Charleston, SC — Est. 2013
Landscape design and stewardship for the coastal South. We work in places that matter — the Lowcountry, the barrier islands, the Pee Dee basin — and we take that responsibility seriously.
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The Lowcountry is not a backdrop.
It is the client.
We have been designing landscapes for private properties along the South Carolina and Georgia coast since 2013. Our work is site-specific, ecologically grounded, and built to outlast the people who commissioned it.
Selected Projects
Sullivan's Island Residence
Edisto River Plantation
Isle of Palms Dune Garden
Legare Street Garden
Kiawah Waterway Compound
Pawleys Island Retreat
Our Method
Step 01 — Read the Land
Every project begins with an ecological reading of the site — soils, hydrology, existing plant communities, wildlife corridors. We do not begin designing until we understand what the land is already doing and what it wants to become.
Step 02 — Design Together
We are not a studio that disappears with a retainer and returns with a finished plan. We work alongside our clients — often over many meetings — refining the vision until it is exactly right. This takes time. We do not apologize for that.
Step 03 — Build to Last
Our twelve-person crew handles installation. We work with coastal ecologists on native species sourcing, and we warranty all plantings through two full growing seasons. The job is not done when the final bill goes out — it is done when the garden is self-sustaining.
The Practice
James Thornfield spent eight years as a restoration ecologist for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources before establishing Thornfield Land Co. in 2013. That background shapes everything we do — from the species we specify to the grading solutions we propose.
We are twelve people. We work within a two-hour radius of Charleston. We turn away projects that require us to spread thinner than that. Our current clients have stayed with us for an average of six years.
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James Thornfield — Principal