Ma Landscape Architecture Ellen Raes
Define
and
release
Strategy The perspective to look to the landscape
Investigating city/nature Boundaries as Places of Hybridisation An introduction
No city without nature, no nature without city.
If there is to be a “new urbanism” … it will no longer aim for stable
The opposition between city and ‘nature’ forms the intellectual foundation for
configurations but for the creation of enabling fields that accommodate
the majority of discourse on this subject. However, it is one which appears
processes that refuse to be crystallized into definitive form; it will no longer
to no longer have any value in our contemporary society and requires a
be about meticulous definition, the imposition of limits, but about expanding
re-evaluation to address the complex problems of urbanisation and ‘natural’
notions, denying boundaries, not about separating and identifying entities,
systems. The concept of the Anthropocene, described by Paul Crutzen in 1995,
but about discovering unnameable hybrids; ….
where humans are viewed as the dominating life form on earth, repositions the debate with respect to this contradictory relationship between natural
Rem Koolhaas and Bruce Mau indicate that the place where processes meet
(biocentric) and cultural (anthropocentric) systems. Nature is no longer viewed
each other, there is an accentuation of physical and latent boundaries. It is at
as the pure counterpart to human civilisation as it has been for many centuries.
the interface of these boundaries that hybrid programmes and operational
Through rethinking present boundaries and analysing city and nature as a
dynamism can emerge.
complex hybrid system, new opportunities could be unlocked to respond to the
The boundary acts as a merging of different systems and initiates a zone for
resetting of the relationship as a dynamic interaction.
hybridisation. This zone will take elements of different systems and use them to create a more diverse and complex entity. Hybridisation is characterised by
Interestingly the word hybrid suggests that these systems are processes rather
chance and change.
than fixed conditions. By utilising this process based approach, it becomes
By seeing the boundary as a condition, it initiate a process and act as a vehicle
possible to incorporate ideas of change on different scales in terms of size and
for change. This polemic does not generate exclusive answers to problems,
time.
rather it provides a staging of possible scenarios over time.
Fragmentation
No city without nature, no nature without city. We are not aware that our vision of the world is dictated by the way how we picture and categorise in order to understand the world around us. The categories create the pre-condition of our knowledge which we take for granted and set up how different things come into view. Without boundaries, the world would have no outline. The constructed pluralistic view generates more and more categories and leads to more and more fragmentation.
It is not about human versus nature, urban versus rural but about the process of hybridisation that opens the eyes for phenomena beyond the object. The artificial created boundaries need to be re-evaluated as the complex vision has little opportunity for hybridisation and stops things to happen. The design wants to embrace the complexity of the world we live in by simplifying the boundaries between existing categories.
Re-categorisation Categories as physical entities
The four pre-Socratic elements - earth, water air and fire - have
The categories create a hybrid zone of transitions between the multitude
determined man’s thinking and expressions of this being in the world.
of existing divisions. They have a physical presence and are real pressures
They don’t make a distinction between human-nature, but relate us to
and substances, related to changing material consistencies and abstract
nature. They are physical phenomenon that can be experienced with our
concepts. There is a cultural trend towards the essentials, the basics:
senses and therefore connected with architecture. The construction of the
Biennial Venice- Fundamentals, landscape biennial Rotterdam, etc. as
world is an alchemic operation that turns concepts into material. It is a
they posses a cultural understanding that inspires our actions today just as
way to approach new paths.
they did thousands of years ago.
Earth
Water
Air
Fire
Solids - the container
Fluids - cycle
gasses - motion
Plasma - Change
Categories as container for hybridisation
During the Enlightenment, chemical models restructure the universe.
the elements have no shape of their own when they hybridize in their
The categories ban be broken down into their basic elements. These
own category or between each other. The elements give the landscape the
elements are not directly spatial, but represent the process side of the
metaphysical ability to change between space and time.
landscape, which is a different but equally existing reality and contain all
The element fire consists of stable gasses that will not react with each
the information for hybridisation.
other. Therefore, the element fire is perceived as the action to initiate
At the same time, they contain the possibility to create new forms, as
change, to set the other elements in motion.
