A little over a year ago, my wife and I hired Roy to completely re-imagine our front yard experience. While the garden and hardscape looked decent before, logistically it was not useful. The lawn demanded a huge amount of water, and even with steady watering, struggled to stay alive. The driveway was not wide enough to accomodate our cars whilst leaving space to easily wheel garbage cans to the street. The blue-stone slabs were slippery and my elderly parents and in-laws struggled to get up to our house. We communicated all of this to Roy and after some back and forth we arrived at the design you see in the other pictures. We were happy with the result when the project finished this past April, and continue to enjoy our garden almost a year into its existence. The garden often receives compliments from passersby; and in fact, just the other day as my wife & I pulled into our driveway (which Roy designed), a young couple were taking selfies in front of our garden and lampposts. It was a goal for my wife and I that the beauty of the front yard bring a smile to our faces when returning home after a long day. This goal was most certainly achieved and would not have been possible without Roy’s expertise.

Roy is a great professional and it was very easy working w him on our complete landscape project. He spent time creating a nice rendering of the site complete with pictures of the plants. A nice bonus was him taking us on a tour of the nursery to see the plants before installation. We also appreciated Roy’s use of modern materials like corten steel planters. To top it off, he created a nice veggie garden and gave the kids a cool intro to growing food.
Roy also spent a lot of time thinking about our garden and communicating to us how it’s going to develop and look even better over time. He visited our site at different times during the day to see how the sun would hit different spots. He was also willing to change the design based on feedback so we felt like he was listening to our input.
Overall a great experience!

Roy transformed our uninviting front and side yards into a lush paradise in a matter of weeks. The amount of care and thoughtfulness that he put into this work from our initial discussions to the design phase, to plant/materials selection, to planting, to follow-up is unparalleled among all contractors I’ve ever worked with. That dedication combined with his horticultural expertise and a keen eye for design led us to work with him again on two additional projects, both of which turned out better than we had ever imagined. And to top it off — he’s extremely professional, humble, and kind. I couldn’t recommend him highly enough.

Roy is an artist at heart. His passion for plants, architecture, art, and design come together to create spaces that reflect not only the homeowner’s vision but the essence of who the homeowners are and their story. Roy listened to our ideas, and enhanced them beyond what we could have imagined. He created a space that takes you on a journey, considering all the functionality, vista points, and entry points; as you walk around our garden, you find something special at every turn. His attention to detail, along with the practicality of maintenance, made both our front and backyard projects more than we hoped for. We cannot recommend Roy highly enough and have already recommended him to many friends and neighbors.

A Roy lo conocimos en una exposición de jardines
Y su obra de arte nos llego al corazón, con su super estilo y armonía, desde ese momento sabiamos q Roy nos iba acompanar en nuestro jardín , la visión de Roy es única!!!
Ver un espacio vacío y hacer de el una obra de arte !
No hay duda q Roy nos acompañará en cada jardín !

Super recomendable!!!

Roy transformed the front of our house from a depressing eyesore, into an absolutely stunning landscape. We couldn’t be happier. Having lived with his work now for several months, it’s very clear that Roy is a master of his craft. Our garden is thriving, and the space seems to have become even more inviting.

Roy and his team work extremely fast, we couldn’t believe how efficiently our yard was transformed. Always punctual, professional and thorough, he collaborated, and adapted to my ideas. He perfectly captured exactly what it is I didn’t know how to express. He worked witin the confines of our budget and I’m amazed at how much he was able to achieve.

So, yes, 5 stars for Roy. Very very happy.

We met with 8 – 10 different landscape designers for our backyard project and Roy’s vision, passion, and artistic sensibility sold us.

We absolutely love the vibe he created and he truly understood our desires. He introduced us to corten steel planters which not only look amazing but are the most durable planters out there. His attention to detail and his punctuality are unrivaled. We look forward to a lot more ways to collaborate with Roy on continuously improving our space — he has a ton of great ideas, and we appreciate his insight and vision. Roy is the best!

