SILEX designs the structure and systems of outdoor spaces: the flow of water, the movement of people, the succession of plants. The goal is ecological abundance that's inevitable and human belonging that's effortless. We don't decorate with plants; we design plant communities and the conditions in which they thrive. The name comes from silex, the flint of the first tools and the paving stone of Roman roads: a material of precision and permanence, which is what we aim to bring to every project.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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There are two numbers: our design fee, and the construction cost you pay the contractor. The design fee's job is to make sure the construction dollars are spent well. The process works best when you bring a real budget to design against; as a benchmark, homeowners commonly invest 10–15% of their home's value in the landscape. For a sense of scale: on a $120,000 construction project, full landscape design typically runs $10–12,000. And unlike most renovations, a landscape is at its worst on day one- it appreciates from there.
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Absolutely! It's the heart of the practice. But because we design holistically, we don't offer standalone planting plans. In the high desert, planting is inseparable from water, and water means grading and irrigation- designed as one system with the plants they support.
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Only if the structure is missing. Clear geometry, strong hardscape lines, and deliberate framing let planting move and evolve without reading as neglect. Wild enough to support life; composed enough to sit alongside good architecture.
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No- we're designers, and that separation protects you. We produce construction documents contractors can price and build accurately, help you engage the right builder, and stay involved through construction to protect the design intent.
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Real ones. Stone that's stone, wood that's wood, steel that's allowed to rust. We don't spec imitations: stamped concrete, faux-stone pavers, plastic wood- because imitations degrade while honest materials weather. When budget calls for humble materials, we use them frankly rather than in costume. We avoid plastic and landscape fabric, fiddly irrigation tubing that clogs and breaks, and over-use of gravel. We repurpose from the site when we can and wherever possible we source close to home.
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Design is why we do what we do. Why would we outsource that? It is both our responsibility and our privilege to design your project ourselves.
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We're based in Albuquerque and work throughout New Mexico- residential gardens, institutional and public landscapes, and collaborations with architects and agencies.
Abigail Albright, PLA, ASLA
Principal Landscape Architect + Founder
Abby Albright is a licensed landscape architect and the founder of Silex Studio. She earned her Master of Landscape Architecture at the University of New Mexico and spent her early career on large public projects: parks, open spaces, campuses, and streetscapes. Her background in permaculture and productive gardening shapes her approach. She designs landscapes that are productive as well as beautiful, capable of growing food, managing water, and supporting habitat. She also pays close attention to the part of the job that's easy to overlook: making sure a design gets built the way it was drawn. She uses detailed 3D models to keep clients, architects, engineers, and contractors on the same page. She's from Albuquerque and isn't shy about how much she loves it here.
