Craig Richmond Landscape Architecture Volume 1, End of Summer Issue
The Outside Voice Stone Walls system. Stone cost more, but I’d usually recommend a client use real stone even if they have to sacrifice something else. There are some decent faux stone products on the market. I’ve had clients who were happy with using faux stone as a veneer on concrete; I’m just never completely satisfied with the look. Don’t get me wrong manufacturers have made some incredible improvements on making faux stone. With some it's difficult tell that it’s not the real stuff. But once you recognize the same stone
Stone Walls add a sense of permanence, strength and stability to the landscape. Whether they’re retaining earth or freestanding, local stone is the best choice. I’d rather use stone for a wall as opposed to any other material. A wall constructed with stone or even just a stone veneer looks so much more elegant than a concrete modular wall
Inside this issue:
shapes and colors used over and over again it loses its appeal. In this day of throw away plastics and flimsiness, real stone offers us a sense of security and timelessness. It cost more to use stone compared to concrete, wood, brick and other materials, because it’s irregular in size and shape. It’s not modular, so a lot of labor goes into making it into a usable shape. But natural stone just looks at home in the landscape.
Meet the Father of American Landscape Architecture merchant. Following his tour of the southern US, he became an abolitionist. He committed his life to uplifting the quality of life for all.
• Featured tree, shrub and perennial. • The Green Roof Advantage • Introduction to Craig Richmond Landscape Architecture.
Aesthetic sensibility, he believed, was the way for America to transform from a frontier people into a more civilized society. Olmsted exhibited this concept
Olmsted the father of American Landscape Architecture was the son of a dry-goods 1
in his collaborations with Architect Calvert Vaux. They worked together to design Central Park and Prospect Park in New York City. These masterpieces of open space are examples of how Landscape Architecture could improve the quality of life for working class and wealthy citizens.
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The Outside Voice
Volume 1, End of Summer Issue
Craig Richmond Landscape Architecture
Featured Plants White Oak | Tree The White Oak (Quercus alba) is native throughout the eastern United States and southeastern Canada. This majestic tree makes a bold statement in any landscape and is the state tree of Maryland, Connecticut, and Illinois. It can be grown in hardiness Zones 3-9. It grows at a slow to medium rate to a height of 50’-80’ with an equal spread. This oak grows best in full sun to part shade when young.
erant of a wide range of soil types, they prefer slightly acidic, welldraining, deep soil. They typically struggle in poor quality urban fill. With the right conditions this tree can put on quite an impressive fall color show, with colors from coral to shades of burgundy.
squirrels, deer and other animals feed on the acorns and leaf buds. Raccoons and opossum use the hollowed out portions of old specimens for shelter. If you have the space, do your part for wildlife by planting a White Oak on your property.
Not only is the White Oak a superior shade tree it also provides food and habitat for animals. Birds,
Although White Oak is tol-
Drift Rose | Shrub
“..blooms for three seasons, spring, summer and fall.”
Since 2006 their introduction, these cold-hardy, disease resistant roses have taken the nursery and landscape industry by storm. Drift Roses are ground-hugging, everblooming varieties that grow to 3’-4’ height and with the same width. They are a cross between a groundcover and miniature roses. These easy to
grow shrub roses come in an assortment of colors like red, pink, apricot, pale yellow, coral and peach. The foliage is glossy and attractive, which sets off the blooms for three seasons, spring, summer and fall.
sunlight. Like most roses they prefer a pH range between 6.0-6.5 to thrive. Give it enough space for good air circulation and it should perform for you nicely.
Install in a well-prepared planting bed with good drainage and where they’ll get eight hours of direct
Heuchera ’Green Spice’ | Perennial Coral Bells are one of my favorite ways to bring color into an area that gets afternoon shade. Coral Bells ‘Green Spice’ (Heuchera ‘Green Spice’) with its dark green edged leaves with silvery infill and deep red veins is a show stopper. The
coarseness of the leaf gives a tropical feel to a garden. Coral Bells are easy to grow and used for cuttings. This plant does best with morning sun and partial shade in the afternoon. Install in moist, organic, will drained beds.
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The Outside Voice
Volume 1, End of Summer Issue
Craig Richmond Landscape Architecture
Craig Richmond Landscape Architecture 8715 1st Ave., Suite 812D Silver Spring, MD 20910 Phone: 301-920-0424 E-mail: craig@landarch1.com Web: landarch1.com
Craig Richmond Landscape Architecture is a progressive site design office located in Silver Spring, Maryland. We are a small Landscape Architectural firm focused on providing personalized service to private and public clients in the mid-Atlantic region. Founded in June 2008 we’ve made it our mission to work closely with our clients to give them creative design based on solid site engineering principles. We separate ourselves from other landscape architecture firms by placing an importance on listening to our clients and using our imaginations to design their landscape dreams. We are experienced in a wide range of projects including: streetscapes, university campuses, high schools, commercial buildings, parks, apartments, roof gardens and single-family residences. We approach all of our projects with open minds and a spirit of collaboration. Contact our office and ask for Craig to set up a free
… landscape architects creating memorable places.
consultation to discuss your landscape needs. We look forward to hearing from you.
Green Roofs
1 Poultry St. London, England Photographer: Jason Hawkes
water in the soil and help in reducing the amount of runoff that would go into the public stormwater system. The runoff from paved and developed areas is a major reason for downstream flooding. The cumulative effect of several roof gardens in a city could also reduce the size of subsurface drainage structures. That could be a significant saving for a municipality.
Green Roofs are more than just a way to make a rooftop attractive. There are ecological and economic benefits to installing them. They can be added to an existing structure or be part of the original construction. For existing buildings structural suitability must be considered. So it’s not as simple as placing a growing medium and plants on your roof. Stormwater Management is an important reason to install a roof garden. They retain
By humidifying the surrounding air, green roofs give a cooling ef3
fect to a microclimate. This added cooling reduces the strain on air conditioning systems that saves on energy use. Green roofs also help to improve air quality by binding dust and toxic particles. Some urban wildlife benefit from roof gardens by the food and habitat they can provide. Every little bit helps, so if you can provide shelter and sustenance it’s an added benefit that outweighs the additional costs.