Earth
Water
Air
Fire
Carbon - Silicon
Hydrogen - Oxygen
Oxygen - Nitrogen
-
Re-categorisation Categories, erasing boundaries
The landscape is levelled out by a grid. The latter compartmentalizes as a sort of tabular extroversion of the territory. While the modern landscape came up against frontiers, a new grid can stretches like a 2nd skin over the world, absorbing all dimensions and context. The territory, patterned by the grid, plunges us into a unified landscape with no border, no safety barriers. It generates a global environment that transcends localities. The grid is made out of pentagons. In contrast to triangles, squares and hexagons, the pentagon does not fit on paper without creating -squareleftovers. The pentagon generates a 3D space, a perfect sphere that bounds together the objects of our environment.
Re-categorisation Categories as physical entity that contain all information for hybridisation
The Aristotelian four elements still constitute the natural world. The man-made world however, is an intervention and this surely is always the point of departure for design. Kenneth Frampton
It is important not only to see the landscape as a physical entity, but as a system of elements which erase un-crossable lines and boundaries. These elements contains all the information for hybridisation. Landscape is not about rapid growth, but about re-design and optimisation of the existing situation that implies the ongoing re-use and upgrading of resources. A physical transformation or manipulation is needed to have influence on the invisible elements and allow new processes to happen. They can have an impact on a short time frame or activate a slow process.
ÂťYou never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.ÂŤ R. Buckminster Fuller
Through the window of a train, a man looks out at the landscape. It is a strange landscape, insofar as its naturalness seems to have been fashioned entirely by man. It’s a manufactured landscape. The undulations, the fine furrows, the gentle geological folds express an unusual orderliness -that of a smooth, domesticated geography, yet at the same time, inform. This landscape surprises us. It combines the detachment of the observer, for whom it is an object of contemplation or even reverie, with a choreographic view in which the overdeveloped details seem excessively formal. Between the view and the representation lies the geographical earth, an indissoluble whole. This image encapsulates the paradox that characterizes many architectural experiences of the ‘earth’, ranging from earth-matter to the earth surface that covers the entire world, from material ground down into the finest particles to a surface for inscription or incision. While one can only view a landscape and not live in it, one can only work with the earth, occupy it, penetrate it, live on it.
-Marie-Ange Brayer
Atlas A story about the landscape plunges the reader into a constructed world that the designer exploits as an explorer. He creates a landscape as part of a purposeful atmosphere. Landscape is not a historical fact but an interpretation.
Cumbria coal General
Cumbria Coal, one area with a lot different images. Isolated between sea and hills (lake district), England and Scotland, the area is know as ‘no-mans’ land. But nevertheless, It is also an area of change. Once, it was the starting point of innovation: coal mining. The changed economic dynamics that evolve over time from the inside out and transformed the landscape on a gigantic scale. From fishing, to agriculture to coal mining, the landscape goes from tundra and woodland to grassland and open mining fields. The post-industrial landscape is a physical narrative that tells a story of demise. The region has lost her vibrancy and is still rooted in the abandoned coal-energy landscape. This resulted in a range of socio-economic problems in the area.
Remnant of coal spoil heap
Open mining pit
Abandoned mining infrastructure
Neglect rail track
Coal exploitation has modelled the landscape.
Cumbria coal Earth - Excavation
Two different timescales
Technology incorporated into Landscape
The energy landscape has two worlds in which time and space work differently:
The landscape represent ‘a triumph of human ingenuity and fortitude over the fickle
Underground lies a world of ‘natural production’, the deep-time processes beyond
reluctance of nature’.
human control that create the hydrocarbon concentrations - fossil fuels.
The natural wealth excavated from the depth and piled up on the surface, changed
Above-ground and freed from geological fixity, energy is thrown into a tumultuous
the urban condition also in a technological way. Technologies of surveying, lifting,
world of ‘social production’, a surface world of mobility and change where the quality
shipping and construction pioneered in mining transformed the whole mining
of space, as well as that of time is asymptomatically reduced to zero.
territory. As coal did not tend to move long distances, the development took place
Their distribution on the surface strives ‘to overcome all the obstacles that make
around the mouths of mines. It transformed the topography and allowed small
(space) distinguishable.
farming villages to grow into unprecedented densities of new settlements, based around the new raw energy material.
