The Garden Angels Landscape Design & Consulting:
we know how to bring the right people together
Elizabeth Powers
Principal DESIGNER
As the driving force behind The Garden Angels, founding Principal Elizabeth Powers has turned a lifelong passion for nature and creativity into one of the Willamette Valley’s most successful and innovative landscape design & consulting firms. Inspired by the classic gardens in Europe, the Mediterranean, and the temperate lushness of Oregon’s natural environment, Elizabeth’s body of work is enunciated by an exacting attention to detail. Like a great piece of music, her gardens emote curiosity, harmony, and the playful stuff of memories. Each place is an opus in rhythm, dynamic range, percussion, intonation, and color highlights; groundwork of our daily lives. As they say, “Life began in a garden” and, like a great conductor, Powers devotes every effort to the art & ensemble of garden making.
Powers brings creative and technical skills to the drawing table: an artist from childhood with undergraduate work in music performance, she leveraged her resourceful nature in the study of landscape design at the University of Oregon. Elizabeth launched her design practice, The Garden Angels, in 1994.
As a technician, Powers is a specialist in sustainable landscape applications, grading & drainage, ornamental & native plant applications, and riparian & natural area restoration. Applying her background in cultural landscape history, her designs engage old-world landscape gardening methods, in the effort to reduce fossil fuel use and dependency upon landscape contracting. She is keenly concerned with creating human connection and stewardship with the land, down to the smallest of suburban footprints. Powers has been instrumental in the establishment and development of the Lord & Schryver Conservancy, a local cultural historic preservation and cultural organization, with her love of history, local vernacular and garden architecture.
Powers sums it up:
“Today, new climate realities are steering all of our design products. I’m hopeful that our grounded designs help cultivate a healthier future for us and Earth. Watch for dramatic changes to our signature elements, as we develop beautiful new applications which push the envelope on the conventional model of residential landscaping.”
Elizabeth is an educator and enjoys opportunities to lecture on a variety of garden and sustainability topics. She has been active as a volunteer in the Willamette Valley, working to preserve and restore historically significant gardens, natural areas, and cultural spaces. She recently retired from Chemeketa Community College, where she served for over 2 decades as adjunct professor, sharing her knowledge with the next generation of landscape designers, horticulturists, contractors and business professionals. She continues to guide The Garden Angels, changing our local environs and outdoor spaces, one garden at a time.
Photo at left taken at the COVID-19 Memorial Garden at Geer Park in Salem, Oregon. Oh, and she still likes to play the piano.
- 2023 Winner - Women in the Green Industry Award
- Landscape Construction Professional (LCP)
- Member - National Association of Landscape Professionals
- Oregon Landscape Contractors Association
- Co-Founder - The Lord & Schryver Conservancy
- Licensed, Bonded, Insured - Constructon Project Manager
Teniah Miller
Production Assistant - Landscape Designer
This talented and creative Angel on Earth comes to The Garden Angels with accomplished multi-disciplined bona fides for our design production department. Keen to flesh out her natural aptitude for garden making, Teniah is eager to apply her strong background in science and art in all facets of landscape planning. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Anthropology from The University of California, Berkeley, as well as other undergraduate degrees in Natural Sciences, Art History, and Fashion Design.
Before flying to us, Teniah held positions at several science museums, including The Sierra College Natural History Museum, where she was responsible for developing educational materials and organizing numerous events. She has the chops to help us meliorate projects in production, changing the world one garden at a time! Her varied interests constitute an organic conversation between science and art—perfect grist for our design philosophy, in developing forward-thinking planning products for Earth-friendly outdoor spaces. Teniah’s well-grounded academic background is punctuated with high scale artistic vision and sincere appreciation for the natural systems of the Earth —a perfect blend of interests and talents for our visionary team at The Garden Angels! She’s flying high into the clouds with us, creating Heavenly Gardens on Earth – surely next in YOUR garden!
Andrew Walker
pRODUCTION mANAGER - Lead Designer
Bio-Ecological Systems Engineering & 3D Products development.
Andrew Walker is an Oregon transplant, originally from the foothills of Northern California, working as The Garden Angels’ 3D production specialist. He has received two Bachelor’s Degrees in both Psychology and Ecological Engineering from OSU and has interests in philosophy, cognitive science, and green architecture. Previously, Andrew worked at the OPEnS environmental sensing laboratory on the OSU campus, and also spent many years as a barista where he developed a passion for coffee and conversation.
It is Andrew’s hope that he may further develop his environmental design skills from his talented and passionate team at The Garden Angels. Andrew would like to return to school one day to pursue either Controlled Environmental Systems or Green Architecture so that he may create sustainable housing and production systems. He shares the belief that the most awe inspiring and efficient designs can be achieved with proper integration of both human and ecological systems.
Tunda Thomas
Accounting Angel
It’s Heavenly having Tunda Thomas on our Team! She earned her Accounting Degree at University of Anchorage Alaska, and has been working in the accounting field for over 30 years. She is shy about her tremendous skills, but brings great experience to the table for our small firm. She has worked in high-level accounting for the silicon manufacturing, commercial print, precision machining, and the construction industries.
She works with us part time and keeps track of all the numbers and reports.
We don’t fly without her!
Heaven & Earth Landscape Construction
a division of The Garden Angels
The Garden Angels are very happy to introduce our most hard-working souls yet! We’ve dusted off our construction license (LCB 7243 retired, now issued as LCB 100330.) This new division specializies in “the smaller” projects for our select loyal clientele. True guardians of The Garden Angels’ design intentions, our trusty installation team is ready to build! Our team is adroitly led by our construction manager, Mr. Martinez, who leads our team with over 20 years in landscape construction and technical work. Whether it’s building a custom garden trellis or pergola, a masonry stone patio, gravel pathway, concrete retaining wall, or a fresh new enhancement planting–our installation team is ready to book projects for our design clients. Always thinking about maximum livability and lowest impact on the environment, these Angels are keen to install our garden designs with the greatest of care, for the best value and materials possible.
So, look for our newest Angels flying in the field --- and on the ground!
Our landscape construction work is a bit of Heaven & Earth!
Aida Evans
Design Intern
We Angels are blessed with amazing spirit! So true as is embodied by our summer intern, Aida. Matriculating at Northeastern University for her BS in Landscape Architecture and Environmental Science, her interest in responsible landscape applications, permaculture, clean water, renewable resources and climate-ready plantings are proving to be a great contribution in our sustainable landscape design products. She flies well at the computer, and in your garden! We hope you have a chance to meet her when she flies in for the summer!