Beautiful, Waterwise Home Gardens
As a leader in waterwise plants and sustainable design, the Ruth Bancroft Garden and Nursery’s design team specializes in creating gardens that are beautiful and welcoming while also being drought tolerant and environmentally suited for our Mediterranean climate. Whether you are looking to completely redo your garden or just add plants for better curb appeal and drought tolerance, we can meet your needs with services ranging from hourly Garden Consultations to full custom design plans that include selecting the best plants for your garden given your microclimate, plant, color and style preferences. We only use drought-tolerant plants in our designs. To get started, fill out the form below.
At-Home Consultation
1-Hour | $200 Members/ $240 Non members
- Payment by check is due at the time of the consultation.
- All our landscape services start with a consultation. We walk through your garden and discuss what you want for your space. We make suggestions as we go and help you evaluate how to best proceed with your project. This is a great opportunity to get our professional opinion on ideas or questions you have regarding your garden.
- Please have multiple images of both what you would like the space to look like and any plants you would like to incorporate if possible. We cannot produce a drawing or a list of plants, and the consultation will be primarily a conversation. The client should be prepared to take notes.
- All consultation clients receive a 25% discount punch-card they can use to purchase plants five times in the nursery over the next six months.
- After the consultation we will send you a proposal for a full design if that is something you request.
Onsite consultations beyond a 10 mile radius of the Garden are charged travel time in each direction starting at $75 per 10 miles
Evening and weekend appointments are available for an additional charge
Consultation Plus +
For Gardens 200 square feet or smaller
- After the consultation, add personalized design assistance or plant shopping at the RBG Nursery with your landscape designer who will advise you on plant selection, placement in your yard, and ongoing care and maintenance. Hours are billed at $150 Member | $175 Non Member per hour
Custom Full Design
Begins with Mandatory Garden Consultation
- Proposals are available upon request
- Typically also includes:
- One Planting Plan
- Personalized Pinterest Page with suggested plants
- List of plants with recommended sizes
- Plus the following meetings:
- Site Survey
- Virtual Concept Plan presentation
- Virtual Final Plan presentation
- Plant placement on planting day
- Other plans, such as hardscape, irrigation and lighting are also available and can be added on request
“We contacted the design staff at the Ruth Bancroft Garden to give life to two neglected areas in our front yard. We wanted drought tolerant plants. The experience from the first visit by the knowledgeable design team to seeing the finished product was a pleasure. They made it very easy on our part. We highly recommend these professionals.”
– Doug & Vicki F.
25% Off Design Discount Card
All landscape design clients will receive a discount card entitling them to 25% off plant purchases from the RBG Nursery which is valid for 5 purchases within six months of design completion.
Service Areas
East Bay: Our general service area encompasses the area within a 22 mile radius of the Garden which is roughly north to Highway #4, south to Highway #580, west to Oakland and east to Antioch.
San Francisco and Marin: Additional hourly travel-time fees may be added to design work done in these areas.
Sites outside a 10 mile radius of service areas will incur additional travel charges.
“Ruth Bancroft transformed my garden. They worked with me to define the elements I wanted to keep and the space I wanted to create. They created an amazing design that also contemplated light and irrigation. The finished project brings me joy every day!”
– Meghan R.
Drought Tolerant Plants
The Nursery is stocked with water wise plants and natives. Our Nursery staff is also extremely knowledgeable and more than happy to answer any questions you have about whether or not a particular plant will thrive in your yard. If you’re looking for a plant that we don’t currently have in-stock, or want to make a large order of plants for your water wise garden, it is best to email the nursery at Nursery@ruthbancroftgarden.org
photo credit Caitlin Atkinson
Contra Costa County Lawn to Garden Rebate Program
Our landscape designers are also authorized consultants for the Contra Costa Water District’s Lawn to Garden Landscape Design Assistance Program. For more information about this program, visit the Contra Costa Water District’s Lawn to Garden Rebate Program 
website. The vast majority of the plants we carry in the Nursery also qualify for rebates through this program.
Approved CCWD Lawn to Garden Rebate participants, upon completion of their project, also receive a 20% off RBG Nursery coupon to use towards the purchase of new plants.
“I love it so much. This is why you hire a professional!”
– Anne-Marie
Meet the Team
Cricket R.
Nurery & Design Services Director
Plant centered design is the focus of all of Cricket’s work at the Garden. From designing gardens, to giving workshops, from writing about plants in the newsletter to ordering plants for the Nursery, educating people on the beauty, diversity and sustainability of regionally appropriate planting is always her goal. “Your garden should look good, feel good and do good. If we’ve accomplished those three things, then we’re successful” Cricket has an AA in Landscape Architecture from Merritt College, a BA in History from UC Santa Cruz, and an MA in Broadcast Journalism and Near Eastern Studies from NYU.
Nikki V.
Senior Designer
Nikki is a landscape designer that specializes in creating beautiful, functional spaces that feel lush but use low water. She also has extensive experience in fine gardening and aesthetic pruning. She enjoys working on plant-focused designs, learning what clients want out of their garden, and developing creative, sustainable solutions. Prior to this, Nikki spent many years in the nonprofit sector, providing fundraising, marketing and creative support. She has an AA degree in Landscape Architecture from Merritt College and a BA in Communication Studies from UNCW.
Becky P.
Associate Designer
It was living in urban spaces where Becky started her passion for low water gardens and design. While transforming her own “blank slate” garden in San Francisco, she experienced the immediate impact of greening her neighborhood through street tree plantings and doing tree care as a volunteer. Before joining the RBG team, Becky was a researcher and did garden maintenance and design. She believes designing with climate adapted plants sets clients up for success and ground gardens with a sense of place. Becky has an AA in Landscape Architecture from Merritt College, and a BA in Media Studies from the University of San Francisco.
Kate N.
Associate Designer
Garden making and growing professionally in the Bay Area for over fifteen years, Kate has learned, plants are powerful. As a designer, she believes that beauty and resilience go hand in hand, working with clients to realize their low water garden aspirations. Before coming to Ruth Bancroft Garden, Kate was the Horticulture Manager at Filoli gardens in Woodside. She studied Landscape Architecture at Merritt College, earned an MA in Museum Studies at the University of Washington and a BA in Biology at Boston College.
