What does a landscape designer do?
A landscape designer is responsible for ensuring that the plan arrangement meets the client's best interests with the highest quality standards. Landscape designers must have strong attention to detail, outstanding communication skills, and excellent analytical skills to provide the best services as the client instructs. They should also be creative and knowledgeable about the trends in the market, analyze site conditions to suggest design options that would fit the client's preference. A landscape designer should also provide expense estimates for the client and construct the project efficiently within the budget goals.
Landscape designer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real landscape designer resumes:
- Develop marketing and brand awareness initiatives through social media outlets; create and manage company Facebook and Houzz profiles.
- Design with ACAD, GIS application with ArcView and ArcPad
- Develop sketch plans for parcels of land being consider for subdivisions.
- Complete many, complex, SketchUp models for city planning commission meetings and presenting to clients.
- Introduce 3D modeling in SketchUp to the company to give clients a better understanding of a space during a proposal.
- Perform duties as trimming, mowing, weed-eating, edging, leaf mulching, aerating, fertilizing, and seeding.
- Sod laying, mowing, trimming, planting, watering, fertilizing, digging, raking, sprinkler installation and repair.
- Acquire design specialization in hardscapes, green roof/rooftop knowledge and sustainable planting plans including naturalize meadows and wetland mitigation.
- Prepare marketing materials and CBD proposals
Landscape designer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 12% of Landscape Designers are proficient in Sketch, SketchUp, and Design Development. They’re also known for soft skills such as Problem-solving skills, Technical skills, and Visualization skills.
We break down the percentage of Landscape Designers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Sketch, 12%
Sketch plan designs for multi-family residential communities and recreational sites.
- SketchUp, 10%
Measured area's and used CAD and Sketchup to design landscape in 3-D for customers
- Design Development, 7%
Managed projects involving design development, client relations, material selection and procurement, as well as construction administration.
- Cost Estimates, 6%
Coordinated site furnishings with manufacturing representatives and prepared cost estimates.
- Auto CAD, 6%
Produce color renderings via Auto Cadd and hand manipulations for Preliminary and Conceptual Presentations.
- Lumion, 5%
Process 3D renderings and animations in lumion.
Most landscape designers use their skills in "sketch," "sketchup," and "design development" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential landscape designer responsibilities here:
Problem-solving skills. One of the key soft skills for a landscape designer to have is problem-solving skills. You can see how this relates to what landscape designers do because "when designing outdoor spaces, landscape architects must be able to provide solutions to unanticipated challenges." Additionally, a landscape designer resume shows how landscape designers use problem-solving skills: "implemented creative design solutions for landscape architecture and urban design projects. "
Technical skills. Another essential skill to perform landscape designer duties is technical skills. Landscape designers responsibilities require that "landscape architects use computer-aided design and drafting (cadd) programs to create representations of their projects." Landscape designers also use technical skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "conducted construction inspections; provided construction reports; and technical consultation on all types of construction. "
Visualization skills. landscape designers are also known for visualization skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to landscape designer responsibilities, because "landscape architects must be able to imagine how an overall outdoor space will look once completed." A landscape designer resume example shows how visualization skills is used in the workplace: "provide various combinations and levels of product design,technical drafting, and virtual 3d visualization. "
Analytical skills. A big part of what landscape designers do relies on "analytical skills." You can see how essential it is to landscape designer responsibilities because "landscape architects must understand how their designs will affect locations." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical landscape designer tasks: "collected site inventory data, checked zoning codes, made planning decisions and prepared documents. "
Communication skills. Another common skill required for landscape designer responsibilities is "communication skills." This skill comes up in the duties of landscape designers all the time, as "landscape architects share their ideas, both orally and in writing, with clients, other architects, and workers who help prepare drawings." An excerpt from a real landscape designer resume shows how this skill is central to what a landscape designer does: "project management and all client communications. "
Creativity. While "creativity" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to landscape designer responsibilities. Much of what a landscape designer does relies on this skill, seeing as "landscape architects create the overall look of gardens, parks, and other outdoor areas." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of landscape designers: "participated in field site inventory, analysis, and survey work. "
The three companies that hire the most landscape designers are:
- The Davey Tree Expert Company140 landscape designers jobs
- Stantec28 landscape designers jobs
- Bohler12 landscape designers jobs
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Compare different landscape designers
Landscape designer vs. Golf course architect
A Structural Design Engineer designs drawings, specifications, and computer models of structures for building contractors. They help design hospitals, office blocks, houses, bridges, ships, and other structures.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between landscape designers and golf course architect. For instance, landscape designer responsibilities require skills such as "sketch," "sketchup," "design development," and "auto cad." Whereas a golf course architect is skilled in "course design," "construction management," "master planning," and "pvc." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Golf course architects tend to reach similar levels of education than landscape designers. In fact, golf course architects are 2.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Landscape designer vs. Director of landscape architecture and planning
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that landscape designer responsibilities requires skills like "sketch," "sketchup," "design development," and "cost estimates." But a director of landscape architecture and planning might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "landscape architecture," "master planning," "project management," and "cad."
In general, directors of landscape architecture and planning achieve higher levels of education than landscape designers. They're 6.2% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Landscape designer vs. Structural design engineer
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, landscape designers are more likely to have skills like "sketchup," "design development," "auto cad," and "lumion." But a structural design engineer is more likely to have skills like "structural design," "cad," "autocad," and "aerospace."
Structural design engineers earn the best pay in the manufacturing industry, where they command an average salary of $88,526. Landscape designers earn the highest pay from the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $59,314.structural design engineers typically earn higher educational levels compared to landscape designers. Specifically, they're 5.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Landscape designer vs. Project landscape architect
Types of landscape designer
Updated January 8, 2025
