Look deep into nature,
and then you will understand everything better.
Albert Einstein
What's it all about?
I love the outdoors! I believe the greatest place anybody can ever be is outdoors. To step outside, engage your senses, tune in to your surroundings, and truly engage with your environment and nature is one of the greatest gifts we have! It is simple, fascinating, invigorating, accessible, and awesome!
For property owners, to enjoy the benefits of the outdoors is to build properties of value. Every property, along with its natural and built-in features has perceived market value, ecological, social, community, emotional, and economic value. Property owners have certain goals for their landscape: to increase, maintain, and balance those values and benefits. Understanding site conditions and landscape features is the first step in moving closer to meeting those goals and reaping the rewards of a healthy, safe, functional landscape.
As a landscape consultant, my most important roles are as an educator and advisor. I identify and interpret your landscape features and conditions, and report on these items. I merge findings from your property investigation together with best practices - and your landscape needs and wants - to recommend sensible, successful grounds decisions.
I love studying properties with clients: decoding landscape mysteries, highlighting strengths, solving problems, getting creative, and sharing my knowledge and expertise!
Who is Steven Johnson?
I am passionate about great landscapes! An interest in nature and ecology heightened my sense of awareness and appreciation for the outdoors early on. A Morris County, NJ native, I built and operated a landscape maintenance and construction company here for 25 years. Planting and building landscapes professionally was a natural way to engage with the outdoors and utilize developing skills. Along the way, I learned a lot about what makes built landscapes successful, and why landscapes fail when things go wrong.
When the idea was born for The Grade Outdoors, it was a natural way to combine my knowledge base and diagnostic, problem solving skill set. Helping clients understand how their landscapes function and how to optimize value is what I do best, while also promoting responsible, environmentally conscious property ownership.
I enjoy hiking, fixing things, and fresh air! A variety of interests keeps me occupied outside of work, and I enjoy music, spending time with my wife and two daughters, outdoor adventures and traveling to new places. A mention of 80s pop culture, great movie quotes, any kind of craft beer, or the tragic dearth of manual transmissions is a sure discussion starter!
Background
Certificate of Landscape Management
Rutgers University Office of CPE
Certificate - Organic Land Care
Rutgers / NJ Agricultural Experiment Station
Drew University C'98
S. Johnson Landscape Management
President, 1996-2021
Chatham, NJ
Rutgers University Office of CPE
Basics of Plant Materials
Basics of Plant Identification
Landscape Design
Integrated Pest Management
Hazardous Tree ID
Water Management & Drainage
Athletic Field Construction & Maint
Turfgrass Management
Irrigation Systems Repair & Maint
Concrete Pavers Application & Installation
Landscape Construction Solutions
Pest Management - Plants
Pest Management - Turf
Caring For Ornamental Plants
Soil & Plant Relationships