Edge of the Wild’s Story
Edge of the Wild was created by Patty O'Neill in the Spring of 2021 to fill a niche for ecologically sensitive landscape maintenance and design--In other words, the kind of land care that notices the unique qualities and communities in a given landscape, and guides its development to allow a more harmonic balance that meets clients' needs while supporting a thriving local ecosystem. Maintenance is design!
Leaders of the native and naturalistic landscaping movement agree there is a need for landscape maintenance professionals with more diverse plant knowledge and a skillset that blends knowledge of horticulture and ecology. By the same thinking, designs benefit from diverse input and interdisciplinary collaboration across levels of authority and diversity of skillsets. The dream is for Edge of the Wild to embody this ethic more fully as it matures and serve as a community resource to achieve more beautifully wild landscapes.
I work as a single-member LLC at the moment, focusing on ecological land management and design, and subcontract with other professionals for adjacent services. Please contact me if you might like to consider collaborating on a project!
Patty O’Neill
Owner/ Ecological Landscaper & Designer
I grew up savoring the nature left around the edges of northern Virginia's extenive suburban sprawl, and was inspired by it to seek out the meaning of sustainable development and ecological design. My experiences as an experimental home gardener for wildlife, native plant nursery volunteer, VA Master Naturalist, citizen scientist and forester, garden center associate and design assistant, Conway School student, fine gardener/arboriculture/masonry apprentice, survey tech and plant specialist for a design firm, and commercial landscaper/weeder have led me to want to provide and promote ecologically sensitive and relevant landscape maintenance for everyone, everywhere.
I'm especially interested softening the edge of the landscapes bordering development of all kinds to bring people closer to nature in their daily lives and to witness more closely the extraordinary way life expresses itself all around us when we lay off a bit. These landscapes are alluring, engaging, can meaningfully support local ecosystems, and help us adapt to climate change. I'm excited to see the enthusiasm for thoughtful native landscaping as a component of ecological design grow in our collective consciousness year after year!