Lowney’s Landscaping Door County

Formerly called Lowney’s Lakeshores and based out of a location just north of Sturgeon Bay, Lowney’s Landscaping Door County operates out of our main office north of Appleton with complete landscaping services including waterfront landscaping overhauls, outdoor kitchen installations, site development and design, hardscape installation (stone, mulch, etc.) and more.

Lowney’s has a history of successful hardscaping installaitons in Sturgeon Bay and southern parts of Door County and has improved dozens of waterfront properties over the years, including homes, second homes, and bars/restaurants. Lowney’s offers the same services in the area of hardscaping in Door County that it does throughout the Fox Valley:

• Residential and Commercial
• Paver Driveways, Patios & Walkways
• Fireplaces, Firepits, Firetables
• Retaining/Terracing/Outcropping
• Water Features & Drainage Solutions
• Low-Voltage Lighting
• Decks/Railing/Underdecking
• Privacy Walls & Plantings
• Custom-Designed 2D & 3D Renderings

Lowney’s experienced crews know how to handle the unique properties in Door County, with their steep waterfront inclines, strong winds, and rapidly changing weather conditions.

Landscaping on a Bed of Rock

Landscaping in Door County is challenging for a number of reasons. Almost no properties have a decent amount of topsoil, which forces decisions about what to plant and also impacts the ability to create posts for decking and similar outdoor structures.

“You typically have inches of topsoil and then it turns to pure rock,” said Chris Van Groll, longtime hardscapes manager at Lowney’s who has managed dozens of Door County projects. “If you want a regular landscape like you’d have down in the Valley, it will mean trucking in a lot of soil.”

That is possible and Lowney’s has done that many times, but in situations like this, you need to make sure to use native perennials, shrubs, and trees because they have proven they can grow there. “A lot of people just go with more of a low-maintenance landscape where there aren’t as many plantings, and lawns sometimes turn into rock gardens,” Van Groll said. “It is a native, traditional landscape up there. Many of the varieties we’d choose in the Valley wouldn’t survive in Door County.”

Sometimes there are no plants involved at all. “We gave it a nickname, we call it the Door County Maintenance Strip,” Van Groll said. “It’s basically multi-size rocks around the house with no plants.”

Decks, pergolas, gazebos and similar structures should be no-maintenance because of the moisture, meaning no real wood, just maintenance-free outdoor furniture like LuxCraft and decks/pergolas like Trex and TimberTech.

Van Groll also stressed that if you want to install your own deck (or something similar), you’ll need to understand that drilling the holes for the posts isn’t easy if you don’t have the experience or the machinery because of the aforementioned stones. “We end up using more Diamond Pier Foundations than anything else because you can’t drill holes in most spots,” he said. “A lot of the time, this would be pretty much impossible for somebody to do on their own.”

The next challenge: There aren’t many stores north of Sturgeon Bay so you may need to bring in building materials from Green Bay or further south. So if you are going to need stone and wood and other materials, “You may wind up making a million trips,” Van Groll said. “There’s a hardware store in every town, but there’s no hardware in them, there are T-shirts and coffee.”

One cool thing that Lowney’s is pretty good at – using the existing stones to create a nice border wall that is both functional and attractive. “We actually use some of the native materials, we’ll clean up the rocks and make that a retaining wall versus bringing in rock to build it,” Van Groll said. “We’ve done some pretty cool projects where we just expose the native stone and use that.”

There are different seasons in Door County depending on which side you’re on. The West side has nicer winters because its water freezes so it’s more calm, but then after ice-out, the West side is windy much of the summer before turning nicer in the fall. Lowney’s prefers to work in Door County in the fall, after the tourists have left and when the weather is typically gorgeous. Some years, landscaping can be done right into December because the water carries its warmth. “It can be 10 degrees warmer there,” than in the Valley, Van Groll said.

Turf Management, Pest & Mosquito Control 

Lowney’s also provides the following services in Door County:

• Turf Fertilization/Weed Control
• Mosquito Spraying
• Structural Spraying
• Bait Box Pest Control
• Core Aeration/Overseeding
• Invasive Spraying
• Gravel Spraying

Door County Decks, Outdoor Lighting, Sound & More

Lowney’s has full-time carpenters carpenters on-staff to help create custom decks, pergolas, or gazebos for your unique situation. We also have low-voltage lighting solutions and partner with the leaders in outdoor sound if you want to improve that area of your outdoors.

Lowney’s has an exclusive relationship with LuxCraft outdoor furniture, which is the top-of-the line for endurance, quality, and looks. We also offer Blaze Grills and our full-time installation crews will get them installed in the best way possible with the best grill surrounds you can buy or build.

The Challenges of Sloping Yards Near Water

One of the biggest challenges for waterfront properties is dealing with the slope leading down to the water’s edge. Unlike a flat yard, a slope requires careful consideration of erosion, drainage, and plant selection to avoid future problems. Poorly managed slopes can cause soil erosion, leading to bare patches, muddy runoff, and even structural issues for patios or retaining walls. 

If the slope isn’t properly stabilized, you might also experience shifting soil, which can compromise walkways, retaining walls, or any hardscaping features like firepits or patios. A landscape professional understands how to stabilize these slopes using retaining walls, ground cover plants, or strategically placed terraces to slow water movement and prevent erosion. 

If your property is along the water, learn more about waterfront landscaping management in this article from our website.

Why This Work Requires Expertise

Waterfront landscaping with a sloped yard is not a simple DIY task. While a homeowner might be comfortable planting a flower bed or laying sod on flat land, working on a slope requires specialized knowledge. A professional landscaper knows how to assess the land’s natural incline and design features that work with the slope, not against it. 

This can include:

Choosing the right plants: Certain plants are better suited for sloped areas because of their deep roots, which help hold soil in place.  

Creating terraces or retaining walls: These features can divide a steep slope into manageable sections, preventing erosion and providing level areas for patios or seating.  

Installing proper drainage systems: Professionals understand how to direct water runoff safely, preventing it from pooling in unwanted areas or damaging plants and structures.

Attempting these solutions yourself without experience can result in uneven terraces, improper drainage, or walls that fail after the first heavy rainfall.

Call Lowney’s Landscaping for your landscaping Door County project today!