Landscaping in Lake Forest, IL
Landscape Design, Hardscaping, Outdoor Living & Property Maintenance Since 1955
Looking for an experienced landscaping company in Lake Forest, IL?
Shelly’s Landscape Contractors, Inc. provides professional landscape design, landscape installation, patios and hardscaping, outdoor living spaces, landscape lighting, and ongoing landscape maintenance for homeowners throughout Lake Forest and Chicago’s North Shore.
Whether you want to redesign an aging landscape, improve your home’s curb appeal, create a backyard for entertaining, add a new patio, improve privacy, or simply keep your property looking its best, our team can help you develop a plan that fits your home, property, and lifestyle.
Shelly’s Landscape is based nearby in Northbrook and has been serving Lake Forest and communities throughout Chicago’s North Shore since 1955.
Call (847) 291-1824 to discuss your Lake Forest landscaping project.
A Lake Forest Landscaper That Understands North Shore Properties
Lake Forest properties are anything but one-size-fits-all.
Established trees, mature planting beds, large lawns, older patios, distinctive architecture, privacy needs, drainage, shade, and the way a property relates to surrounding natural areas can all affect the right landscaping plan.
Some Lake Forest properties also sit within historic areas or near the city’s ravines and Lake Michigan bluffs. That makes a thoughtful, property-specific approach especially important when planning landscape changes.
Our goal is to create landscaping that complements your home rather than competes with it. We consider what is already working, what needs improvement, and how you want to use your property before recommending a solution.
Whether you recently purchased a Lake Forest home that needs an updated landscape or have lived there for years and are ready to make changes, Shelly’s Landscape can help you develop a practical plan for the property.
Landscape Design in Lake Forest, IL
A successful landscape begins with a well-planned design.
Shelly’s Landscape works with homeowners to understand what they want to change, how they use their outdoor space, what they want to maintain, and what they want their property to look like in the years ahead.
Your Lake Forest landscape design may include:
• Front yard landscaping and curb appeal
• Backyard landscape design
• Trees, shrubs and perennial plantings
• Foundation landscaping
• Garden and planting bed design
• Privacy landscaping and screening
• Landscape renovations
• Seasonal color
• Patio and walkway design
• Outdoor entertaining areas
• Outdoor kitchens and gathering spaces
• Landscape lighting
• Hardscape integration
• Improvements around mature trees and existing landscaping
The goal is to create a coordinated plan where your plantings, hardscaping, lawn, outdoor living areas, and home work together.
Hardscaping & Patios in Lake Forest
Create More Usable Outdoor Space
A professionally designed patio or hardscape can completely change how you use your property.
You may want a comfortable place for dinner outside, more room for entertaining, a walkway connecting different areas of the property, or a dedicated area where family and friends can gather around a fire.
Shelly’s Landscape can incorporate hardscape features into the overall landscape so they look like they belong with your home and surroundings.
Hardscape and outdoor living projects may include:
• Brick paver patios
• Natural stone patios
• Walkways and garden paths
• Retaining walls
• Seating walls
• Outdoor kitchens
• Outdoor dining areas
• Fire pit areas
• Steps and transitions
• Entrance or driveway accents
Materials, scale, layout, grading, surrounding plantings, and traffic patterns should all be considered before the final design is created.
A patio should look like part of your property, not something added as an afterthought.
Backyard Landscaping & Outdoor Living in Lake Forest
Your backyard should work for the way you live.
If you enjoy entertaining, eating outdoors, relaxing by a fire, gardening, or simply spending time outside, we can help you make better use of the space you already have.
A complete backyard landscape can combine patios, outdoor dining areas, outdoor kitchens, fire features, garden beds, trees and shrubs, privacy screening, landscape lighting, walkways, seating areas, lawn, and open recreational areas.
The right design gives each area a purpose while keeping the entire backyard connected.
For larger Lake Forest properties, thoughtful planning is especially important. You want outdoor spaces to feel comfortable and connected rather than scattered across the property.
Shelly’s Landscape can help take your project from the initial ideas through professional landscape installation.
Landscape Installation in Lake Forest, IL
Great landscape design depends on proper installation.
Shelly’s Landscape can install the planting, lawn, garden, and hardscape elements that bring the landscape plan together.
Landscape installation can include trees and shrubs, perennial plantings, seasonal plantings, new garden beds, landscape renovations, lawn improvements, bed preparation, mulching, and integration with patios, walkways, and other hardscape features.
If your property already contains mature trees, established shrubs, stonework, or other features worth keeping, the new landscape can be designed around them.
You do not always need to start over.
Keeping the right existing elements can help a redesigned landscape feel connected to the history and character of an established Lake Forest property.
Landscape Lighting in Lake Forest
Enjoy Your Home and Landscape After Dark
Professional outdoor lighting can improve the way your property looks at night while making entrances, walkways, patios, and gathering areas easier to use.
Shelly’s Landscape provides lighting solutions for paths, patios, decks, gardens, architecture, driveways, walkways, and landscaped areas.
Landscape lighting can be used to highlight:
• Your home’s architectural details
• Mature trees
• Front entrance
• Garden beds
• Patios
• Walkways
• Stonework
• Outdoor entertaining areas
• Other landscape features you want to enjoy after dark
The best landscape lighting is noticeable because of what it illuminates, rather than because the fixtures dominate the property.
Carefully placed lighting can create a warm, finished appearance while providing useful light exactly where it is needed.
Landscape Maintenance in Lake Forest, IL
Keep Your Property Looking Its Best
A beautiful landscape requires regular attention.
Shelly’s Landscape provides landscape maintenance for North Shore properties and offers homeowners ongoing help maintaining lawns, planting beds, shrubs, trees, and other landscaped areas.
