FGC Comm Newsletter Fall/Winter 2010

8/8/2019 FGC Comm Newsletter Fall/Winter 2010

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In this issue:

news from the gardeni d e a s f o r G r o w i n g y o u r B u s i n e s s Fall/Winter 2010

w w w . F o c k e l e G a r d e n C o m p a n y . c o m

BRING SUSTAINABILITY TO YOUR LANDSCAPE AND GARDEN

hether it’s recycling household products, using less water when washing clothes,

or installing energy efficient light bulbs, almost everyone already incorporates some

sustainability measures into his or her everyday life.

So why not take the next step and integrate sustain-ability in your landscape/garden?

A sustainable landscape contributes positively to the

surrounding natural environment, causes no harm to

the site, and requires minimal resource inputs. It has the

capacity to endure, remaining diverse and productive

over time.

We can help make your landscape sustainable,

or more sustainable than it already is. Devel-

oping sustainability is not an all or nothing

proposition. It is a process often implemented

through a series of short term goals. The first

step is to know your site and to learn howall of its elements interact – how stormwater

moves across your property, where the sun,

shade and wind are, the quality and charac-

teristics of the soil, the neighborhood and

the surrounding architecture, and the intent

of your landscape.

W

The many

benefits of

Green Roofs

have people

going up on

their roof

tops when adding gardens. A Green

Roof installed on a home or busi-

ness can provide many benefits thatpeople are already looking for such as

lower energy costs, stormwater runoff

control, sound insulation, and rainwa-

ter collection. Many of these benefits

have become more of a priority

for customers.

The Fockele Garden Company co-

owners Julie Evans and Mark Fockele

are certified as Green Roof Profession-

als by Green Roofs for Healthy Cities

(GRHC) and can answer inquiries you

might have about this growing trend.

Not every landscape design company

can design, build and maintain roof

gardens. It is an extremely technical

process. As Green Roof Profession-

als, Mark and Julie are certified to

coordinate the different professionals

required by green roof projects such

as engineers, roofing contractors,

designers and horticultural experts.

Green roof infrastructure involves the

use of technologies that incorporate

unique drainage and filtering systems,

waterproofing, special soil and prop-

erly selected plants. The benefits of

green roofs include a reduction in

storm water runoff, better heat and

sound insulation, energy savings, im-

proved air quality and reduction in the

Permeable walkways permit infiltration and mitigate run-off.

BEFORE

AF

Going Green on Your Roof Has

Its Advantages

THE FOCKELE GARDEN COMPANY CELEBRATES 20TH YEAR, p.2

HUNTSVILLE BEAUTIFICATION AND PLANET AWARDS, P.3 | RAINWATER COLLECTION

CERTIFICATION, P.4 | SMARTVILLE GARDEN SELECTED FOR SITES™ INITIATIVE, P.6



For 20 years, The Fockele Garden

Company has designed, built and

maintained gardens – at first just locally

and now throughout the southeast.

It all began in 1990 with Mark Fockele

and two employees working out of an

office on Green St. and a shed at the old

Chambers Lumber Company property.

Over the past two decades, the company

has grown to 42 employees with clients

in Georgia, South Carolina, North Caro-lina, Alabama and Florida under Mark

and co-owner Julie Evans.

The Fockele Garden Company was

created out of Mark’s frustration with his

career as an attorney and his enjoyment

of gardening. He felt he needed to find

work he could take more pleasure in.

Having always enjoyed working outside

on projects and in the garden, he moved

in that direction.

“When I worked as an attorney, I spent

every spare minute outside working in thegarden,” Mark explains. “On Saturdays,

I would stand in the driveway waiting for

the first light.”

Mark learned about the landscape business

through seminars and studying at home

and used word of mouth to promote his

new business. His first customer was Jane

Eve Wilheit for whom he built a brick

walkway and added some plantings.

Focusing exclusively at first on

residential design and instal-

lation, The Fockele GardenCompany began to grow. It

expanded into commercial

design and installation with its

first significant commercial

project for City Plumbing in

Gainesville in 1995.

In 2000, Julie joined the company

as a designer. Julie and Mark

met while working on different

aspects of

a project

in Atlanta.

Both are

University

of the

South

graduates

but were not classmates. When they met,

Julie owned the landscape company

Ecocentric that worked on ecological

restoration projects.

“We were each overextended running

our small landscape companies,” Mark

said. “We felt each would be able to

produce more by working together. We

could divide up aspects of the business

and be more productive.”

