BYRON CENTER, MI – After more than 25 years of bringing nature indoors, Scott and Jody DeVecht decided it was time to change their company’s name to reflect their growth.
Foliage Design Systems of West Michigan is changing its name to Integrated Plantscapes.
The new name reflects the 26-year-old company’s expansion in the design of large gardens and water features for corporate settings and hospitals throughout West Michigan.
Some of their prize-winning installations include the Meijer Heart Center and the Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion at Spectrum Health’s downtown campus and Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo.
“Fifty percent of our work is in hospitals because doctors are now recognizing the need for holistic healing,” said Jody DeVecht.
“Providing greenery in what can be a stressful place is nurturing. Whether it is the fresh scent of the plants or the sound of running water, our plantscapes are an oasis in a hospital. It gives patients and visitors a place to escape,” she said.
“Because of this growth, we are now integrating landscape architects and designers into our plantscape creation process,” she said. “This ensures that the design fits the building and the purpose of the space.”
That can mean working with an architect as much as three years before groundbreaking to ensure the building can house and support the plant life and water features the DeVechts will install near the end of construction and maintain long after the project is complete.
“For example, window washers can be our friends or our foe,” she said. “If it’s not taken care of in the planning stages, it can be a nightmare.”
“We are very integrated with the design end of the project as well as the client end,” said Scott DeVecht. “After the designers and architects go home, we’re there to keep that garden looking beautiful.”
Over the years, Integrated Plantscapes has received national recognition for its design work, including 13 “Best Project Awards” from the former “Interiorscape” magazine.
Their big breakthrough came in the mid-1990s, said Jody DeVecht. “We installed the Frederick Meijer Gardens when it opened. It put on the map very quickly. That got us into the larger arena of projects.”
While Meijer Gardens has its own horticultural staff and an army of volunteers, they are still brought back to help out on special installations.
For most of their corporate and hospital installations, Integrated Plantscapes has staff of 11 that makes regular visits to make certain the plants are well-tended, she said.
“On average, the typical site gets taken care of once a week. On someplace like the Lemmen Holton Building, we’re there every day. Some properties are set for us to be there every 10 days.”
E-mail Jim Harger: jharger@mlive.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/JHHarger
Speak Your Mind