I worked with Roy to landscape a midcentury-modern ranch in Van Nuys. Even though he is capable of hardscaping projects himself, he merrily and collaboratively worked within a plan I had devised. However without his help, my concept would have been a lifeless pile of rocks and concrete as it was his horticultural eye and green thumb brought the project alive.

He sensitively and knowingly selected plants that are appropriate to their placement and the climate, have a balance between repetitive harmony and surprising juxtaposition, and bring the homeowners joy throughout the year with different plants blooming and blossoming at different times of year. He did such an amazing job that midway through, the neighbors hired him to bring his magic touch into their yard as well.

I am certainly going to work with Roy again as his mix of professionalism and artistry is hard to find. I would give him six stars if I could. It will take awhile, but when we eventually share photos of this project on PoolHandy, I’m certain that you’ll all be as impressed by his contribution to it as I am.

When we moved into our house about two years ago, we found our backyard to be almost unusable. A large overgrown Stone Pine dominated the space requiring constant cleanup of needles and providing so much shade that we could not grow vegetables.

Roy Alturas transformed this from a real eyesore to an amazing space that has truly extended our living into the back yard. Not only do we have a patio for dining but also a gazebo for relaxing or entertaining and a raised garden and garden shed to support growing our own organic vegetables. And Roy has provided this functionality with an amazing artistic design both in his layout and choice of low maintenance xeriscape plants. He removed the tree but repurposed a slice of the trunk as a stepping stone and planted three new trees that are more compatible with our space.

It was a pleasure to work with Roy and his team as they were very efficient in completing the job and meticulous in cleaning up every day. Roy listened to my ideas and provided a variety of solutions.
We are now spending time every day in our beautiful backyard: We whole-heartedly recommend Roy Alturas to beautify and improve the functionality of your property.

Roy is a talented professional. He landscaped my garden and designed and built an outdoor barbecue area/seating area with a deck. We chose to do it in a Mediterranean style with inlaid tiles that I had found on a visit to Provence. Roy did the walls in a textured style and also added old bricks for character. He even accessorized with a vintage brass tap and an old horse riding stirrup. Many people who visit my home are impressed by his work. Roy is also very knowledgeable as a landscape gardener. He chose the perfect plants for my rooftop which gets a lot of wind and sun. I recommend him wholeheartedly.

If you need a landscaper who can execute a project from concept to completion, Roy Altaras is your company.

Our front yard needed total re-landscaping. We had Roy look at the backyard thinking we would do a second phase when we had some financial allowance but after his creative presentation, we just bit the bullet and did the front and back all together. He was able to work within our budget with compromises but not short cuts.

Roy has a very strong sense of aesthetics. We name him the landscape “artist.” He knows his plants. He is very detailed oriented.

He was always the first person on the job site every morning. He did the work himself on many days. His team cleaned up everyday. He kept every commitment and timeline.

He’s a bit old school in that he doesn’t use CAD; he draws it out so the elevation views are a bit difficult to envision sometimes. But I’d rather pay for execution (more plants or hardware) rather than time consuming CADs.

Could not be happier with the end product but also the process to get there. Another reviewer said it well – Roy will change how you interact with your outdoor yard.

Well….Roy will change the way you interact with your garden. Your garden will become an extension of your house.
You will feel pleasure from the moment you see your house and garden, including inhaling the smells from the garden.
We were fortunate in that we recognized that Roy is an artist through and through. From 15 or so years ago, Roy started one project then the next on pit garden. We gave him a tabula rasa, with minimal do’s or don’t’s. And the result is quite stunning.
Suffice to say that every single person is incredibly impressed with Roy’s work in our garden.
As for us at home, we can’t get enough of the garden. And entertaining is a cinch as the outside is designed so cleverly with different corners with different atmospheres in each corner.
I think anyone who gains from Roy’s artistry is extremely lucky – you can feel free to contact me directly for any questions.

Roy Altaras Landscape Design and Construction designed, planted and has maintained my garden for 12 years. They are knowledgeable professional gardeners with a refined esthetic sense. They know how to select plants that are right for the climate and season and which will create a low-maintenance, lovely Mediterranean feeling garden. Roy is friendly, polite, thoughtful and very responsive to requests. It’s a pleasure to work with them.