Julie brought a strong background in

horticulture to The Fockele Garden

Company. She spent nine years at the

Atlanta History Center working with all

aspects of public gardening and

developed specialties in native plants

and historic plants from different eras in

Georgia. She had also worked

for a wholesale perennial

grower and it was through

these experiences that she

developed the idea of

working in the field of

ecological restoration in

residential settings. So she started her

landscape company.

“I was always interested in ecological

restoration and in plants,” Julie said.

“After working at the history centerand in a nursery, I wanted to become

involved in landscaping through

ecological restoration.”

Julie became vice president and

co-owner with Mark in 2005.

That same year, Todd Brown was

brought in as general manager as

the company continued to grow,

reaching 18 employees.

Todd, who has been in the landscaping

business since 1985, led the way as The

Fockele Garden Company began puttingan emphasis on its maintenance busi-

ness. The company has grown from one

and one-half maintenance crews to eight

as the volume of maintenance work has

increased 600-700 percent over the last

five years.

In 2006, The Fockele Garden Company

began work with Lanier Village Estates,

its first large scale commercial client,

providing installation and maintenance

work for the 87-acre ACTS Retirement

Community. They also maintain anotherACTS community, Magnolia Trace in

Huntsville, Alabama.

2

Co-owners Mark Fockele and Julie Evans

study plans at a project site.

Left: Mark Fockele founded the

company in 1990. Above: Mark

Fockele and crew work on the

Anne’s Garden fountain in 2009.

The Fockele Garden

Company Celebrates

20 y e a r s

continued on page 4



The Fockele Garden Company installed

a new garden at Magnolia Trace, an

ACTS community in Huntsville, Alabama

in 2009.

That work was recently honored with a

2010 Huntsville Beautification Award.The competition was sponsored by the

Beautification Board of Huntsville and

was open to all commercial and public

properties in the city.

Magnolia Trace Director Donna Olson

has been impressed with the service pro-

vided by The Fockele Garden Company.

On the installation:

“I love the design, installation and quality

of the plants and other material,” Olson

says. “I especially liked the fact that the

designer Mark Fockele was on site as the

installation work was being completed to

ensure that the finished product accurately

represented his design vision.”

On the maintenance:

“I was very surprised at how fast the crew

was able to improve the condition of the

turf,” Olson says. “I love the fact that you

have an onsite crew and do not just show

up once a week for service. Your re-

sponse time to questions, proposals and

problems has been terrific. The crew is

very personable, clean cut and presents

an excellent image for the company.”

Overall impression:

“I am very, very happy with all that you

have done for me since we started here

one year ago,” Olson says. “You have

provided the best service of any of the

landscape management companies I have

ever worked with.”

The Fockele Garden Company’s mainte-

nance work at Peach State Bank & Trust

has earned a Merit Award from the Profes-

sional Landcare Network’s Environmental

Improvement Awards Program.

The Fockele Garden Company designedand installed the Peach State landscape

to meet the expectations of the bank’s

principals. Fundamental to our mainte-

nance program is preserving the original

design intent.

The Peach State landscape is an extension

of the bank’s image – a demonstration

of expert care, attention to detail, and

innovation. Beautiful and interesting, the

gardens represent a quality of living that

the bank publicly endorses. Maintaining

that image brings not only challenges,but important enhancement opportunities

to our program of management.

PLANET’s Environmental Improvement

Awards Program is designed to honor

independent landscape, lawn care

and interior plantscaping professionals

who execute superior projects.

Huntsville Beautification Committee

Honors Magnolia Trace

The Fockele Garden

Company Honored

for Commercial

Project

The Magnolia Trace entrance was one of the area

enhanced by The Fockele Garden Company.

The Fockele Garden Company was honored for its

maintenance of the Peach State Bank & Trust property.

New Business Installation

•Bay Medical Center, Panama City, Fla.

Installation and Maintenance

•UHS-Pruitt Magnolia Manor,

Moultrie, Ga.

•UHS-Pruitt UniHealth

Post Acute Care, Durham, N.C.

The Sails Fountain at the Bay Medical Center

in Panama City, Fla. was recently designed and

installed by The Fockele Garden Company.


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The Fockele Garden Company has long been committed to rainwater

collection. Whether it is a 10,000-gallon cistern or 55-gallon rain barrel,

many of our projects include rainwater collection systems.

