Architectural Design 1-8 – Topic 9: Landscape Architecture & Site

Lighting
Landscape Architecture
1. Landscape is the visible feature of an area of lands, its landform, and its integration
with the natural and man-made features.
2. Landscape architecture is a multi-disciplinary field encompassing the analysis,
planning, design, management, and stewardship of the natural and built
environment through science and design
Elements of Landscaping Architecture
1. Softscape
a. Refers to the living element of the landscape such as trees, plants, shrubs,
flowers, grass, and groundcovers.
b. Classification of Plants according to Landscape Use
i. Trees
1. Shade from the sun
2. Glare protection
3. Air filtration
4. Sound attenuation
5. Runoff reduction
6. Softness contrasts hard lines of building
7. Attracts birds and nesting places
8. Provides enframement
ii. Shrubs
1. Woody plant, usually with multiple stems and may reach a
height of 6 meters
2. Provides brilliant floral display and foliage contrast
3. Large shrubs can screen undesirable view or provide visual
corridor
iii. Groundcovers
1. Plant material under 18 inches in height of spreading or
creeping habit
2. Vine can be groundcover on mechanical structure such as
trellis or decorative fence
3. Two Functional Classes
a. Lawn Substitute – covers large expanse of ground
b. Ornamental Groundcover – decorate walks with
borders or add accent to shrub masses
iv. Grass Lawn
 1. Provides cover for large areas giving aesthetic and functional
value
2. Relatively cheap compared to other plants
c. Physical Characteristics of Plant Materials
i. Extrovert – loud, boisterous, energetic, attention-getter
ii. Introvert – quiet, calm, background
iii. A good mix of both plants provide interesting space
iv. Visual Value
1. The energy or impact of plants
2. High visual value – upright form, bright colors, coarse
texture, dramatic
3. Low visual value – low or prostate form, dull color, fine
texture, calm
4. Accent or specimen plants bind the entire composition
v. Form
1. The three dimensional shape of a plant or mass
2. Can be divided into three groups:
a. Trees – large-sized, trunk, canopy
i. Dominant in terms of size
ii. Most functional in providing shape or blocking
views
iii. Shady Areas: round of oval form
iv. Screen: columnar or pyramidal form
v. Good focal point: weeping tree form

vi.
b. Shrubs – medium-sized, mass of foliage
i. Mounding and spreading shrub looks best in mass
ii. Screen: upright, vase, mounding or round form
iii. Groundcover: irregular or spreading form
iv. Focal point: cascading, pyramidal, or spiky form
 v.
c. Groundcover – small-sized, covers the ground
i. Looks better in masses
ii. Solid & low cover: massing, spreading, and
crawling
iii. Plants or enclosed areas: clumps or short spikes

iv.
3. Properties of Form
a. Forms that have high visual weight: columnar and weeping.
b. Forms that have medium visual weight: round and vase.
c. Forms that have low visual weight: horizontal forms such as
spreading and sprawling.
d. Tall and vertical forms draws eyes upwards while horizontal
forms draws eyes sideways.
e. Plant forms can create open spaces within plants. High
arching tree branches typically create open space under
branches for roomlike feel. Round canopy with low branches
fill spaces under the tree and closes the space.
f. Vertical forms are typically dominant, it should be balanced
with horizontal forms.
vi. Texture
1. How coarse of fine the overall surface and individual leaves of the
plant feel or look
2. Coarse texture is more dominant and tends to stand out individually,
while fine texture is more subordinate and tends to unify
composition.
a. Coarse
i. Thick twigs, large leaves, irregular edges, bold and
deep vein, variegated colors
ii. Attract the eye and tend to hold it because the light
and dark contrasts of the shadow provide interest
 b. Medium
i. Simple shaped and smooth edges, average-sized,
typically rounded or mounding
ii. Acts as background to link and unify the coarse and
fine
c. Fine
i. Small delicate foliage: thin, strappy leaves, tall thin
stem, small fragile twigs with many branches.
ii. Wispy and light.
iii. Stronger form because densely packed to create
solid form.
3. Properties of Texture
a. It affects the perception of distance and scale.