Energy gives new value to landscape
Infrastructure can die
Mining involves removal of massive volumes of material. But energy does not
When coal lose its function, the rigid, mono-functional infrastructure was too rigid
emerge from the whole in a pure, unencumbered form. It is accompanied by
to grow with the new required services. It has been abananded and left behined as
components from which it must be separated. These ‘hidden flows’ are inherent
waste. The landscape problem suddenly emerged and man’s interventions become
to the process of extraction and are mobilized along with the energy resource but,
visible, along with the entire spectrum of consequences. When the mines closed, thy
nonetheless, must find a place of disposal. As they are framed as waste-disposal,
were no longer able to rely on this previous activities to survive and this generated
rather than an economic resource, the result is a newly created landscape of spoil
socio-economic problems. The area turned here back to her roots, resulting in
heaps, waste ponds, slag piles, tank farms, abandoned train lines, stacks and flues, all
fragmented, non-productive landscape.
in proximity to the mines. A landscape of sorting, dispatch and abandonment that materializes abstract calculations of value.
Cumbria coal Water
Once an active place for fishing, the mining industry has erased all territorial logic. The new discovered, in the underground hidden, raw material started to dominate the organization of the landscape. Topography and proximity to water no longer dictates the territory’s organization, but the coal controlled the territorial logic. This resulted in a denial of the land and fragmentation of its interconnected systems. Water is banished from the daily environment and appears for certain purposes only, out of context, as a flow we can use whenever, wherever we want. Water’s viability for regions is a foreign to us and becomes a consumption good. Once used, it is perceived as waste. Water is guided in the fastest way possible towards the river or not connected at all when it disappears in pipes underground. River are no longer perceived in their totality, but are divided in invisible boundaries by different counties, different ownerships, different types of soil that provide different habitats, etc. Exclusion of water’s interconnectivity in our daily life, the used waste water, just got dumped into the landscape, resulting in pollution of the river. Whether categorically separated or not, water has its own logic and need space. When acting in a different way than we expect, water flows are reported as problems, rather than to question our relationship towards the system. When rivers flood, they remember us where they used to be.
Cumbria coal Air
Due to their scale, coal infrastructure often lead to conflicts and incompatibility between infrastructure and its territory. The logic of the underground raw materials is in tension with the logic of the territory as it runs underneath existing landownership, boundaries and topographies. Extraction exerts monopolising control over a few strategic spaces that provide access to the raw material in the underground. Next to these points arise spoil heaps that leak fine particulates into the landscape, causing pollution.
Various degrees of minerals lead to different habitat creations, depending on the availability of minerals for the plants. The mining landscape could have a range of plants establishing. But the territory is dominate by sheep farming that reduces the biodiversity and results in monoculture of acid grassland.
Cumbria coal Grid
Applying the grid to the landscape, it will generate a whole series of random points, a whole range of different time-scales. Three random points on the grid will allow to observe the territory
Points touches three different conditions. Grassland condition, orange; River condition, blue; Urban condition - green. The project will use them as testing- points to apply the strategy.
Cumbria coal Grassland
Landscape dominated by grassland and sheep farms
Hedges marking different ownerships of grassland
Houses are enclosed by grassland
Cumbria coal Grassland
In agricultural areas, one of the main driving forces of landscape design processes is
of lands, which as accompanied by a widespread wastefulness. The sheep eat any new
the farming system which is linked to a regional differentiation of agriculture. The
growing specie whereby the whole area remains a monoculture of grassland.
Cumbrian landscape is extensive sheep farmland. This have led to the disappearance
The void is fixed in hard hedge boundaries that does not allow the landscape to change.
of physical elements like embankments and drains resulting in a loss of definition
Peoples garden have more biodiversity than the surrounding landscape and thus play a
and the grassland, local species have an opportunity to emerge and they can start to
significant part in providing local habitat. By changing the edge between the hamlets
reconquer the monoculture grassland.
Cumbria coal River
The river Derwent, flowing between fenced grassland
Side stream, draining water from the fields toward the river Derwent
Cumbria coal River
The river has lost her historical relevance. The form of planned neighbourhoods are
size of the related parcels, because a lot of these lands are drained which can result in the cut
determining the landscape. They are planned without any relation with the surface, but relates
off of streams from the river. The disconnection of these streams to the river creates a feeling
to an invisible coal layer in the underground. The river, running through the landscape is
of malaise and absurdity which is accompanied by a more widespread wastefulness.
forgotten and neglected. By taking the river into account, it is also important to look to the
Flooding
Grass as river vegetation
Sheep can enjoy the river
Isolated between hedges
The river is long, so there are different typologies that change along this river. Landscapes of
arise a new artifice and use the river as backbone to connect villages, city and countryside
agriculture, parks, villages, cities, etc. They have all different relations with the river and one
with each other.
needs to bring this into account. It is not about imitating forms, found in nature, but playing with them. In this way, there can
River needs space
Riverine habitat creation
River becomes accessible
New connections - walking, cycling...