Rainwater systems collect rainwater for irrigation use in lieu of municipal

water. Demand for such systems is becoming stronger due to the fact that

municipal water use is becoming more restricted and more expensive.

“Traditional practices, such as ‘throwing away’ rainwater in drain pipes,

culverts, and stormwater systems and gullies is not only inefficient, but

increasingly expensive both economically and socially,” Mark Fockele,

President of The Fockele Garden Company, says. “Collecting and using

rainwater provides all sorts of advantages: you can use rainwater any

time, without regard to restrictions; once the system is in place, you do

not have to pay for the water you use; and collecting the rainwater re-

duces storm surges in the municipal stormwater system, reducing erosion

and pollution.”

Mark is a Rainwater Collection Professional accredited by the American

Rainwater Catchment Systems Association (ARCSA), a non-profit orga-nization that promotes rainwater catch-

ment systems in the United States. He

has given lectures on the subject for

groups such as the Georgia Perennial

Plant Association, the Alabama chapter

of the American Institute of Architecture,

and individual architectural firms.

Consider collecting rainwater on your property to benefit your garden.

Also that year, The Fockele Garden Company

started working with UHS-Pruitt Corporation, build

ing a garden and water feature for the corporate

office of the healthcare provider. The relationship

with UHS-Pruitt has grown, building gardens at its

skilled nursing and assisted living facilities in North

Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

Building gardens for healthcare campuses has

become a specialty of The Fockele Garden

Company. The company installed a garden at

Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s Women’sand Children’s Pavilion and Anne’s Garden at the

new North Tower. It will begin work soon on an

entry garden at the North Tower.

The Fockele Garden Company has grown from

three employees in 1990 to 42 today by devel-

oping a quality that is unique to small landscape

companies. The Fockele Garden Company offers

the complete set of services. Most have to hire

subcontractors for some elements of a project. Th

company designs, builds and maintains commerci

and residential gardens. It provides services such a

irrigation systems, cisterns, custom water features,

and stone work. And The Fockele Garden

Company does it all internally.

“With a staff of 42 it is unusual for a company our

size to do so many different landscape functions

in-house,” Mark said. “We control the work from

beginning to end. This allows us to guarantee the

quality of the project as a whole as well as the

individual components. This gives the customer on

company responsible for everything.”

Rainwater Collection Systems Are

Beneficial to You and the Environment

Cisterns come in various sizes and can

be placed below or above ground.

Rainwater collected in them can beused to irrigate your landscape in lieu

of municipal water. Left: Three large

cisterns are placed in the ground to

catch rainwater. Bottom: These above

ground cisterns fit neatly next to the

house and out of sight.

The Fockele Garden Company

celebrates 20 years

continued from page 2

General Manager Todd Brown assists

crew members in placing the Elpida statue in Anne’s Garden

at the Northeast Georgia Medical Center.



Har v est ing r ainw at er f or r e- useHar v est ing r ainw at er f or r e- use

urban heat island effect. Other possible

benefits include increased green space,

improved aesthetics, community garden-

ing and habitat restoration.

From garden design to rainwater collec-

tion to drought-tolerant plants and garden

maintenance, Green Roofs require many

areas of expertise.

“This is a natural blending of philosoph

and services we already offer for reside

tial and commercial customers,” Julie s

Bring Sustainability to Your

Landscape and Garden continued from page 1

Going Green on Your Roof Has Its Advantages continued from page 1

Take an online tour of our work @

fockelegardencompany.com/portfolio.html

If your goal is to make your landscape more sustainable, here

are six areas to consider:

1) Make your water use efficient. Divert stormwater runoff so it

better infiltrates the soil. Store rainwater and use it during dry

spells. Install, or renovate your irrigation system with low flow

drip, using a layout that takes into account each plant’s water

requirements; use controllers and sensors to time the waterapplication. Mulch your plants. This keeps soil moisture more

constant and soil temperature cooler, which in turn reduces

watering requirements.

2) Maintain or increase the diversity in your landscape. Variety

in plants, birds, reptiles, small animals, insects and microorgan-

isms ensures that there will be natural predators and parasites

for the plant pests. Incorporate plants that are different from

others in the neighborhood; since most plant pests target a

certain species or family of plants, if everyone in the neighbor-

hood plants the same rose, everyone supports a large and

healthy population of the pest that loves that particular rose.

Plant a variety of sequentially flowering species to providenatural enemies of the target pests with nectar, pollen, and

shelter throughout the growing season. Tolerate some insects,

like low populations of plant-feeding insects and mites; this

ensures that there will be some food available to support the

beneficial predators and parasites.

