It turns out that many consider the garden to be as important, if not more important, than the house. This is especially the case in an island like Mallorca with its reliable sunshine continuing through the winter months. “A lot of emotion is poured into the garden,” Johannes Dütsch, founder of My Landscaping Group, tells us. “Perhaps because it’s a living part of a home and it’s always changing.” His love of gardens was sown early, growing up with a large one in Munich, although his decision to study landscape architecture was cemented in Leeds during a year of voluntary work with people with disabilities when he was 18 years old. “It was a community and I spent a lot of time working on the farm and building vegetable gardens.”
Visualising a Private Paradise
It requires great vision to picture a private paradise when you’re looking at a derelict piece of land. “Often there’s nothing there at all, not even the house,” he says. Fortunately for Johannes visualising the end scenario is what he excels at. After 15 years working on the island, he has the experience to know what is possible, advisable, and what should be avoided.
This wasn’t the case when he first arrived. During his work as an apprentice in Jardins de Tramuntana, he came to realise that only 20% of the plants he had studied in Germany were of any use in the Balearics. While he works best when he’s given a free hand to design a project, some clients bring ideas from their travels across the globe. Unfortunately, some plants just won’t flourish on the island. He approaches each client relationship with honesty and transparency. “I never say no,” he says, “instead I will find the best alternative.”
More than a Garden
The largest plot of land My Landscaping Group has worked on was the 250,000 square-metre terrain in Bunyola owned by the late Rainer Schaller. “We created a jungle around the pool area which you could walk through and it felt like you were somewhere else entirely. On the other side there was a succulent and cactus garden, and beside the old chapel we created a formal English-style garden.”
He doesn’t need to have such a large space to work his magic though. His portfolio of finca gardens is stunning. They combine citrus groves, self-catering vegetable gardens, petanque courts, fire pits, 4-hole golf courses and meandering walkways designed to take advantage of the best views.
When it comes to selecting significant trees, particularly olive trees which can be over 2000 years old, he flies to Alicante with his clients to choose them from a trusted source. “Just walk through them. The tree will find you,” he tells his clients. His understanding and love of nature, great design and people, are the reasons My Landscaping Group, like a well-kept garden, is a thriving company well-worth knowing.
Text by Emily Benet | Photos provided by Jonathan Renso Barzola
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