Distinctive Landscapes
Services

What we build.

Design, build and maintain under one roof. The same crew runs the whole job, so the work ties together and you coordinate nothing.

The craft

The work the money goes into.

The structural lines - the ones that decide whether a build is still standing in ten years.

Paving & outdoor floorsConcrete, exposed aggregate, natural stone, porcelain and brick - laid flat, drained right, and still solid in ten years.
Retaining wallsTimber, block and stone walls that hold the hill and hold their line - built for Wellington slopes and Wellington weather.
DecksKwila, Garapa, composite or pine. An outdoor room off the back of the house, built to take the weather and the years.
Fences, gates & glass balustradeBoundaries, screens and frameless glass, set true and built to last.
Hard sites, drainage & earthworksSteep slopes, tight access, stormwater and subsoil drainage, the odd helicopter delivery. The sites other crews pass on are exactly our work.
Steep Kelburn hillside terraced with sleeper and brick retaining by Distinctive LandscapesKelburn · the steep, tight site other crews pass on
Easy first jobs

Start small if you like.

Quick to quote, quick to build - and a fine way to meet the crew.

Planting & garden bedsNative, ornamental, hedging, raised sleeper gardens and mulching - planting that suits your site and fills in the way it should, not just what looked good at the nursery.
Lawns & turfReady lawn, hydroseed or artificial turf. A lawn that takes, or turf that looks right all year - we will tell you which your spot can carry.

Plenty of clients start with a garden bed or a strip of lawn and come back for the bigger build. Nearly one in three of our clients return.

The full loop

Everything around the build.

Outdoor living featuresOutdoor kitchens, fireplaces, pergolas, water features, outdoor stairs and privacy screens - built in, not bolted on.
Lighting & irrigationOutdoor lighting through our electrician, and irrigation that keeps the garden alive through summer.
Design & build from plansWe can design it, or build your architect's or designer's plan - and we will flag what won't work on the ground before it costs you.
MaintenanceWe built it, so we look after it. Regular rounds for homes, commercial sites and early-learning centres - all-inclusive per-visit pricing, no line-by-line surprises.

If someone told you years back that we don’t do maintenance, driveways, big retaining, glass balustrade or pergolas - that has changed. We do all of it now.

No surprises

What’s included, what’s extra.

Most people underestimate outdoor work because the ground you don’t see - drainage, retaining, access, cart-away - is where a lot of the labour goes. So the quote names all of it before you sign.

Spelled out on every quote

  • A fixed written price, GST included - the quote is the price
  • Itemised sections, so you can see where the money goes
  • The materials named - timber grade, paver, plant, finish
  • A realistic build window, weather flagged honestly
  • Any variation priced and agreed in writing before the work

Priced as its own line, never buried

  • Removal and demolition of the old deck, fence or concrete
  • Cart-away and dump fees - they add up even on a small job
  • Drainage, where the site needs it to protect the work
  • Council consent, where the job triggers one

Pulling out an old wall means breakers, a truck and dump fees. You see that line before you sign - not when the skip arrives.

Budget tight? We would rather change the scope than cut the standard. Tell us the number and we will show you what to do first, what can wait, and where a different material saves money without letting you down. Clients stage jobs all the time - deck now, planting later.

Straight answers

The site and materials questions.

Can machinery get onto my section?

That is one of the first things we check on the site visit. Tight access, steep drops and no truck room all change how a job is done and what it costs. We take on the hard sites other crews pass on - poor access, steep slopes, even helicopter deliveries - so if the ground is fighting you, that is our kind of work.

Do I need drainage, and what does it add?

Often, yes - especially on a slope, a wet site, or anywhere water has nowhere to go. Bad drainage is what wrecks a wall, a lawn or a patio a year later, so we would rather build it in than watch your work fail. We assess it at the site visit and price it as a clear line so you can see exactly what it adds.

Can you price two options so I can choose?

Yes, and clients do this a lot - a cheaper paver against a higher-end one, timber sleepers against a block wall, one style of step against another. Tell us where you want the choice and we will price both clearly so you can decide with the numbers in front of you.

What materials will you use, and can I see a sample?

We tell you exactly what is going in - timber grade, paver, plant, finish - and why we would use it on your site. Where it helps, we drop a sample on site so you can see it in your own light before you commit. No surprises on the day.

Artificial grass or real lawn - which should I get?

It comes down to the spot. Real lawn is usually cheaper to lay, but in a shady, wind-blown or high-traffic area it can struggle and needs regular mowing and care for years. Artificial turf costs more up front and looks right year-round with almost no upkeep. If a patch won't grow good grass, we will say so rather than sell you a lawn that dies.

Do I need a consent for a wall or fence?

Sometimes. Under Schedule 1 of the Building Act, a retaining wall up to 1.5 metres that isn't supporting anything extra above it - like a driveway or a building - is generally exempt from building consent. Beyond that it depends on height, what the wall is holding back, and your council's district plan: Porirua, Wellington and Kāpiti each set their own rules near boundaries and road frontages. We flag it when a design needs consent, work out exactly what your job needs at the site visit, and handle the council process so you don't have to.

More questions answered on the home page - or just ask.

Every job starts with a site visit.

Tell us what you are working with. We walk the real ground, say what will work and what won’t, and put a fixed written price on it.

Book a site visit