Cumbria coal Urban
Back of terraced houses border redundant infrastructure
Terraced houses next to mining entrances
Badly utilised streetscape dominated by cars
Houses in relation to the harbour and tidal river
Cumbria coal Urban
City’s morphology and economy is orchestrate by carbon and not rooted in
closures are perceived as problems and the city turns her back to her roots,
its topography. The valley that runs through Whitehaven is neglected. The
resulting in an accumulation of isolated fragments that can hardly be
neighbourhoods are grouped around the mining entrances as they were the
considered as a landscape. Instead of connecting zones, the mines became
places where people met each other and ware the centres of productivity.
buffer islands between the neighbourhoods.
As the economic activities of carbon extraction are no longer viable, mine
The collection of scattered pieces through the city lead to a widespread
doing so, the landscape will not be a fixed, ready-made container but a
wastefulness but at the same time, this fluid situation offers a lot of
field of multiple forces that allow new processes to happen along different
opportunities. By re-combining existing physical objects and flows, new
trajectories of time-scale.
landscape structures will allow spontaneously events can happen. In
Design Illusion of reality T he imagination that gives meaning to and mediates with the landscape
Define and release Design philosophy
Define and release is about starting with an explanation and ending with a question
By re-connecting the now fragmented local conditions, the design is not an
mark, to generate a open, flexible design approach. The project re-purposes the
invented utopia, but will give the landscape rooting in the environment. Various
existing infrastructure, optimises resources and connects existing flows with each
structures can emerge that will lead to differentiation - instead of fragmentation. In
other across multiple scales. The design does not want to restore a reality that has
different places, multiplicity of sets of transformations can develop.
disappeared but transform the currently waste-landscape in order to grow from a place of extraction into a place of production.
Dealing with earth, makes the alignments that constitute the elements of visual
Earth
continuity - connections- and of differentiation of the territory, able to organize the perception of the users and suggest the presence of mass covering the site. Earth is the solid modification that need to happen to initiate change.
Water on the lager scale correspond with strategic interventions to slow down the
Water
Air
water and delay the water in order to keep water longer on site, be able to store it and re-use when necessary. Earth’s transformations allow the landscape to act like a sponge.
Air is something we have influence on with vegetation. New green infrastructures will respond to the new flow of water due to transformations of the earth. Vegetation turn the area in a new carbon landscape.
Urban condition Whitehaven
Matthias reed A birds eye view of Whitehaven 1738
Starting to look to the physical structure of Whitehaven, in
As industry increased, so did the population. The regular plan could
combination with old pictures of the city, it reveals that the old hamlet
no longer hold and extra houses were built in gardens and around the
is located in the valley and functions as a spine between the valley and
mine entrances, up the valley sides. The territory transformed into
the water, between the coal mining areas and the rest of England.
unintended fragmented pieces that subdivide habitat areas into smaller
The cycling of mineral wealth through the city became fixated in the
and more vulnerable fractions. The city converted into a complex
open space. As one family got the ownership of the whole town, they
mechanism beyond anyone’s understanding. The complexity of various
outlined the territory. This enabled them to control the area to develop
autonomous systems, each with their own logic, meant that nobody
as they wished. A rationalized logic was placed across the territory,
could design or coordinate the whole region, city or even urban
creating tensions with the older logic of the fishing village layout. The
situation.
resulting newly created grid layout cut across established boundaries. This meant that existing dwellings were demolished because they
Closure of the mines result in the problems, know today. Land survey
blocked the project lines, needed for fabrication of long materials
shows a brutal justaposition of fragmented slabs of courtyards beyond
such as ropes, used in the mines. Due to the radical abstraction of the
fences, poor public space, redundant lots, brownfields and lots of
existing topography, the hidden raw energy-materials dominated the
concrete parking. There is no connection at all between the houses
city layout. Train lines, used for the transport of coal from excavation
and its agricultural hinterland, no connection between different
point at the mine entrances, spread out like a web into the landscape.
neighbourhoods and even no connection with its own valley running
This train line connected Whitehaven with the mines in its hinterland.
through the city. The cultural response became one of denial.
