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We all appreciate beauty, but do you ever stop to think about what it does for us? Kathryn Weiler, a registered clinical counsellor, has spent much of her life helping people in one way or another, and the work she does through her landscape company takes into account her clients' well-being as much as the health of the vegetation she nurtures. 

Hawthorn Landscape Design is a family business run by Weiler and her partner — in business and life— Sarah Kennedy. 

The pair are self-described "passionate environmentalists" and make for an impressive force of nature with their combined skills. Kennedy, who joined Weiler's crew about six years ago, is an environmental technician and currently working toward becoming a certified environmental professional as well as obtaining her organic land care diploma. 

Weiler began farming and gardening in 2000 and seven years later started landscaping for others, employing a crew and creating her own designs. 

"It's been kind of a labour of love working on the business together," Weiler said, adding that they service primarily residential customers but also have the odd commercial contract. "Sarah's been part of things for the last six years and running a family business has been such a positive experience. We really balance each other out." 

Another member of the Hawthorn crew is Elizabeth Laing, a landscape architect with a modernist approach who came directly from working for Paul Sangha who operates one of the biggest high-end landscape architect firms in Vancouver.

"We love working together — she's into sustainability and growing food, and brings an artful design acumen," said Weiler. "We all shared values around everything being environmentally sustainable, using organic products and soil. We are also big believers in growing food — so if we can we love to integrate food into our designs — kale, lettuces, squash, and tomato plants. 

"We also can mix in herbs and edible flowers, things like that," she said, suggesting nasturtiums, calendula and violets make excellent choices for a garden.

As a counsellor, Weiler is sensitive to people's emotional states so one of her key mandates is to provide spaces for her clients where they can de-stress and unwind.

"We want to create environments where people feel good, places they can come home to and relax. We live in a stressful crazy world that's very focused on work and being driven. We want to create environments where people can come home and just enjoy their outside space.

"We want to make things beautiful, that's a priority for us. And if we're going to do vegetables, for example, it's nice mixing in flowers because they are pleasing, and it benefits different kinds of plants. We are very interested in pollination, so attracting bees and different kinds of insects, as well as having water features that can attract birds, are all things we consider. 

"We want to create little microenvironments for people," she said, adding that green roofs are a wonderful way of incorporating more greenery into a residence. 

Hawthorn also makes a point designing landscapes that use native and drought-tolerant plants.

"Native plants are more water-wise, and part of this landscape that we live in. With climate change and all the things that are happening at the moment, we try to encourage people to use drip irrigation and things that will benefit the environment. A big part of what we love is to help educate our customers on things that are not only better for the land, but can help simplify things in their lives too. 

"As a business owner we're always learning and trying to discover how we can make things better how we can improve what we're doing," she said.

Weiler and Kennedy seek out opportunities to do restoration work as well and have had opportunities to do so as both volunteers and contractors for the Squamish Watershed Society. 

"Restoring ecosystems that have been affected by development and other ecological impacts is something we absolutely love to do," Weiler said, noting one of their latest projects near the Cheakamus Centre was to re-vegetate a creek bed that had closed. "It was immensely satisfying, and I'm thrilled that it will be flowing again soon."

It's that sense of commitment and enthusiasm for their work that seems to set this company apart. 

"We are a design company, and we work closely with our customers – it's more than garden maintenance. We focus on improving people's landscapes as opposed to just maintaining them. But more than that we are working to improve people's lives as much as we possibly can."

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