Master Gardener, British Columbia> VanDusen Gardens | Bachelors in Environmental Design > UBC | Masters in Landscape Architecture > UBC
Landscape Architect Intern with the British Columbia Society of Landscape Architect [ BCSLA ]
Who we are
Meet our CEO and Lead Designer, Alina Kouneva Tremblay
Growing up in Varna, Bulgaria, food, family and nature comprised the fabric of my childhood. When we moved to Vancouver in 1991, that lush, fruit-picking, dirt-laden villa lifestyle quickly vanished. Small living quarters, asphalt and busy streets, lack of nature and trees became my norm. The difference was drastic, and the impact was real.
It wasn’t until my first visit back home, a few years later, at the age of 13, that I realized the critical and life-altering impact my environment had on me, my family and all the people around us.
The onset and urge to create natural environments became a passion and set afoot the next 13 years of architectural studies. With the foundation of environmental design, urban planning, architecture, and landscape architecture, Alina Gardens was born, and the quest to create landscape environments for wildlife ecosystems and families in the urban context was well on its way.
14 AMAZING years in business
Alina Gardens Inc. is a Landscape Design firm located within the unceded traditional territory of the N’Quatqua First Nations. Our world headquarters is located on 100 acres of mixed forest and diverse wildlife habitat, 6km Northeast of the N’Quatqua First Nations Reserve on the Southern mouth of Lake Anderson, British Columbia.
Since establishing our landscape design and project management services in April of 2011 we have been advocating for designed environments rooted in inclusive habitat for all creatures. Our expertise and focus is on restorative environmental significance, creating dynamic, functional and ecologically robust urban landscapes.
We specialize in Pacific Northwest native planting and on-site water management (rain water inclusive design) solutions to mitigate and minimize the impact of contaminated water runoff on our sensitive habitat.
While this establishes the foundation of our goals, our detail oriented designs create culturally, socially and visually beautiful landscapes. As a result, our clients have truly unique urban environments to gather, socialize and celebrate the unique and magnificent great outdoors in beautiful British Columbia.
services
-
Sometimes you just want to hear the assurance and guidance of a professional. We are here for you.
-
Our job is to listen and hear your needs, vision and commitments to your project. Together we will design an environment suited to your lifestyle while serving natural ecological systems and wildlife. The benefit is encouraging healthy outdoor activities for the modern citizen while providing valuable bird and pollinator habitat right at your door step. We know you care. We are specifically trained to guide you through this process to achieve this goal.
-
At Alina Gardens Inc. we take our time to ensure that you are satisfied and excited about your new garden design. As such, we understand the importance of having the final built product be as beautiful and satisfying as you could have imagined. That is why we have spent years carefully selecting the highest quality contractors in the industry to turn that vision into reality. We build and manage the team for your peace of mind.
-
“Our whole project was exactly on time and on budget as per the initial estimate. Actually it was under the budget and Alina purchased additional plants. The project took 6 weeks and it started with Alina advising all our neighbours about the work upcoming and pointing out which days will be loud. She connected with one of our neighbours and discussed a fence separating our properties. It was important to us that we maintain or improve our relationship with our neighbours and Alina made sure that this was the case. She is very skilled in communicating with people.” - Piotr (client)
Environmental Focus
We live in one of the most ecologically rich habitats on the planet. We are focused on restoring that habitat within the urban context.
Skilled Partners
We partner with consultants and contractors whom we have worked with for years. They are experts in their field with 20+ years of experience. We trust them implicitly with all of our projects and have spent numerous projects perfecting the art of teamwork, communication and trust.
WHY CHOOSE US?
Collaborative Approach
We are well-versed in the world of wildlife habitats, and every project is unique. We collaborate with you, our team of consultants and contractors, to create the best landscape for your project.
Integrated Design
The context from which we view every project is the land speaks first. We incorporate the knowledge we have amassed over the years as an informant, not the right or only approach. When we design we bring in our consultants and contractors to advise us and guide us and allow for an alternate perspective on the project at hand. This undoubtedly creates a stronger project, especially for those who get to build it.
“We hired Alina to design our backyard retreat and could not be happier with the result! Alina laid out a beautiful concept design, taking the time to listen to our wish list and by addressing all of our concerns. We can hardly wait for our garden to mature and see what comes over the seasons! We would recommend Alina to transform your space. She's very creative and a pleasure to work with.”
— Mad Moose productions inc.
