardens.   That’s just one of the many synergies we see happening with our new partner in great landscapes!

More Services
Behnkes Professional Planting Service continues to serve our customer’s needs for small-scale projects, including planting, yard and garden cleanup, tilling and bed preparation, holiday decorating, and advice and personal shopping through our Garden Advisor service.

Posted by Susan Harris.

Gates and arbors.

Ready for some garden eye candy of the non-plant variety?  Then take a gander at these gates, arbors, gazebos, chairs, fences and more – all gorgeous woodworking by Walpole Woodmakers, the  fabulous craftspeople whose products we’re making available at both Behnkes locations.

Save!  If you buy at Behnkes, there’s no charge for shipping.  Even if you call Walpole’s directly, mention Behnkes and they’ll ship your purchase FREE to one of our locations.

Gazebos, pool houses, garden studios - you name it.

About their Products

Since 1933, Walpole Woodworkers have carried on the great tradition of American woodworkers, a tradition let’s all hope we never lose to out-sourcing.  They’re located throughout the Eastern U.S.

Whimsy comes in all shapes and budgets.

Two of the unique features they offer are rustic-style fencing, and the new, improved staining process they pioneered.  This process performs better than staining done after installation, and avoids the mess of staining in place, in customers’ gardens.  Walpole also designed and manufactures LifeGuard^TM posts to help increase the longevity of its fence.    We’re suckers for people who take old-fashioned pride in their work.

Bridges for gardens grand and small. (Giverny, anyone?)

Another innovation by Walpole is the use of CAD systems to produce detailed drawings so that customers can see exactly how their project will look.  If you’ve never seen CAD – the design program used by architects and landscape architects everywhere – it looks incredibly real.

Furniture, umbrella, hammocks - who's ready for summer?

Originally, Walpole’s wood of choice was Northern White Cedar, a hardy limber cut at its mills at Chester and Detroit, Maine.  Now they offer a choice of styles in mahogany, cherry, teak, metal and the highly acclaimed wood alternative known as cellular PVC.  It’s a long-lasting, low-maintenance material with the look and feel of natural wood, yet it won’t rot, split, or warp.  Walpole happens to be the largest fabricator of modern cellular PVC in the country.

Fencing in these styles and more.

Free Consultations

We’re happy to offer this feature to our customers – a free fencing consultation on your property by a Walpole designer, who’ll give design suggestions and take the necessary measurements.

Got something that needs to be hidden?

Posted by Susan Harris.  All photos are of Walpole products, from their website. 

Low-water gardens, like this herb garden, can be beautiful.

Water Conservation in the Landscape is a new article on the Behnkes website, written by one of our landscaping professionals  – check it out.

Here’s an update on the Vermont Avenue Gardens in downtown D.C., which is produced and maintained by a  very civic-minded group that includes local businesses and politicians and a bunch of neighbors.  One of those neighbors is Behnkes own Jeffrey Willis, director of our Landscaping Division, w ho serves as Coordinator of the Vermont Avenue Gardens.  He summed up the event as follows:

We were blessed with beautiful spring weather & enthusiastic volunteers, who spend several hours tending to the 1/4 mile of street gardens here.  Thanks to all who contributed! 

Approximately 50 good folks hit the street around 9am last Saturday, after stoking up on breakfast from . Nellie’s Sports Bar & a tour of the new African American Civil War Museum, our sponsor.

Jeffrey Willis coordinating the project.

Safety cones were kindly delivered by Fort Myers Construction.  Mulch & tools were generously delivered by the U.S. Park Service & staged at Grimke’s DC Fire & Rescue parking lot & King Gas.  Behnke Nurseries & Landscaping, my employer, provided discounted & free plants & materials & loaned equipment.  Drinks were brought by the 9:30 Club.  Trash was promptly picked up by DC Solid Waste.  Most volunteers carried on to about 1pm, when we wrapped up with complimentary ala cart fare & brews at m Duffy’s Irish Pub.  Special thanks to Andy Duffy for a great lunch.

Special thanks also to Urbanland and Urban Realtors, neighborhood businesses who again made major financial contributions to fund the event.

The result is 4 blocks (including 9 1/2 Street) of blooming, manicured gardens that will only look better in the coming weeks as other plants add their colors.  Drop by to enjoy the show!

For more pictures & commentary on the event, see the story on Borderstan.  And thanks to all who supported & participated!

Bill Mann, Manager, Behnkes Landscaping

It’s time to shine some light on the Behnke’s Design and Landscaping team, starting with the team captain – Bill Mann.

Local Roots

Bill grew up nearby New Carrollton, married an Adelphi, Maryland girl, and now lives in Bowie – you don’t get much more local to Behnkes than those three places.

Education – in Horticulture

He earned a B.S. in horticulture from the University of Maryland in ’78 and became certified as a Maryland Nurseryman in 1986.

Work – it’s All Horticulture, Too

Bill’s has worked as an expert horticulturist for various clients, including homeowners associations, analyzing their plant problems -  which so often turn out to be soil or site problems.  He started working in the nursery business in 1982 and came to Behnkes in 1988, where he worked in the woodies and garden shop departments, before moving to Design and Landscaping.

His own Garden(s)

At home in Bowie he does indeed take care of his own garden, though mainly in the off-season.  (The common lament of people in the gardening world – no time to garden during the gardening season!)  He grows a mix of edibles and ornamentals  and when asked about his biggest challenge as a gardener gives an answer that will surprise no one these days – deer!

Bill also oversees a much larger garden, one passed down to him and his wife through her family, in Tom’s Brook, Virginia (in Shenandoah County).  Its 20 acres are planted in soybeans and hay.

Coming soon to the Behnkes Website -  Bill’s Work

Stay tuned for before-and-after photos and plans illustrating Bill’s designs, as well as projects designed by the four other designers in Bill’s department.

Posted by Susan Harris.