Every soul is to be cherished, every flower is to bloom

-Alice Walker

Garden Consult

Garden Consult

Filters

Garden Consultation

When you purchase a consultation, I will reach out to schedule an on-site visit.

$100.00

No results found

No results match your search. Try removing a few filters.

Creating your garden is more than putting plants in the ground. It’s an opportunity to engage and affirm your unique vision and creativity, your authentic self!

Think of me as your enthusiastic, informed friend here to help you dream and find practical, affordable approaches to realizing your vision. I am happy to work with you on any aesthetic, but my personal style aligns with the New Perennial movement for it’s natural look, lower maintenance and ecological consideration. Some popular examples are the Lurie Garden in Chicago’s Millennium Park and New York’s High Line.

The consult package includes a site visit in your garden to talk about your goals, followed by a document with instructions, resources and referrals for next steps. Subsequent visits may include planting plans depending on your need.

  • Bed design is $2 per square foot and includes:

    • Up to two full-color renderings of your garden with descriptions and prices of all plants used

    • My analog, on-site planting plan method which results in a detailed and precise cost estimate

  • Labor to install plants, weed, prune trees etc. is $75/hour

My nursery dealer’s license and relationships with multiple wholesalers allow me to source the perfect plants for your project. I care what my name gets attached to and I go to great lengths to find the right fit.

Let’s do this together!

Caveat: Site visits are only done inside I-465

*Insured by Conner’s Insurance.

Testimonials

  • Working with the brilliant, funny, and creative Amy Gastelum of Velma Jean Flowers on my garden dreams has been joyous and gratifying. Coming up with a garden plan or design can feel overwhelming because of the endless directions you can take. Amy, however, has a gift for distilling my (sometimes meandering!) ideas into a cohesive step-by-step plan within my budget. Even though our consultation was done remotely, because of Amy's care, communication, and thorough research of my space, I often felt her encouraging and fun presence while implementing the plan she helped me create. Working with Amy has given me the confidence and knowledge that will serve me and my garden for years to come. I cannot think of a better gift to yourself or a loved one than booking a consultation with Velma Jean Flowers!

    - Natalie P.

  • Amy is exactly the guide we needed to get our front garden back in shape after a plumbing emergency dug it all up (and get rid of some invasive plants installed previously). Though our family loves plants, we are not gardeners. We needed advice about native plants (or cultivars) that would look after themselves, bring beauty and interest in all seasons, and not break the bank. This was harder to find than we thought! Amy used our time efficiently to understand our needs/wants, gave us a full vision board with some options so we could make our plant picks, delivered the plants in great shape, and made sure we were ready to install them and water them before she placed the order (so we didn't lose any to our own incompetence). All our plants survived a hot and dry late summer/fall, and they're already showing some beautiful flowers and color changes! Having researched and gotten quotes from other companies, Amy's combination of services is unique. We'd recommend her to anyone looking to have a garden or yard that feels like home.

    - Anjuli S.

  • Amy is so friendly and fun and knowledgeable, and the thing I love about her business model is that she's willing to scale up or down according to your experience level and preferences. She'll do everything from design/consultation only to planting alongside you. She's also great about following up on projects (literally, she drives by our house and texts me updates about how my little sedges and spiderwort are doing :). She's basically the dreamy gardener BFF you never had.

    - Mary Kate V.

  • It's been a joy to work with Amy to revamp our landscape. She's very creative and thoughtful in her approach to projects, and her passion for gardening is contagious! From going on field trips to Newfields for inspiration, providing detailed pitch decks of plans, and technical assistance when needed, Amy will be your partner all the way. We loved how she incorporated native plants and flowers into the plans she made for us, and we can't wait until spring!

    - Susan P.

  • We are so grateful for Amy and her work on our front garden! We've been stumped for many years on what to put in this space, wanting it to be full of native plants while also bringing color in the shade. Once Amy got her ideas on this space, it took no time to come up with a plan that looked gorgeous and fit our budget. She was great to work with - always kind and supportive, very easy to work with, made sure she set us up for success at every turn, and she clearly knows her plants! Amy's process was not only very low stress, but so fun! We cannot wait to see our front garden in the spring when it wakes up! We highly recommend Amy - she's great with people AND plants, the best combo we could've asked for!

    - Katie G.

  • Wildflower Install from Seed

  • Colorful, Full Shade Garden Plan (and 98% Native!)

  • A Hand Drawn Planting Plan

  • Mood Board For Shady Front Garden