What SOME MORE WONDERFUL People HAVE SaID …
“Alina transformed our front yard into a beautiful nature retreat. Not only are we enjoying it, but our resident frogs, birds, butterflies and bees are loving it too! Alina is enthusiastic, creative and knowledgeable. She and her staff are professional, friendly, hard working and a joy to collaborate with. We are very pleased with our beautiful new yard and would recommend Alina Gardens to anyone looking for an innovative and talented landscape designer who works with nature and who cares about the environment.”
— Patti Walker + Bob Page
“We had planned an extensive landscaping project to update and make-over the front and side yard of our residential property. This involved both hard-scaping, and varied requirements for soft-scaping and plantings. Alina was very prompt both in responding to our request, and in meeting to review the project. She was very knowledgeable in regard to various facets of the design and installation, and was able to answer all of our questions. In particular, she was very insightful into the types of plants that would do best for our project, with special attention to native plants and pollinator species, which we were quite keen on including. Having interviewed many landscape companies for this project, Alina Gardens was one of the few that stood out, and I would definitely recommend her to anyone looking for a project designer.”
— Jason
“Our journey to the most beautiful garden and front yard started over 2 years ago. We were completely unprepared. We had no idea what budget we should have. Our first design made for our budget was OK, it was functional. However we could not find any company who could build it within the budget. The closest quote was 50% over the budget. We were desperate. Through our friend we met Alina and she brought hope. Not only her estimate was the closest to our budget but she brought one thing which we didn’t have – beauty – to our front yard. Either she read our minds or we were aligned. Our front yard changed into a beautiful garden from beyond my dreams. We gave Alina only general directions: a path among trees, new driveway, all year round color and fragrance. She had a completely free hand in selecting plants and their organization. This is her top skill – creating garden and exposing beauty even in the most difficult terrain. She created for us a natural environment in harmony with west coast nature which attracts birds, butterflies and bees. Whole project was exactly on time and on budget as initial estimate predicted. Actually it was under the budget and Alina purchased additional plants. It took 6 weeks and started with Alina advising all our neighbours about work and pointing out which days will be loud. She connected with one of our neighbours and discussed a fence separating our properties. It was important to us that we maintain or improve our relationship with neighbours and Alina made sure that this was the case. She is very skilled in communicating with people. Our property is on the hill. We have now a replaced granite retaining wall, new driveway, new live hedge fence, new stone porch and a beautiful path between trees leading to it. We've also got new lights and irrigation. All plants and trees are new. She took care of our privacy, privacy of our neighbours and added beauty to our place. I can’t wait to see how the garden will look in the spring. Overall we are very happy and there is no week when someone living on our street doesn’t stop me to congratulate me having a beautiful garden.”
— Piotr Tymkow
Alina Gardens ! What a wonderful experience. The planning and professionalism let you know immediately that you are in great and talented hands. The end result was just spectacular. Brilliant planning and execution. Customer service is above and beyond.. just great. I am thrilled with the results . Very happy.. I give Alina and her team my highest recommendation.
— Dawn Gray
“When I purchased my home last year I was in love with the house but horrified by the garden. It was just concrete, grass and cedar hedges. The back deck and fencing was rotten too. I did not know where to begin, but I did know what I wanted. When I contacted Alina we hit it off right away. We were both passionate about creating a bee friendly garden full of flowers, stepping stones and a small stream-like water feature. We both appreciated the need to use natural materials and create flow - all the way around the house. One of my concerns was that there were so many steps required to get from what I had - to what I wanted. Concrete, deck, fence and hedge removal, stone wall and stair repairs, new irrigation, lighting, carpentry for fence and deck, stone footpath installation, flowers, trees, garden beds and lawn replacement. It overwhelmed me but Alina was not daunted at all! She has all her own trades for each step of the process and managed to have them work around each other to do the work seamlessly. I left town to visit my daughter for a few weeks to get away from the stress of it all, and left everything in her hands. Alina's communication with me throughout the process was fantastic. I always knew what was happening from day to day and any changes were communicated right away with lots of options provided. When I look at my garden today I am absolutely blown away by how beautiful it is. It will only get more and more lovely as the years go by as everything grows up and fills in. The beauty of the garden is now a match for the beauty of the house and I know with certainty that my property value increased considerably as a result of the work that was done. I recommend Alina to everyone who asks, and I am getting asked a lot because everyone loves my garden!”
— Kim Sander
Contact us
Interested in working together? Fill out some info and we will be in touch shortly. We can’t wait to hear from you!