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Glenn Ray speaks the subtle language of landscaping
By Jessica Siefer
Photo by Eric Moore
In his hands, a typical suburban backyard becomes a layered landscape where a Chilton limestone path winds through a blanket of evergreens, bushes, and artfully placed boulders. Various shades of green hide surprises—a water feature behind a bend and an unexpected shock of bright pink ‘Northern Highlights’ azaleas. His subtle designs are classically English with a twist—plants are positioned in unusual ways, all meant to inspire and entertain the observer. “The naturalistic landscape setting, when done well, imitates nature in an ideal form,” says Ray. “Disorder is implied, but the landscaping is controlled and directs the eye.”
Given Ray’s own path—from social studies teacher to nonprofit executive to entrepreneur—it’s not surprising that his work reflects his multifaceted past. Nor is it surprising, given his lifelong fascination with plants and gardening, that he settled on a career in landscape design more than two decades ago.
Photo by Masterpiece Landscaping
“That’s really where I learned the art of the landscape,” he says. “I didn’t know the camera very well, but it sharpened my eye to focus on what I wanted to capture, the spirit of a beautiful landscape.” Ray began teaching classes at MSHS and providing landscaping services, free-of-charge, for members who wanted help with their gardens. “I had no vocabulary for landscaping, but I had an eye for it,” he says.
He retired from MSHS in 1987 to begin a third career as founder of Masterpiece Landscaping. Today, he designs landscapes ranging from evergreen-lined water features in suburban backyards to the award-winning therapeutic garden at Courage Center in Golden Valley. The heart of the Minnetonka-based business is Ray’s own yard, where he works through new designs and tends to an impressive collection of evergreens—plants he considers indispensable to gardens in the Upper Midwest.
“The garden in Minnesota begins with the evergreen,” he says. “In the winter, nothing’s in bloom and all the deciduous, woody plants are without leaves. It would all look dead, if it weren’t for the evergreens.”
Now that he’s figured out what he wants to be when he grows up, the 73-year-old designer is having the time of his life. “Most of our clients let us do our thing,” says Ray. “Many of them don’t necessarily speak the language, but they do know when something is exceptionally beautiful.”
Jessica Siefer is an editorial intern at Midwest Home.
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