Valley
Neighbourhoods
Mine entrances
Old town is located between the sea and the valley and was
Neighbourhoods owe their origin to coal mine activities.
The mine entrances were the places where people met as they
accumulation point where trains and boats together
Closure of mines turned the mining entrances into buffer
were the centre of productivity.
The train - and road - line divide the town in town
zones that isolate the neighbourhoods from each other.
After industrialisation, they lost all their value.
Harbour not in use
They develop in islands with social and economic problems.
As they were left unused, they turned into ecological zones.
Undervalue of the territory by expanding with mega stores into the valley that lead to widespread wastefulness of space
They are disconnected, scattered green islands.
Urban condition Whitehaven
Actions
Possibilites
Quality of open space becomes rediscovered Removing artificial boundaries
Isolated islands will make connection with each other, with local topography and with surrounding landscape
Changing topography
Territory has the possibility to densify this will increase the social mix economic and social activities become effective
Water will adapt to new forms
By giving water a place in the city, water can infiltrate in the soil or stored for re-use Visible presence of water allow it to become backbone for future development
Water is a massive solvent,
Valley: black water treatment neighbourhoods:
pure water does not occur
grey water treatment
Vegetation structures will emerge
Vegetation creates a new carbon-based economy
they will create a new carbon
biofuel, nursery, fertilizers
landscape
and allow carbon to store into the landscape
Vegetation will deal with pollution on site
city creates connection with landscape in which it is embedded Can start to diversify the territory the from the city
Valley
Black water treatment gives the valley a new use in the city structure and creates new habitats
Mine entrance
Unstable redundant mining areas are stabilised over time by the process of natural succession
Neighbourhood communal garden
Removing the fences of the houses creates a large open communal garden
Neighbourhood streetscape
Water treatment generate new relationships in the street
Design strategy small scale
Confronted with the natural objects, the site has specific conditions, related
They tackle the area through re-framing the edge. Impenetrable, single functions boundaries will develop into wider spaces
to the characteristics of earth, water and air.
that allow synergetic system to take place. Once the open space is perceived as inhabited landscape, they start to do more than just providing the instrumental service. It
The neighbourhoods need new alliances between their physical elements, so
gives opportunities to the communities it serves.
the city can graft back into the language from which it is built. The design interventions don’t create plans, but tries to de-materialise the artificial environment in order to allow more living energy to be stored and re-used. To achieve the transformation, small-scale interventions will be developed according to the three different categories: earth, water and air.
Initial Living is detached from the landscape by fencing the whole area. Linear systems separate all movement to minimize conflict but it also blocks any further development. A shift in perception is needed to value the potential of connection through expansive surfaces. Risk will give new possibilities.
Earth This process starts with removing the noise that disconnects the living from the landscape. By removing the artificial boundaries, on open figure emerge where new opportunities sprout. Neighbourhoods are allowed to take their responsibility with respect to the new surrounded landscape by increasing the living density.
Water Site deals with flux of water as a potential urban growth. The strategy addresses multiple systems by making water a more connective element and manage storm water more productively.
Air The new created constructions will make new alignments between physical objects and the invisible field of nature life force that starts to organize the built environment and open space. Various vegetation habitats will grow on the new hydro-conditions.
Overview
Houses in relation to open space
Houses in relation to street
1. Earth Earth- Solid material, is the container. It stands for firmness through natural forces and human interventions. Once constructed, it becomes more than just a container of solid materials. To speak of earth requires to think about water, the slow forces that moulds, cracks and bores the earth. It also requires to think about air, empty space of opportunities and new processes that emerge on the surface. Speaking about earth represents another form of encounter with the local, with old foundations and traces. Working with earth consists of hollowing it out, penetrating it, moulding it and recognize the topography so it can guarantee the transfer of fluids.
EARTH - Neighbourhood configuration Texture plan
0 1 2
5
10
Dwellings are generic houses with no connection with the surrounding. The new materials used in the neighbourhoods will give the place a sense of locality by re-purposing existing, local resources. They not only use the energy ‘trapped’ in the body of the territory, but maintain historic marks in the new efforts. Limited amount of materials creates unity while it defines the space and gives it a new identity.
