Landscape Design in Annapolis, MD — Built for This Soil, This Bay, and Your Neighborhood
Star Landscaping designs and installs custom outdoor spaces across Annapolis and Anne Arundel County since 2018. Every design starts with a soil test, a site assessment, and an honest conversation about what will actually grow here.
Get a Free Design Consultation → (667) 493-1555Why Annapolis Landscape Design Is Different
Zone 7a Is Not a Landscape Design Plan — Annapolis Requires More
Annapolis has two completely different soil types within the same city. Inland neighborhoods — Parole (21401), Crofton (21114), Admiral Heights — sit on heavy clay that holds water for 24–48 hours after rain. Bay-adjacent neighborhoods — Cape St. Claire (21409), Eastport (21403), Arundel-on-the-Bay — have sandy loam that accumulates sodium from Chesapeake Bay salt spray, raising pH to 7.8+ and killing standard Zone 7a plants.
Add the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area: 1,000 feet of tidal buffer covering most of Eastport, Murray Hill, the Historic District, and all Bay-facing neighborhoods. Landscaping within this zone is subject to county review. We include Critical Area assessment in every waterfront site visit at no charge.
🌿 Soil Tested First
We test before we plant. Never after.
🌊 Bay Compliant
Critical Area review included at no charge.
🏠 Neighborhood-Specific
Design vocabulary matched to your street.
📋 Design-Build
We draw it. We build it. One team.
Our Landscape Design Services
What We Design & Install in Annapolis
🌿
Planting Design
Native plant palettes by soil type and Bay exposure. Clay-tolerant Virginia sweetspire, river birch, and inkberry holly for inland Annapolis. Salt-tolerant bayberry, muhly grass, and Eastern red cedar for Cape St. Claire and Eastport. Species we have seen thrive here for eight seasons.
🌞
Outdoor Living Design
Patio design, outdoor kitchens, fire pits, pergolas. Annapolis homeowners use outdoor spaces from April through October — Wednesday Night Sailboat Races, Commissioning Week, Navy Football Saturdays. We design for how this city actually lives outside.
💧
Drainage-First Design
No Annapolis landscape design works without drainage infrastructure in clay soil neighborhoods. We design French drains, catch basins, dry creek beds, and rain gardens into every project from the start.
🌊
Bay-Friendly & Native
Rain gardens, living shorelines, and native plant buffers for Critical Area properties. We document every qualifying installation for Anne Arundel County stormwater fee reduction applications.
🏛
Historic District Design
Formal garden design compatible with Colonial Revival and 18th-century architecture near the Maryland State House and Naval Academy. Period-appropriate species and design vocabulary for historic streetscapes.
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Estate & Large Property
Large-scale design for Davidsonville (21035) and Severna Park (21146) estate lots. Meadow gardens, native hedgerows, woodland edge management, and scale design appropriate to larger Anne Arundel County properties.
Real Annapolis Projects
Three Design Problems. Three Annapolis Neighborhoods. Three Results.
Cape St. Claire, MD 21409
Salt-Damaged Beds → Bay-Native Garden
Four failed plantings. Soil pH at 7.8 from Bay salt spray. Gypsum amendment, pH correction, replant with bayberry, Eastern red cedar, beach rose, muhly grass. 14 months: zero plant failures.
$3,100 · 3 weeks
Eastport, Annapolis MD 21403
Wasted Backyard → Waterfront Living Room
1,400 sq ft unused. Failed drainage. Heaved concrete. Brussels Block patio, marine LED lighting, Virginia sweetspire and black-eyed Susan planting. "We can't leave the backyard."
$18,400 · 6 weeks
Murray Hill, Annapolis MD 21403
Overgrown Colonial Lot → Restored Character
Spa Creek adjacency. Colonial Revival architecture. Formal symmetry restored with boxwood, inkberry, native asters, bluestone entry walk. Invoice matched quote exactly.
$8,700 · 2 weeks
Related Resources
- → Hardscaping Annapolis MD
Patios, retaining walls, and outdoor kitchens - → Paver Patio Installation Annapolis MD
Zone 7a freeze-thaw base spec - → Drainage Solutions Annapolis MD
Drainage integrated into landscape design - → Lawn Care Programs Annapolis MD
Maintaining the lawn within your design - → Best Plants for Annapolis, MD
Plant selection by soil type and Bay exposure - → Annapolis Clay Soil Guide
Why soil knowledge drives plant selection - → Chesapeake Bay Landscaping Regulations
Critical Area compliance for waterfront designs - → Annapolis Landscaping Cost Guide 2026
What landscape design projects cost in this market - → Landscaping FAQ — Annapolis MD
Common questions before starting a design project
Ready for a Landscape That Actually Works in Annapolis?
Free on-site assessment. Soil tested. Critical Area regulatory review included. Written design concept in 5 business days. In Annapolis since 2018.
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