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PAPERCITY ADVERTORIAL I f you visited the 2021 Kips Bay Decorator Show House Dallas, the award-winning work of From the Ground Up was the first thing you saw: The front entry garden and courtyard that the firm designed set the stage for the home tour. Creativity, turnkey service, and elegant garden compositions are hallmarks of this fan-favorite firm, thanks to owners Dan Houchard and Ryan Burkhart. Each landscape interpretation is designed to enhance both a home's architecture and its setting, from classic to contemporary. Dan Houchard shares his creative philosophy and how his firm approaches design — as the name says — from the ground up. Design background. Dan Houchard: When I was growing up, I watched my parents plan our home's outdoor areas and landscape designs. When I was a teenager, I took on the undeveloped areas as my own and proposed ideas, then loaded up my Mustang with a variety of plants and got to work. I spent my summers in college redesigning family friends' spaces and installing the projects myself or interning with various landscape-design firms. Landscape design was a natural fit for me when I was at Texas A&M — and I've never looked back. How From the Ground Up is different from other landscape design firms. DH: When we're designing a garden, we truly approach the project as if it were our own home, with a deep level of personal ownership — except that we're channeling our clients' unique desires for the aesthetics and functionality. The level of passion we bring to each project, from planning to final installation and maintenance, fuels an in-depth investment and ensures outcomes that encompass both high-level vision and GETTING toKNOW DAN HOUCHARD AND RYAN BURKHART FROM THE GROUND UP LANDSCAPE 180