3) Reduce or eliminate the use of chemicals in your landscape.

Even the most chemical reliant landscape can be altered over

time to be more sustainable. Use organic fertilizer for shrubs,

trees and groundcovers. Build soil health to reduce fertilizer

use. Reduce herbicide use by hand-pulling the most visible

weeds and keeping beds mulched.

4) Make your lawn area smaller. This decreases reliance onchemicals, water, and machines that are both high-main-

tenance and noisy. Use a mulching mower, allowing the

clippings to decompose and build nutritious soil that, in turn,

feeds the grass.

5) Establish shade to cool structures and soil in the summertime,

or to provide a canopy of vegetation to catch rainfall and

distribute it to layers of plants below.

6) Use “green” materials – those that have longevity, and can be

used again, or that minimize a negative impact on the envi-

ronment. Conscientiously use non-renewable resources, and

try to find substitutes that are renewable whenever possible.

Employ permeable walkways and patios since they reduce

stormwater run-off.

At The Fockele Garden Company, our goal is to take steps

toward sustainability in our landscape designs, installations, and

maintenance programs.

We use our horticultural expertise to look at a landscape and

identify ways to apply, and expand, the sustainability check list

outlined above. In our day-to-day business practices we have a

commitment to reduce negative environmental impact, and to

improve our efficiency.

For example, we have developed a program to recycle green

waste, metal, plastic and paper. We re-use our plastic plant con-

tainers – large containers become debris and trash buckets, and

we sell or give away the smaller plant containers to be used again.

We buy as many materials in bulk as possible in order to reduce

both packaging waste and product miles. We place an empha-sis on buying from local growers and using native and adapted

plants in our designs. In addition, we use organic fertilizer on

trees, shrubs, groundcovers, annuals and perennials.

Each of these may be small steps, but taken together can add up

to improved ecological conditions as well as a sense of accom-

plishment in developing a mutually beneficial relationship with

our environment.



Owners : Mark Fockele and Julie Evans

Year Founded : 1990 | Employees : 42

Business Breakdown : 60% design/build, 40% maintenance

Customer Breakdown : Mix of residential and commercial

O . B O X 6 7 1 • G A I N E S V I L L E , G A 3 0 5 0 3

Project Designed By The Fockele Garden Company

Owner Will Test Sustainable Landscape Rating System

The Sustainable Sites Initiative™ (SITES™)

recently announced the selection of the

Enota Multiple Intelligences Academy’s

Smartville Garden as one of the first land-

scapes to participate in a new program

testing the nation’s first rating system for

green landscape design, constructionand maintenance.

The Fockele Garden Company co-owner

Mark Fockele used his expertise in de-

signing water-smart gardens and rainwa-

ter harvesting systems to design and help

install the garden and rainwater harvest-

ing system at Smartville Garden.

The project, which is still under construc-

tion, uses sustainable landscape practices

that The Fockele Garden Company has

been using for a number of years.

Smartville Garden is an outdoor class-room that gives students a hands-on

learning experience about water conser-

vation and about representatives of the

plant kingdom. Smartville Garden joins

more than 150 other projects from 34

states as well as those from Canada, Ice-

land and Spain as part of an international

pilot project program to evaluate the

new SITES rating system for sustainable

landscapes, with and without buildings.

Sustainable landscapes filter and cleanwater, reduce pollution and restore habi-

tats, while providing significant economic

and social benefits to individuals, as well

as the general public.

The design and building

of Smartville Garden

was a collaborative

effort of Enota students,

teachers, parents and

community volunteers.

It contains two under-

ground cisterns that

can collect 3,400

gallons of water and

two above ground

cisterns that can store

2,200 gallons. In

addition, a 550-gallon water tower has

been installed. A pump feeds spigots

that allow hand watering the garden. The

plantings include: dwarf conifers, grasses,

perennials, flowering trees, and bulbs.

Enota Multiple Intelligences Academy use

Smartville Gardens as an outdoor classroomIt was chosen as one of the first landscapes

to participate in a new program testing

the nation’s first rating system for green

landscape design, construction

and maintenanceand maintenance

P.O. Box 671 | Gainesville, GA 30503 | p: 770.532.7117 | f: 770.532.7245 | www.FockeleGardenCompany.com

FGC Comm Newsletter Fall/Winter 2010

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