Ruth Bracken Designs Company Profile

well-designed garden or landscape can make a huge difference in the overall feeling of a home. If it's thought out well, incorporating the elements of the landscape itself with the vision of the homeowner, the ambiance outside of a home can be as peaceful and restful as inside.

Ruth Bracken, founder and owner of Ruth Bracken Designs in Sebastopol CA, understands this. An artist at heart, Ruth studied dance in New York and Berkeley during the heady days of the 60s. Later, she moved to Northern California where she bought a 100-acre piece of undeveloped land and started a garden which provided the impetus for what would become her landscape design career. Discovering she loved working with the land, Ruth decided to take her interest further. She attended UCLA and earned a Master's Degree in landscape design and hasn't looked back since. During her time in Southern California she started her business, Ruth Bracken Design which included doing set design for film, television and commercials.

In 2000 she moved back to Northern California to pursue landscape design full time. Today, Ruth Bracken offers landscape design, consultation, landscape build supervision and plant procurement to her lucky landcape clients.

"My goal is to design the landscape most appropriate for my clients' land, building and neighborhood," said Ruth. "I believe that the garden is inseparable from the home; the landscape outside is an extension of the inside."

Ruth Bracken doesn't just come in and tell her landscape design clients what to do. She starts with a consultation where she listens to her clients' vision, analyzes the site, then creates innovative ideas that integrate the two. Spending personal, one-on-one time with her clients is the hallmark of Ruth Bracken Designs. The landscape design process includes an overall schematic and a planting plan including a detailed list and description of the plants, materials and budget.

Over the years Ruth has developed trusted working relationships with landscape contractors, carpenters, landcape irrigation experts and other professionals. She personally supervises each installation to ensure it is being done correctly and is readily and easily available for her clients should questions or problems arise.

Ruth teaches at Santa Rosa Junior College, where she says, "My students inspire me," and is a member of the Garden Conservancy Program. She has an extensive knowledge of horticulture and is an expert in plant procurement.

"I love it when my landscape design clients love what I've done," said Ruth. "It's wonderful to see their faces when we're done and I can see they cherish the change that has happened. Plants are living, changing things and a garden is a place of change that needs to be nurtured and encouraged. I help my clients see and understand that." Incorporating elements of Japanese and Chinese design and philosophy into her designs, Ruth Bracken can transform your ordinary yard into something extraordinary.


---Jim Brumm
Staff Writer
The Prime Buyer's Report