Here we are; ready to start the 2011 landscape construction season, and it is snowing AGAIN!  After the teasing hints of spring last week, winter has socked it to us again. All our behind the scenes work of the winter months is done: landscape designs complete,  client consultations held, permits applied for, trucks tuned up and safety inspections complete, new workers hired, and Canada Blooms 2011 is just a memory. We are ready to roll, and spring is not co-operating! We enjoyed our feature garden at Canada Blooms. It was titled Alyce’s Garden; a prototype of a current project underway north of Toronto.  We took the opportunity to try out some of the hard landscape elements proposed for the job, to ensure the clients are happy with the look of the project. Alyce’s Garden won two awards; Best Use of Hard Landscape Elements, and Best Use of Natural Stone.A landscape construction prototype for a current landscape project Our crew started the season off by setting up the feature garden. They did at least two weeks work in just the four days allowed for the setup. And kudos to our stonemason Jonathon, who suggested we put up a sign asking the visitors to toss a coin in the water feature, for the people of Japan. We collected almost $500.00, which we will match. Hopefully this donation will be helpful to those in need in Japan. Amongst the people visiting Alyce’s Garden, we saw some people taking time to smell the hyacinths, some people checking out new and unusual plant material, some looking for photo opportunities, and some people who wanted to discuss their landscaping needs for the upcoming year.  We are always ready to talk about landscape design, and landscape construction in the Toronto area. So, as I watch the snow drift across my driveway, I am thinking ahead to the next week or two, when the D.A Gracey and Associates crews begin to do the work that they do best; transforming residential backyards and front yards into the homeowners dream spaces.