Ecological landscapes designed, installed and cared for over time
Most gardens don’t struggle because they were designed poorly. They struggle because no one stayed.
Grounded designs and installs ecological gardens and shorelines using native plants suited to your specific site.
But ecological landscapes need time to establish. Without ongoing care, even good installations fail. We stay involved — watching for problems early, adjusting as conditions change, and making sure your landscape actually works.
We serve the Haliburton Highlands and surrounding areas.
Gardening for life
Our tagline holds two meanings.
Gardening that gives you life. Not a weekend burden, not a battle with the land. Gardening that feels like a relationship rather than a chore — because the work comes from care, not control.
Gardening for all of life. Not just your view from the dock. Gardening for the pollinators, the birds, the soil, the water — the whole web of life your property is part of. When you garden with the land instead of against it, you get both: a landscape that’s easier to live with and one that supports life beyond your own.
Get a free guide to natural gardens and shorelines
Fill out the form to get a free guide to creating natural gardens and shorelines in Haliburton County and surrounding areas, plus Grounded's popular newsletter.
"Great job on your newsletter! Well researched, fact based recommendations with excellent resources. Looking forward to more!" - Rita D.
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How Grounded works
Every landscape is already doing something. The soil, the light, the water — they have a direction. Design works with that direction, not against it.
Grounded begins there: choosing native plants that suit the site’s conditions and arranging them in dense, layered communities that can find their own balance.
Then comes the longer work. Returning season after season. Watching how the planting responds. Making adjustments as the land asks for them. Over time, becoming familiar enough with the site to know when to act and when to leave things alone.
That familiarity is what separates stewardship from service. It’s not a generic visit from a generic crew. It’s the same person reading the same landscape, season after season, building an understanding that makes every decision better than the last.
If you see land this way but can’t be there month after month and season after season — Grounded is.
Who's looking after your landscape
A landscape that’s watched closely, year after year, develops differently than one left to chance.
Knowledge of the site builds. Small interventions compound. The person who returns season after season notices things a first-time visitor never would — a plant that’s slowly declining, a pattern in where deer browse, the way water moves differently after a wet spring.
That accumulated understanding is what allows stewardship to deepen year after year. Decisions aren’t made from guesswork or general advice, but from direct experience with your land.
Grounded stays. That’s what you’re hiring.
Who you'll be working with
My name is Simon Payn.
I take on a small number of properties so I can get to know each one well. The same person who helps design your landscape is the person who returns to garden it, season after season.
I work with native plants because they make sense — ecologically, practically, and aesthetically. I’m interested in how plants behave in real conditions, how they interact over time, and what they’re telling you about the site.
That understanding builds over time. It’s what allows landscapes to improve rather than decline.
Education
University of Guelph: Naturalizing and Restoring Landscapes; Plant Identification
New Directions in American Landscapes: Ecology-based Landscape Practice
Kelly D Norris: New Naturalism Academy
Garden Masterclass: Naturalistic Planting Course with Noel Kingsbury, Nigel Dunnett and Cassian Schmidt.
The Living Landscape Guarantee
If we design and take care of your landscape, it will ask less of you as it establishes—and show more life over time.
If that’s not happening, that’s on us, and we stay with it until it is.
Examples of Grounded's Work
What Clients Say
"We get lots of compliments on our new native plant garden."
Leanne Tucker, Drag Lake
"We are very pleased with our native plant garden, and it continues to give us much pleasure. During this project, we appreciated how Simon always met his commitments to us; particularly with respect to design, budget, and installation. He always took the time to listen to our needs; responded promptly to any inquiries; and has made several follow-up visits after the garden was installed. Thank you, Simon, for a great experience and a wonderful new garden."
Scott and Marian Anderson, Kennisis Lake
Get in touch
If you'd like to talk about Grounded gardens, please contact Simon Payn.
705-854-0663
Grounded
123 Maple Ave.
Box 261,
Haliburton, ONÂ K0M 1S0
Get a free guide to natural gardens and shorelines
Fill out the form to get a free guide to creating natural gardens in Haliburton County and surrounding areas, plus Grounded's popular newsletter.
"Great job on your newsletter! Well researched, fact based recommendations with excellent resources. Looking forward to more!" - Rita D.