Maintenance can include lawn mowing, edging, mulching, shrub and hedge trimming, pruning, weed control, fertilization, seeding, planting updates, and general bed maintenance.
Your property changes throughout the growing season. Plants mature, shrubs need trimming, weeds appear, lawns need care, and planting beds need periodic attention.
A coordinated maintenance program helps protect the investment you have made in your landscape while keeping the property looking clean and cared for.
Updating an Older Lake Forest Landscape?
You may love your home but feel differently about the landscaping around it.
That does not necessarily mean everything needs to be removed and replaced.
Many established properties already have mature trees, healthy shrubs, stonework, walkways, or other landscape features worth preserving.
The issue may simply be that shrubs have become overgrown, beds feel dated, privacy has changed, plants no longer fit their locations, or a patio no longer works for the way your family uses the backyard.
A landscape renovation allows you to update the areas that need attention while keeping the parts of the property that still work.
Possible improvements include:
• Redesigning existing planting beds
• Replacing overgrown shrubs
• Adding privacy plantings
• Updating patios and walkways
• Improving the front entrance
• Adding landscape lighting
• Creating a backyard gathering area
• Adding seasonal color
• Improving transitions between landscaped and hardscaped areas
The result can feel like a completely refreshed property without unnecessarily replacing everything you already have.
Landscaping for Lake Forest’s Distinctive Homes
A landscape should complement the architecture and character of the home it surrounds.
Lake Forest includes properties representing different architectural periods, lot sizes, landscape styles, and natural conditions. That makes customization important.
A traditional Lake Forest home surrounded by mature trees may call for a very different landscaping approach than a recently renovated property with a more contemporary design.
One homeowner may want to preserve an established garden while updating the patio. Another may need more backyard privacy. Another may want to replace overgrown foundation plantings. Another may want an entirely new outdoor entertaining area.
Your landscaping plan should respond to your property rather than force your property into a standard package.
Why Lake Forest Homeowners Choose Shelly’s Landscape
Shelly’s Landscape has been serving Chicago’s North Shore since 1955 and operates from nearby Northbrook. Lake Forest is part of the company’s established service area.
Homeowners can work with one company for landscape design, installation, brick paving and hardscaping, landscape lighting, and ongoing maintenance rather than trying to coordinate multiple contractors.
That creates an important advantage when several parts of a property are being updated.
The patio can relate to the plantings. The walkways can connect naturally to the outdoor living areas. Lighting can be incorporated into the plan. Existing landscape features can be considered before new ones are installed.
Everything can be approached as one property.
Our Landscaping Process
From Your First Idea to Your Finished Landscape
1. Tell Us What You Want to Change
We start by learning what you like about your property, what is no longer working, and what you want to accomplish.
2. Evaluate the Property
We consider the existing landscaping, trees, sunlight, property layout, grading, hardscaping, privacy, access, and other site conditions.
3. Develop Your Landscape Plan
Our designers develop recommendations based on your goals, property, priorities, and budget.
4. Coordinate Plants and Materials
Plantings, stone, brick pavers, hardscape materials, and other elements are selected to work together and complement your home.
5. Professional Landscape Installation
Our landscape installation team brings the plan to life.
6. Maintain Your Landscape
Ask about ongoing landscape maintenance to help keep your property looking its best throughout the growing season.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you provide landscaping services in Lake Forest, IL?
Yes. Shelly’s Landscape serves Lake Forest and communities throughout Chicago’s North Shore from its Northbrook location. The company has served the North Shore since 1955.
What landscaping services does Shelly’s offer in Lake Forest?
Shelly’s Landscape provides landscape design, landscape installation, brick paving and hardscaping, landscape lighting, and landscape maintenance. Projects can range from updating planting beds to creating coordinated outdoor living spaces.
Can you redesign my existing landscaping?
Yes. An existing landscape does not always need to be completely replaced. A landscape renovation can preserve mature trees, healthy plants, and hardscape features while updating areas that have become overgrown, dated, or less functional.
Do you design patios and outdoor living spaces?
Yes. Patios and hardscaping can be incorporated into a larger landscape design that may also include walkways, garden areas, seating areas, plantings, lighting, and other outdoor living features.
Can you help improve privacy around my Lake Forest property?
Landscape design can use trees, shrubs, layered plantings, and strategic placement to create additional screening. The right solution depends on your property, available space, sunlight, existing trees, and desired level of privacy.
Can you work with mature trees and existing landscaping?
Existing landscape features can often become part of the new design. The first step is determining what should remain, what should be renovated, and what should be replaced.
Do you install landscape lighting?
Yes. Shelly’s Landscape installs outdoor lighting for walkways, patios, decks, gardens, driveways, architectural features, and landscaped areas.
Do you provide landscape maintenance in Lake Forest?
Yes. Shelly’s provides landscape maintenance services throughout its North Shore service area.
Can Shelly’s handle both landscape design and installation?
Yes. Shelly’s provides both landscape design and professional installation, allowing the plantings, hardscaping, outdoor spaces, and other landscape elements to be planned together.
How do I get started with a Lake Forest landscaping project?
Call Shelly’s Landscape Contractors, Inc. at (847) 291-1824 or use the website contact form to tell the team about your property and what you would like to change.
Ready to Improve Your Lake Forest Property?
Whether you want to redesign your front yard, update aging landscaping, create a new patio, improve backyard privacy, build an outdoor entertaining area, add landscape lighting, or arrange professional landscape maintenance, Shelly’s Landscape is ready to help.
Put decades of North Shore landscaping experience to work for your Lake Forest home.
Call Shelly’s Landscape Contractors, Inc. today at (847) 291-1824.
Serving Lake Forest and Chicago’s North Shore since 1955.