Local materials materials have smaller embodied energy adopted to the local sea-climate conditions boost local economy,
use waste material reduce costs: don’t have to buy raw materials or pay to dispose waste waste becomes resource Reduce the amount of materials of landfills
Legend
Street, entrance and terrace tiles Exposed aggregate concrete for extra grip Border bioretention pond White concrete, smooth finished to allow sitting Common garden Meadow Infiltration zone between entrances Pea gravel Bioretention pond
Constructed wetland
Garden wall and new buildings Red local masonry Reed
Dwellings
EARTH - Materiality audit Local materials
Using local materials give them a very low carbon footprint and lower their embodied energy - the sum total of the energy necessary for an entire product life cycle. The combined effect of rain and wind requires the use of suitable materials. Using local materials will be responsive to the environment as they will not deteriorate in time when exposed to local weather circumstances. Strong, durable materials will save energy as they require less - or no - replacement and will still perform their functions while aging.
Pea gravel
Red Local masonry
Washed up natural loose stones will allow rainwater to drain and give textural appeal.
Furness clay brick BS EN 771-1, F2
The design will use the pea gravel, the smaller, smoother and rounded version of river
Clay bricks are solid materials with long heritage in the area as it has substantial
rocks. They typically come in a range of tan, brown and white colour mixes. The gravel is
reserves of different sorts of clay and sands for brick-making.
uniform in size from 6 to 10 mm and provide a non-slip surface when wet.
The bricks will be use d in new houses as for the free standing walls in the gardens.
Pea gravel is capable of deterring the growth of weeds as it is difficult for plants to grow
The walls will we exposed to the full effects of the weather in therms of wind, rain and
because of the inferior ability to retain moisture.
frost. Made of local clay, the bricks stand local weather and frost as they are special saturated. Mortar strength mus not be weaker than 1:1:6
Use waste material
Re-using materials allows to think about the territory’s rhythms, life cycles and metamorphoses. Bringing unused waste material back into life cycles not only places the material back into circulation after a period of stagnation but also do not need new raw resources. Urban waste becomes a new resource by giving them a new use. Recycling saves a substantial part of the embodied energy by focussing what exists in the territory.
Changes of concrete to zeolite-concrete
Exposed aggregate grey zeolite concrete C35-45
Normal concrete
Cement
Water
larger granulates smaller granulates
Responsible for 5 - 7 % of annual C02 exhaust Requires lot of energy during production process
Sulfate attack on concrete,
Smooth finished white zeolite concrete C35-45
SO42when it is exposed to:
contaminated soil groundwater - rain ...
causing expansive chemical reactions in cementious matrix
development of cracks - other aggressive species can penetrate
Zeolite - Concrete
C35-45 meets the requirements of severe coastal conditions: high rainfall, wetting and drying, salt spay and freezing. Different surface finishes are applied to the concrete. The exposed aggregate
Zeolite
Cement
Water
larger granulates smaller granulates
will give the concrete more rough surfaces in order to give it extra grip when walking, cycling or driving on it. The white concrete is smooth finished and will allow people to sit on it.
Replace up to 40% of cement energy saving and reduction in C0 emissions 2
high reactive with cement, increasing strength decreases permeability of structure (sulfate attack)
2. Water Formless Colourless Tasteless Odourless Moving Water has no own character, but it can always be guided. This will transform and enlivens the surrounding territory. As water has no form of its own, it is only its movement that makes it a design medium. The composition becomes a game that ceaselessly produce something new, not available in its immediate context. On the larger scale, water is about processes, on the smaller scale, it is about aesthetics.
WATER Goal
Initial state
Possibility
Whether visible or invisible, water plays an essential role in the viability of city regions and
By dealing with rainwater, the passive flow that disappear into the sewage system will be
urban living structures. But we banish visible flowing water from our daily environment and
set in motion by the interplay with the changing patterns of the community settlements
allow it to appear for certain purpose only, out of context, as a medium between tap and sink,
and seasonal variation. Water can return to the landscape, not just for irrigation, but to the
as drink in a bottle, rain in the street, etc. Water’s significance is foreign to us and becomes
ground, for the processes of the landscape’s natural systems. The process creates a whole
a consumption good. Once used, it is perceived waste and just flows away as sewage. But as
variety of rhythmical articulations of the flows in different forms.
black and grey water run along each other, they flow into each other in times of storm events and overflow into the landscape. This way of dealing with water is no longer efficient.
