23520 N. Old McHenry Rd, Lake Zurich, IL 60047 US
About Us
Our Story
Natural Environments creates and maintains landscapes that work in harmony with the land. Led by Robert C. Boyce, Registered Landscape Architect, we combine horticultural expertise, ecological knowledge and decades of hands-on experience to design, install and care for outdoor spaces that are both beautiful and sustainable, and well suited to how people live and use their property.
Our experience spans landscape design, planting and installation, custom stonework, restoration and long-term landscape care. It shapes a practical, informed approach to each project, helping ensure what is designed can be built, maintained and perform well over time.
About Robert C. Boyce, RLA
Horticulture has fascinated Robert C. Boyce for as long as he can remember. He got his start mowing lawns and weeding gardens, eventually moving on to planting and landscape work. Throughout high school and college, he worked at several Chicagoland nurseries and garden centers.
After earning his Bachelor of Science in Ornamental Horticulture from the University of Illinois, Champaign, he founded Natural Environments in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. In the early 1980s, he helped pioneer the art and science of native landscaping. As environmental awareness grew, he developed deep expertise in prairie, wetland and woodland restoration, as well as installation, stonework and long-term landscape care.
Today, Robert continues that work through Natural Environments, bringing hands-on experience in landscape design, planting and installation, custom stonework and restoration to each project. He is directly involved from meeting with clients and walking properties to developing plans and guiding projects through completion. Robert specializes in Midwest ecosystems, with particular expertise in Illinois and Wisconsin landscapes. His work includes residential properties as well as projects for municipalities, park districts and public institutions, including large-scale shoreline, prairie and habitat restoration work.
Robert has been a licensed Registered Landscape Architect in Illinois since 1990.
Natural Environments
Our mission is to create and maintain natural landscapes that preserve a healthy environment.
Landscape architecture is more than planting shrubs, arranging trees and installing irrigation systems. It is the creation of a complete outdoor environment that works with your architecture, site conditions and surrounding ecosystem. This requires not only a keen eye for visual detail, but also an expansive knowledge of biology, ecology and plant performance.
At Natural Environments, that approach is applied across landscape design, installation, maintenance, custom stonework and plant selection. Many of the native and pollinator plants we use are grown at our own greenhouses from Illinois and Midwest seed, including seed we collect ourselves.
We also offer annuals, heirloom vegetables and other seasonal plants at the greenhouse, and our work is rooted in plants that are well suited to our region.
We help guide plant selection and landscape decisions with a focus on eco-friendly and sustainable practices, from bio-engineering approaches to the use of native plants. The goal is to create landscapes that are healthy, functional and built to thrive over time.
Some of Our Municipal & Public Areas Projects
Municipal And Public-Sector Projects Include:
Buffalo Grove Park District, Buffalo Grove, IL – Outdoor Nature Classroom
Chicago River Pedestrian Overpass, Deerfield, IL – Stream and Bank Restoration
Harper College, Palatine, IL – Perennial Garden Installation
Hersey High School, Arlington Heights, IL – Athletic Fields and Rain Garden
Ivy Hall Elementary School, Buffalo Grove, IL – Rain Garden
Lake Zurich Golf Club, Lake Zurich, IL – Shoreline Erosion Control, Custom Stonework
Long Meadow Farms, Long Grove, IL – Natural Areas Management
North Shore Federal Savings Bank, Chicago, IL – Permeable Paver Parking Lot, Sustainable Bio-Swale and Planting Area
Oakton Community College, Des Plaines, IL – Entrance Plantings
Olive Mary Pratt Elementary School, Arlington Heights, IL – Rain Garden and Bioswale
Paulus Park, Lake Zurich, IL – Natural Area and Shoreline Restoration, Flagstone Patio, Bocce Ball Courts, Horseshoe Pits, Brick Pavers
Ponds of Kildeer, Kildeer, IL – Common Area Enhancements and Natural Area Restoration & Management
Sandy Point Homeowners Association, Lake Zurich, IL – Shoreline Buffers and Pergola
Schaumburg Athletic Fields, Schaumburg, IL
Sleepy Hollow Park, Glenview, IL – North Branch Chicago River Shoreline Restoration
St. Peter’s Church, Antioch, IL – Formal Flower Gardens
Sunset Valley Golf Club, Highland Park, IL – North Branch Shoreline Restoration
Thermoflex Corporation, Waukegan, IL – Commercial, Eco-Friendly Landscaping
Wheeling Clock Tower Park, Wheeling, IL – Large Tree, Shrub and Perennial Planting
Chicago Park District
Humboldt Park, Chicago, IL – Lagoon, Wetland and Prairie Restoration, Custom Stonework
Jackson Park, Chicago, IL – Lagoon, Shoreline, Woodland, Habitat Restoration for Endangered Species
McKinley Park, Chicago, IL – Lagoon Restoration and Native Planting, Custom Stonework
Montrose Bird Sanctuary, Chicago, IL – Prairie and Woodland Establishment, Habitat Restoration for Endangered Species
Washington Park, Chicago, IL – Lagoon Restoration and Aquatic Planting, Custom Stonework
Chicago Botanic Garden, Glencoe, IL – Evening Isle
