Sun and Soil are a Meanjin/Brisbane based landscape design consultancy focused on organic and permaculture approaches to growing. We have helped hundreds of clients fall back in love with home gardening through simple, clever design backed by solid local experience in SEQ’s subtropical climate.
Drawing on extensive experience in permaculture design, organic gardening, landscaping and civil engineering, Sun and Soil is able to take a wider view and ensure the systems they design work with nature, not against it.
We can work with you to create a beautiful and functional garden design that fits your needs and nurtures both the soil and the local wildlife. Whether you have a small suburban courtyard, a sprawling acreage, a cafe, a school or a community garden, we can help.
“We used sun and soil a few years ago when we built our house. They came out to have a look and designed a great concept with our specific house and needs in mind. They suggested specific plants and came up with a gorgeous garden layout. Almost 3 years later the veggie garden is thriving and it’s one of our favourite places to be!”
“Sun and Soil provided a top quality service for a very affordable price! They worked within our budget, and led a very fun working bee where we ripped up lawn, planted fruit trees and dug swales all in a very productive morning. I had some gardening experience but was very stuck on where to plant trees and how to layout a food forest - Sun and Soil were very encouraging and the results have been amazing.”
“We engaged Sun and Soil for a consult and concept plan while we were building our house on our challenging acre property. We were very impressed with their services. They travelled to our site and spent the time with us to understand our needs, which we didn’t have a very clear idea of ourselves! The concept plan was incredibly detailed and thorough, with some really great ideas. It’s clear they are very passionate about what they do and have the knowledge to support the passion. On top of this, their prices are very reasonable. I highly recommend their services!”
“New Farm State School P&C have worked with Sun and Soil over many years to design and develop a number of gardens on our campus, including an indigenous edibles garden that transformed a difficult slope, and a raised bed vegetable patch next to the tuck shop. We have loved working with this company, and in 2023 NFSS won the national Grow It Local award for the school garden category, “Growing the Future”. Sun and Soil have inspired our community gardens, bringing knowledge, expertise and joy to their design and realisation.”
“James came to our school and helped us design our permaculture garden. He was super-friendly, engaging, knowledgeable, and generous with his time. He came back for a follow-up session and really got us going in the right direction. Highly recommend!”
“We had a really excellent experience with Sun and Soil. We had a very degraded area of our garden that was shady and weedy with rocky, poor quality soil. We really didn’t know what to do with it but Sun and Soil provided a really excellent, creative and affordable design solution that we were able to implement ourselves and the space is transformed. They provided a hardscaping plan as well as a detailed planting plan that took into account the soil type, climate and sun exposure of our garden and all the plants are thriving. They were very collaborative in their approach and so we ended up with something that was exactly what we wanted. Can’t recommend these guys enough for helping you to create the garden you want!”
“I found James while searching for local permaculture consultants online, he came to our house and provided us with a long and detailed assessment of our property, we were able to chat and discuss our needs and future goals and developed a foundation of what we wanted to achieve. He was very generous with his time and knowledge and gave us plenty of ideas. We were very happy with the initial consultation so we decided to request a detailed plan which he provided to help guide us on our path forward. This included lengthy documents on plant references, DIY projects and a lengthy concept design report which we can use as a blueprint for our property. We have been very happy with the outcome where our ideas, his knowledge and suggestions are all on paper to guide us on our permaculture journey. James is passionate and knowledgeable in his craft and I would highly recommend Sun and Soil.”
“Recently had Sun and soil out to design a landscape design and plan for a food forest. We had a tricky area with shade and salt from the ocean to deal with. They came up with a detailed plan which will allow us to grow food all year round. Very happy with Sun and Soil and would recommend to anyone looking to get a food forest started.”
“Having known James as gardening consultant at our local primary school for at least two years I can highly recommend him and his company ‘Sun and Soil Organic Gardening’. He transformed our school grounds into a beautiful green space, full of healthy trees, plants and herbs. As part of the school’s garden programme, he taught the kids (as young as 8 years) the importance of growing a sustainable garden, how to make soil and mulch, what to feed the worms, how to plant seedlings, the importance of ‘companion planting’ (e.g. 3 sisters gardening), which season to plant what.. and so much more. As a parent helping out with James’ garden sessions, I learnt so much.
We had James over at our house to redo our (very sad looking) veggie patch. After some soil testing James brought along various seedlings which, after James educating us on various gardening techniques, we as a family planted. It was an incredibly fun morning getting our hands dirty. And a beautiful looking veggie patch as a result!”