formecology, llc

09/03/2026

09/02/2026

🍂 Did you miss our fall newsletter?

Catch up on the latest from formecology LLC, including ideas for creating a more sustainable landscape. Check it out here: 👉

https://mailchi.mp/a7e69be30434/greetings-from-formecology-llc-fall-news-and-tips-6430964

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https://mailchi.mp/be0a085e54df/formecology-llc-sustainable-landscaping-newsletter

(Don't worry - we only send 4 newsletters a year, so we won't be spamming your inbox 😊)

09/01/2026

Updated project photos - Beautiful!!

08/26/2026

Creating a New Outdoor Space in Madison

For the past several weeks—and for several more to come—we’ve been working with a long-time client in Madison, Wisconsin, creating a new outdoor space for gathering and entertaining.

Natural stone retaining walls, stone steps, and a future local natural flagstone patio will form the backbone of the space.

One of the most interesting aspects of this project is the combination of new natural stone with existing stone found on the property. Reusing some of the original stone gives the retaining walls a unique, dappled character and connects the landscape’s past with its new design.

The garden steps are made from large, naturally irregular stone outcrops, approximately 6–8 inches thick. Their rough edges and natural appearance blend into the landscape, while relatively flat tops and bottoms provide comfortable footing. Our clients wanted something simple and natural, and we think they accomplish that beautifully.

Natural stone can cost more than manufactured alternatives because every stone is unique. Building with it takes experience, patience, and a good eye for how the pieces come together. The result is an artful, timeless feature designed to last for decades.

Once the walls and steps are complete, the next phase will be installation of the flagstone patio.

At formecology LLC, we stand behind our hardscape work with a five-year warranty—well above the industry average. We build these projects to last.

Kudos to our field staff for the craftsmanship and artistry they’re bringing to this project. Working with natural stone is part construction, part problem-solving, and part art.

08/17/2026

Happy ½ birthday to our crew leaders, Tim (February 16) and Rob (February 17)! 🎉 Since their birthdays fall in the middle of winter when our crew is off, we’re celebrating them today instead!

We’re lucky to have these two leading the crew! Happy half birthday, guys!

08/12/2026

Summer break went by way too fast!

Today is the last day of work for Connor and Aaron, as they head back to high school in less than 2 weeks.

We’ve loved having them on the team these past few months. They worked hard, learned a lot, and brought some great energy to the crew.

Enjoy these last couple weeks, and good luck with the school year! We’ll see you next summer!

08/10/2026

Solarizing more lawn - this time at the Evansville School Forest!

We reused all our old pins (and some pieces of old plastic), and with 13 volunteers, we got it done in just a few hours!

The bed edger was nice because it created a sturdy edge for us and allowed us places to pin the edges of the plastic.

We know we’re a little late getting this plastic down, but we’ll take what we can get this year (for sun and heat) and leave this plastic on until next spring. We’ll also get some solarization happening in May and June.

By June 15th, we’ll peel up the plastic. We may burn the dead lawn off, but otherwise, we’ll scarify the area with hard rakes, get off some of the extra dead biomass, and then sow native grasses and wildflowers and straw the area.

After the seed has been installed, Mother Nature will essentially water it for us. The straw cover will help hold the seed in place, keep moisture in the soil, and keep birds from the seed. We’ll also use a cover crop of oats, which will quickly germinate, help hold soils down, keep w**ds at bay, and allow the native seedlings to emerge up through the dappled bed of oat grass.

This approach is non-chemical. Solarization uses the sun’s rays and heat to kill the lawn and lawn seeds for us. And as long as we don’t till the soil once the lawn is dead (just lightly scarify), we won’t bring w**d seeds up from lower in the soil.

So it’s sort of no-till seeding, in that we don’t want to loosen the soil any more than needed. Native seed only needs the top ¼” of soil to be loose in order for it to germinate. Not like lawn seed at all!

Any questions, don’t hesitate to ask Butch Beedle or John Gishnock ([email protected]).

And thanks to all the awesome volunteers who came out on their Saturday morning to help make this project go so well and so smoothly. We couldn’t have done it without each and every one of you.

There’s truly a great spirit of volunteerism in our Evansville community!

08/04/2026

Happy 1/2 birthday to our crew member Isiah!

His birthday is February 7, during our off-season, but that's no reason to miss celebrating!

Enjoy your day Isiah Radloff and thanks for being part of the formecology team!

07/30/2026

🍂 Is fall a good time for a landscape project?

Absolutely! Read our latest blog to learn why fall is an excellent time for many landscape improvements - and why now is the perfect time to start planning.

Learn why fall is one of the best times for landscape projects, including patios, native plantings, drainage improvements, and landscape renovations.