For landscape design in Lafayette, LA, Lafayette Master Landscaping draws the plan, picks plants that handle Acadiana heat and installs it with our own crew, from a front-bed refresh to a full backyard rebuild.
How Much Does Landscape Design Cost in Lafayette?
Simple bed plans for a front yard usually cost little or nothing when the install is booked with us, because the drawing is part of the estimate. Larger designs for a full yard or a patio, beds and lighting run several hundred dollars as a separate fee, credited against the build. A basic landscape refresh in Lafayette typically costs $1,500 to $4,500 installed. We work from a plan on paper, and our crews typically finish a front-bed install in 3 days.
The plan fee buys you three things: a scaled drawing, a plant list with sizes and spacing, and a price you can compare. You can take the drawing to anyone, but most people let us build it. We've seen a plan on paper save more money than it costs. Our design walks usually run about 90 minutes, and most plans come back to you in 7 to 10 days.
How We Design a Lafayette Yard
Every design starts with the same four questions.
Find Where the Water Goes
We walk the yard in daylight and after rain if we can, mark low spots and slopes, and plan beds around them.
Map How the Sun Moves
Full sun, afternoon shade and morning-only light all call for different plants. We map each bed.
Decide What the Yard Is For
Kids, dogs, grilling or quiet. The plan puts the patio, the play space and the beds where they work.
Match the Upkeep You Want
We choose plants and bed sizes to match the time you want to spend, or a maintenance plan if you want none.
Landscape Design Prices
- Front-bed refresh: $1,500 to $4,500 installed
- Full front yard redesign: $4,500 to $9,000
- Backyard design with patio and beds: $8,000 to $25,000 and up
- Design plan only: a few hundred dollars, credited toward the install
Prices are typical Lafayette ranges for 2026. Your written estimate decides.
What Every Design Includes
- A walk-through of the yard with measurements
- A scaled drawing for larger jobs
- A plant list with sizes, spacing and sun needs
- Bed preparation and soil amendment
- Mulch, edging and cleanup
- A care sheet for the first season
Landscape Design and Installation for Lafayette Yards
A good plan keeps a yard from turning into a collection of shrubs that all got planted in a good mood. We draw the layout on paper first, with the house, the slope, the shade and the water on it. Then we place beds, paths and plants so the yard still works in five years, not just on installation day.
Beds, Borders and Planting Plans
Most Lafayette front yards need a bed along the foundation, a bed or two out in the lawn, and clean edging between them. We set tall shrubs at the corners, mid-height shrubs in front of them and low color along the edge. Evergreen shrubs like Indian hawthorn, loropetalum and boxwood give structure all year, and crape myrtle gives the street a July show.
Spacing matters more than people think. Planting shrubs too close looks full the first spring and chokes by year three. We follow the mature size on the tag, not the size in the pot.
Plants That Take Lafayette Heat
Lafayette July highs average about 91 degrees and the city gets roughly 63 inches of rain a year, so plants need to love heat, humidity and wet feet in winter. We lean on natives and long-time Acadiana favorites, then add seasonal annuals for color. Live oaks are the big shade trees in the older neighborhoods, so we plan beds around their roots rather than digging through them.
Soil Preparation
Clay soil holds water like a bowl. Before we plant, we loosen the bed, mix in compost or bed mix and raise the planting area a few inches so roots do not sit in standing water. It is the dullest part of the job and it decides whether the plants live.
| Bed size | Typical plants | Typical installed cost |
|---|---|---|
| Small front bed, about 60 sq ft | 8 to 12 shrubs, mulch, edging | $1,200 to $2,200 |
| Foundation bed, about 120 sq ft | 15 to 20 shrubs, a small tree, mulch | $2,500 to $4,500 |
| Full front yard refresh | Beds, trees, accent color and lighting | $6,000 to $9,000 |
Drawn Plans for Bigger Projects
For a patio, a full backyard or a yard that needs drainage worked in, we draw a scaled plan you can look at on a table. You see the beds, the patio, the paths and the plant sizes before you spend anything. Changes on paper cost nothing. Changes after the digger shows up cost real money.
Installation With Our Own Crew
The people who drew the plan are the people who plant it. Our crew sets each shrub at the right depth, backfills with bed mix, waters it in and mulches two to three inches deep. We leave a care sheet that says how much water the first month needs, so the plants root before summer.
More About Landscape Design
Landscape Installation
If you already have a plan from a designer, we install it. We follow the drawing, bring any questions about a plant substitution to you and keep the crew on site until the last shrub is mulched.
Garden Design for Small Lots
Small lots and zero-lot-line yards in Lafayette need tidy planting plans. We use narrow shrubs, container color and one focal plant so a small space feels intentional instead of crowded.
Native and Low-Water Plantings
Natives root deeper and need less summer water once established. We mix them with a few annuals so the yard stays colorful without a heavy watering bill.
Landscape Design FAQs
How long does a landscape design and installation take?
A front-bed refresh usually takes two to four working days. A full front yard takes about a week, and a backyard with a patio takes two to three weeks depending on weather. We give you a start date and an estimated finish in writing.
Do you charge for the design?
Small bed plans are part of the estimate when you book the install. Larger drawn plans carry a design fee of a few hundred dollars, which we credit against the work if you build with us.
What is the best time to plant in Lafayette?
Fall and early spring are the best times, because roots settle before summer heat. We plant year-round in Lafayette, but summer installs need more frequent watering for the first month.
Our Other Landscaping Services
Lawn Care Services
Weekly mowing, feeding, weed control and clean-ups on the same day, every week.Paver Patios and Walkways
Patios, walkways and driveway aprons laid on a packed stone base built for clay.French Drains and Yard Drainage
French drains, surface drains and downspout lines that dry out a soggy yard.Sprinkler Systems and Irrigation
Zoned sprinklers and drip lines that water the lawn and beds, not the street.Retaining Walls
Block walls and raised beds with gravel backfill and a drain behind them.Landscape Lighting
Low-voltage path, accent and patio lights on a timer, so the yard works after dark.Artificial Turf
Synthetic lawns, putting greens and pet turf laid on a compacted rock base.Flower Beds, Mulch and Seasonal Color
New beds, clean-outs, mulch, edging and seasonal color changes.Commercial Landscaping
Weekly grounds maintenance for apartments, HOAs, hotels, churches and businesses.
Contact Lafayette Master Landscaping
Send your name, number and a line about the yard. We call back to set a time for a free walk-through and a written estimate.
