What Are Pool Landscapers?
Pool landscapers are contractors who design and install the landscape features that surround and complement a swimming pool — pool decks, patio surrounds, retaining walls, plantings, lighting, fencing, and grading. A true pool landscaper handles the pool AND the surrounding hardscape/softscape as one coordinated project, so the finished backyard feels like a single design instead of a pool sitting in a field.
Capital Land Companies is the Capital Region's full-service pool landscaper — handling every element of the pool landscape from initial design through final planting. We're also authorized Imagine Pools and Thursday Pools installers, so we can do the entire pool project (shell, plumbing, electrical, deck, landscape) under one contract.
Complete Pool Landscape Services
A pool project is more than just the pool. Real pool landscapers handle every element that makes a backyard pool feel finished. Here's what Capital Land Companies delivers as part of a complete pool landscape:
Pool Decks & Patio Surrounds
The deck is the largest surface area of any pool project — and the one that gets the most use. We install paver pool decks (Unilock, Nicolock, and Belgard), stamped concrete pool decks in a range of patterns and colors, and broom-finished concrete pool decks for a clean modern look. Every pool deck is engineered with proper base depth, positive drainage away from the pool, and non-slip finish where it matters.
Retaining Walls Around Pool Areas
Sloped Capital Region backyards often need retaining walls to create a level pool area. We install engineered Versa-Lok segmental walls, natural stone walls, and boulder walls with proper drainage stone and filter fabric. Multi-tier wall systems can turn an unusable sloped yard into a terraced pool oasis.
Plantings & Softscape Around the Pool
Good pool landscaping includes the plantings that soften the hardscape edges and give the pool area privacy without dropping leaves into the water. We favor native and low-litter species — ornamental grasses, boxwood, dwarf conifers, and structural perennials — chosen for Upstate NY's freeze-thaw climate and the specific microclimate around a pool.
Lighting, Fencing & Finishing Details
Landscape lighting extends pool use into the evening and improves safety. Fencing is required by code around any inground pool in New York State — we handle the fence design and installation as part of the landscape package. Plus final grading, walkway connections from the house to the pool, and equipment pad screening so the pump and heater aren't the first thing you see.
Fiberglass Pool Installation — Imagine & Thursday Pools
Capital Land Companies is an authorized installer of Imagine Pools and Thursday Pools — the two most respected fiberglass pool brands in the Northeast. Our sister company Capital Land Pools handles the pool-specific portion of every project; the deck, hardscape, and landscape integration runs through Capital Land Companies. Same owner, same crew, same standard.
Fiberglass pools are pre-formed factory-built shells delivered to your home and craned into a properly excavated and prepped hole. Installation start to swimming is typically 1–3 weeks (compared with 8–12 weeks for gunite or concrete pools), with no curing time, no rough surface, and decades of low-maintenance use.
Frequently Asked Questions About Pool Landscapers
What is a pool landscaper?
A pool landscaper is a contractor who specializes in the landscape work around a swimming pool — pool decks, patio surrounds, retaining walls, plantings, lighting, fencing, and grading. The best pool landscapers also handle the pool installation itself, so the entire project runs under one contract with coordinated timing.
How much do pool landscapers cost in Albany NY?
Pool landscape work in the Capital Region typically ranges from $15 to $50 per square foot for paver or stamped concrete decks, $50 to $150 per square foot for retaining walls, plus $5,000 to $25,000+ for plantings and lighting depending on scope. A complete pool landscape (deck + walls + planting + lighting) around a new pool typically adds $30,000 to $80,000 to the pool itself.
Should I hire separate contractors for the pool and the landscape?
No — a single pool landscaper who handles both is almost always the better choice. Coordinating timing, protecting new hardscape during pool install, matching materials across the whole project, and having one warranty umbrella all become much simpler with one contractor. Capital Land Companies handles pool AND landscape as a single project.
Do pool landscapers install fiberglass pools?
Some do. Capital Land Companies is an authorized installer of Imagine Pools and Thursday Pools fiberglass pools, in addition to designing and installing the complete pool landscape around them. Not every pool landscaper installs pools directly; many subcontract the pool itself. We do both in-house through our sister company Capital Land Pools.
Pricing & Financing
Complete fiberglass pool packages including full landscape in the Capital Region typically start around $120,000–$180,000 for the pool, deck, equipment, retaining walls if needed, plantings, lighting, and fencing. Simpler installs (pool + deck only) start around $90,000. Larger pools, premium deck materials, automated covers, heaters, and integrated spas add to the total.
We work with three financing partners — Lyon Financial (pool specialists since 1979), Viking Capital, and HFS Financial — all offering soft credit checks and personal loans with no home equity required.