These are the questions we get asked on walkthroughs, written out properly. Most of them come down to a decision you have to make before spending money, so each guide gives you the answer in the first paragraph and the reasoning underneath.
Everything here is written by Daniels Landscaping, a licensed design and build crew working across the San Fernando Valley and greater Los Angeles. LIC #1138709.
Which guide do you need?
If you are choosing a surface, start with pavers or concrete for a Valley driveway. It covers what the clay soil here does to a slab, what each one costs to repair, and which stays cooler underfoot in August.
If you are about to hire someone, read how to check a landscaping contractor in California first. It walks through looking up a license on the state board site, what the license classifications actually mean, and the deposit limit the law sets, which is the single most useful thing most homeowners do not know.
If you want to see how a real project comes together, a dry creek bed instead of more lawn pulls one small courtyard apart piece by piece: why the middle became river rock rather than turf, how the channel is built so it does not sink, and how the turf gets cut to fit an angled shape.
More guides are being added as we work through the questions that come up most.