Mary Dresser, RLA ALSA

Mary Hatch Dresser is a Registered Landscape Architect with a Bachelor’s degree in Landscape Architecture from the University of Georgia School of Environmental Design. Mary has designed landscapes for 32 years and joined ETW exclusively in 2009. Mary is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA); and also serves on the Shade Tree Committee in Strasburg Borough where she resides. Mary prides herself in carefully listening to her clients to professionally meld their ideas and personal criteria with sound, experienced design practice.

Recent Posts

Topics

The Best Landscape Design Process for Your Home in Lancaster, York, or Reading, PA

Deciding to have a large landscape project completed at your home is an exciting endeavor. Of course, whether it’s an outdoor kitchen, a patio, a pavilion, or all of the above, you want to be sure that it’s built right. That means hiring a landscape designer to professionally complete your design.

But excellent landscape design isn’t exactly cheap and you want to know that investing in it will be worth the cost. You may have been searching for “landscape design near me” online but you’re still not exactly sure what you’re going to get for your expense. The last thing that you want is to invest a lot of money into a “design” that took someone a measly 15 minutes to sketch.

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Landscape Design for the Elderly: A Golden Plan for Aging in Place

Ever-improving advances in health care are allowing people to live longer than ever before. That means we have an unprecedented rate of aging Americans. In fact, according to Pew Research, 10,000 people retire every day.

This phenomenon has demanded new solutions for “aging in place.” Homeowners want a space that they can stay in for the long-haul. They don’t want to have to move down the line because their home or yard wasn’t aging-friendly.

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Leola, PA Landscaping Case Study:  Sloped Property Turns into Multi-Leveled Functional Space

While slopes can certainly pose major challenges, it also creates the opportunity to have a property that is truly unique. When designed and built properly, slope challenges can be turned into a multi-level property with tremendous appeal.

That was the case for this Leola, PA landscaping project. The property had a major slope and the previous landscaping didn’t incorporate it into the design in any way.

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From 18 Months to 18 Years: Kid-Friendly Landscape Design for Safe Fun

Whether you have children now or you plan to in the future, you want to make sure that your landscape design takes into account safety just as much as it takes into account how your kids will use the space. After all, as a family that likes to spend time outdoors, you want them out there having good, safe fun with you or their friends.

Of course, they won’t stay little forever. That means you also want a landscape design that will be appropriate as they grow. You don’t want to worry about making poor design choices now that will end up being a frustration down the road.

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4 Ways to Add Vibrant, Year-Round Color to Your Landscape Design

Adding color to your landscape with the use of various plants with colorful leaves, vibrant blooms, and other visual appeal can take your property to a whole new level of “wow.”

While most good landscape design has a nice mix of perennials and other shrubs which add some color, you might be looking for something truly spectacular. You’re thinking less about the standard plants you can pick up at your regional box store and more along the lines of your local botanical garden’s display. You want gorgeous, eye-catching color and you want it incorporated throughout your property.  

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Important Considerations and Design Ideas for Landscaping Church Grounds

Just as homeowners are looking to expand their living area with outdoor spaces, churches are also looking to extend their usable space to the outdoors.

As your church grows, you might be thinking about how you can expand and improve your campus for visitors and attendees.

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17 Backyard Events & Party Ideas for Year-Long Entertainment at Your Lancaster, PA Home

Whether you have an outdoor living space that you’re looking to upgrade or you are adding something from scratch, the last thing that you want is an ordinary space that can’t be used for extraordinary events.

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