Lecture 5 Design Resources: Landforms and Grading

LECTURE 5 Design Resources: LANDFORMS and GRADING

MAJOR LANDFORMS: Plains Plateaus Hills Mountains

TOPOGRAPHICAL FEATURES, RESOURCES FOUND, PLANTATION POSSIBILITIES.

LANDFORM IN LANDSCAPE DESIGN:

• The perception of land in three dimensions or ‘relief’.

• Generally denoted and expressed by use of contours.

• Develops as per the ecological, cultural and technological forces on earth’s surface.

• Usability of a certain landform for a landscape project depends upon: Shape, Size, Slope, Gradient.

Role of Landforms in Landscape Designs:

1. Aesthetic

• Provides rich visual variety and character to designs.

• Can be a representation of nature in crafted design.

2. Ecological

• Respect to natural landform can result in ecological benefits.

• Aids natural site water management and greenery management.

3. Functional

• Helps to concentrate and direct the views and view points as desired in design.

• As places of specific function or to direct circulation.

• As barrier, enclosure, secondary paths, segregation of functional spaces.

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 Lecture 5 Design Resources: Landforms and Grading

Application of Landforms in/ as Design

Ability to understand and manipulate landforms as a part of design process is an essential design skill.

• Landform as Line

• Landform as Enclosure

• Site and Design slopes

• Landform for drainage and infrastructure

• Landform and comfort

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 Lecture 5 Design Resources: Landforms and Grading

GRADING

 The process of modification and reforming portions of the earth; the arrangement of the surface of
the earth to suit human activities and purposes.
 Grading is the intervention on / modification of the “landform” for changes as per the Conscious
Design.
“Conscious Design”? – guided by concept, function, wind direction, drainage, communication
lines etc.
 Needs careful change of contours to support the integration of building with site.
 It is expressed in or ratio or degrees:
1 % slope = 100 : 1
10 % slope = 10 : 1
Percentage of slope is expressed as the number of meters rise in 100 m
If the slope rises 2 m in 100 m, the gradient is:
2 m X 100 = 2 %
100 m

Role of Grading in Landscape Design:

• To achieve better drainage-----

To allow water to flow to a certain portion of the site and away from buildings

• To maintain regularity of site surface by balancing cut and fill.

• To achieve certain visual effects.

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 Lecture 5 Design Resources: Landforms and Grading

• To adjust for the functional needs of design.

Grading to create berms:

Berms can be created for noise, wind and

undesirable sight barriers

or for additional soil depth above

unfavorable sub grade conditions such as
high ground water table.

Grading to Modify existing landforms: Narrow

ridges, steep slopes can be modified to create more
attractive and useful landforms.

Grading for achieving

good views and vistas.

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 Lecture 5 Design Resources: Landforms and Grading

Considerations to be made for Landscape Grading:

• Proper balance between “adjusting site surface for design needs” and “designing to least disturb
the existing site surface” must be achieved.

• Extensive alterations may lead to landslides, erosion, and complete destruction of ecosystem.

• Result should be visually pleasing.

• Cut fill should be equal.

• Positive drainage should be maintained.

• Conservation of top soil should be done.

Grading in following conditions must be avoided or re evaluated:

• Grading that results in radical loss of vegetation and or topsoil.

• Grading that interrupts in natural drainage.

• Grading that results in aesthetic degradation.

• Grading on difficult slopes excess of 25% , in floodplains, estuaries or in other environmentally

unique conditions.

• Grading in areas liable to natural disasters such as mud slides or along earth quake fault.

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 Lecture 5 Design Resources: Landforms and Grading

Grading: Cut and Fill

The process of removal of earth from one part of
site and using the dug up earth by filling it at
another place on the same site to achieve required
grading.

The amount of material from cuts should roughly

match the amount of fill needed to make nearby
embankments.

Grading is the re-contouring of the site contour according to plan and design:

Contours:
i. Contours always occur in pairs.

ii. Contours never cross each other or merge.

iii. Contours have equal vertical separation.

iv. All contour lines close on themselves

v. The steepest slope is a line perpendicular to

the contour (water always flows here).

vi. By convention the existing contours are shown

as dashed lines and proposed contours are
shown as solid lines.

THE GARDEN OF COSMIC SPECULATION BY CHARLES JENKS

• Inspired by the universe,
science and mathematic
formulae with themes such
as black holes, comets and
DNA.

• Consists of vast molded earth

works, lakes and engineered
structures are an impressive
tribute to the mysterious
universe which inspired
them.

• Series of landforms and lakes recall fractal geometry

• Water cascade of steps recounts the story of the universe.

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