b.
vii. Size
1. Overall height and width of the plant and its relative size and scale
when compared to other plants, structures, and spaces in a space
2. Most effective characteristic of plants that are used to create spatial
organization in the garden.
3. Transition of Public Space to Threshold
a. Large (Trees & shrubs: 1.20 - 1.80 meters in height)
b. Medium (Shrubs: 0.60 - 1.20 meters in height)
c. Small (Groundcover and Bedding Plant: less than 0.60
meters in height)
4. Properties of Size
a. Size can affect spatial feeling.
b. Plant sizes can determine function. Trees are used for
overhead shade, shrubs for screens, and groundcover for
large ground areas.
 c.
viii. Color
1. Noticed first in a landscape
2. It affects emotions such as:
a. Warm Colors – high energy
b. Cool colors – calming and soothing
3. Properties of Color
a. Appears more saturated under sun and subdued in winter
light.
b. Surrounding colors affect intensity. Grouping many high
intensity colors reduces intensity of each color because
colors compete
d. Living Green Roofs
i. Thin profile system where growing medium is less than 8 inches where
primary use is to effectively satisfy stormwater management requirements
in lieu of conventional stormwater runoff methods.
ii. It detains stormwater runoff, provides visually interesting landscape, and
reduces cost of conventional methods of stormwater runoff.
iii. Extensive Green Roofs
1. System that has shallow depth of growing plants: not irrigated and
minimum maintenance only.
2. Not intended for open space or garden usage.
iv. Intensive Green Roofs
1. Applied to systems that have greater depth of soil or growing
medium, which allows greater depth of soil. Needs supplemental
irrigation.
v. Landscape over structure is a system where growing medium is greater
than 8 inches and based upon programmatic requirements, may be used
as an open space.
e. Interior Landscaping
i. Primary priority is to serve people rather than to grow plants.
ii. Plant materials should be able to tolerate indoor environmental conditions.
iii. Plant Pallette
1. Sizes of Interior Plants
a. Trees: 1.50 - 7.50 meters in height
 b. Large Understory: 0.90 - 1.50 meters in height
c. Small Understory: 0.30 - 0.90 meters in height
d. Groundcover: less than 0.30 meters in height
2. Hardscape
a. Refers to inanimate objects such as pavers, gazebos, fences, benches, etc.
b. Pavements
i. Unit Pavers
1. Durable and aesthetic choice for both pedestrian and vehicular
ground plane treatments
ii. Concrete Pavers
iii. Asphaltic Concrete Pavement
1. Combination of asphalt and concrete pavements, which can also be
referred to as bituminous pavement
2. Commonly associated with vehicular usage
iv. Porous Pavements
1. Makes water runoff contact with soil
c. Retaining Walls
i. To achieve elevation change within limited horizontal distances.
ii. Types of Retaining Walls
1. Gravity Wall
a. Solid massive, heavy structures that retain soil with weight
of material wall
2. Cantilever Wall
3. Counterfort Wall
a. Very high retaining walls up to 4.5 meters
iii. Gabion Wall Systems – rectangular cages made with heavy, galvanized
hexagonal woven steel wire mesh or polymer grid mesh with openings
d. Fences and Screens
i. Used to delineate a property physically and visually
ii. Solid Fences – provides ultimate level of privacy
iii. Semi-transparent Fences – allow limited or filtered privacy
iv. Transparent Fences – less obstrusive and blend more effectively with
surroundings
e. Gazebos and Freestanding Structures
i. Most common of wooden garden structures
f. Overhead Structures
i. Can be used to provide shelter from rain
ii. Examples include pergolas, arbors, trellises, and colonnades.

Site Utilities for Landscape Development

1. Drainage System
a. Subsurface Drainage Systems
 i. Designed to intercept slower underground forms of natural
groundwater table
ii. Removal of water from the root zone. It is accomplished by deep
open drains or buried pipe drains.
b. Surface Drainage Systems
i. Designed to collect stormwater runoff from the land surface.
2. Irrigation System
a. Sprinkler Irrigation
i. Manual Sprinkler System – valve is turned on or off if needed
ii. Automatic Sprinkler System – turned off or on by automatic
controller at all times with intervals
b. Drip Irrigation
i. Commonly referred to as “trickle” or “low-flow” irrigation.
ii. It is a system that applies water directly to individual plants.
3. Stormwater Management
a. Controls quality of aquatic and riparian habitats, local water supplies, and
streamside properties.
Site Lighting
1. Introduces emotional qualities to a space.
2. Landscape lighting has three basic objectives: safety, security, and aesthetics.
3. Categories
a. Decorative Lighting – for aesthetic purposes only
b. Vehicular Use Lighting – provides illumination to vehicles
c. General Site Lighting – provides a uniform level of illumination throughout
the site
d. Pedestrian Use Lighting
e. Feature Lighting – to highlight a certain spot or focal point