Most people don’t know what infrastructure serves them until it breaks down and because of that, their water, food - energy - supply is opaque. The new generation of infrastructure should be indexed above ground, so that people see how the city works.
Collect and slow down The process of dealing with water on site will lower the buildings overall contribution to energy and chemical use for water treatment and distribution.
Clean and re-use Pure water does not occur because water is such a powerful solvent that always interacts with its surrounding.
Articulation water flow Capture
Rain
Drain
Cascade of basins
Open hollow
Basin
Table
Channel
Evaporation
Overflow
Sink into porous ground
Absorption
Guide
Disappearing
WATER - Movement Rainfall
Slow down and collect rainwater keep water longer on site and allow to infiltrate into groundwater
Average rainfall 971 mm or 100 l year m2 year S: 26 m x 8 m = 208 m2 Rain: 208 m2 x 100 l = 20 800 l m2 year year
Subsurface irrigation
= 57 l day
Reed-sand filter
Terrace
Bioretention pond
Constructed wetland
Overflow
water is collected over a length of 26 meter 11 meter of rainfall at back of house
15 meter of rainfall at front of house
Rainwater falling on the roof of the house will run down through a ‘green-wall’
Rain water in front of the house will fall on hard surfaces and be guided to the
into the reedbed. Water falling on the terrace will also be guided towards the
constructed wetland. In order not to have all the water at the same time in the
reedbed. Both systems, the wall and the terrace, will enter the reedbed at same
wetland, the bioretention pond will capture the runoff from the roof, hold it and
point, the beginning of the cleaning process.
release the water over a longer time period.
In periods of heavy rain or when there water network receives more water then it
In case of storm events, the biorention pond and constructed wetland both have
uses, the leftover water will run into the subsurface irrigation system and run into
an overflow system, to allow the excess water to infiltrate into the soil under the
the garden where it can infiltrate into the soil.
pavement of the street.
Re-use
Clean and re-use water Above, less than half of the water we use needs to be cleaned to potable standard. We can clean water on site for non-potable use:
Potable city water usage
Savings by re-using water for non-potable activities
165 m3 / year
32 % of 144 l / day
18 % of 81 l / day
450 l / day
20 % of 90 l / day
14 % of 63 l / day
Subsurface irrigation
Reed-sand filter
Storage tank
Septic tank
UV-filter
Total saving: 84 % of 378 l / day
Potable water from city
Re-use back of house
UV-filter
Storage tank
Re-use front of house
Used water from the house will turn into grey or black water. Black water will be
Rain water falling on the front of the house will fall on hard surfaces and pick up
treated in the valley, while the grey water will be cleaned between the houses.
pollution. Therefore, it will collected in an constructed wetland where it will be
The grey water will run through the septic tank that acts as primary treatment
cleaned. At the end of the process, the treated water be collected in a storage tank
chamber for the settling of solids and will start the anaerobe breakdown of
from where it can used for flushing toilet, washing machine, etc.
pollutants. The wastewater leaving the tank will be treated in an aerated reed bed
If people want to have potable water and use the water in the kitchen, they can
and sand filter. This water can be re-used for toilet or for the laundry, shower or
insert an extra UV-filter before the water runs into the house.
bath if they have an UV-filter. Abundance of water will infiltrate into the soil via
If people don’t want an UV-filter, or in periods of droughts, people have potable
the subsurface irrigation, which also will work as overflow in times of heavy rain.
water from the city.
WATER - Bioretention pond Working system
1
3
2 8
4 9
5 7
7 6
White concrete, cast in-situ Smooth finished for comfortable sitting Exposed aggregate concrete tiles 1 m to 0,8 m Extra grip and continuity of paving Concrete unbonded overlays Existing pavement used as supporting base River bed gravel <10 mm mixed with zeolite Retain water Allow water to drain wetland vegetation - raingarden vegetation
Bioretention cell is designed to reduce the polluted runoff from the roof, by slowing the flow of water down. Water entering the retention pond is visible in the open slit in the concrete border (2). As water moves through the retention pond, it is slowed down and treated by a variety of physical, chemical and biological processes (5) before it leaves the system (6). The scraped top-soil from gardens can be used as soil substrate for the vegetation. As well as treating the water, the bioretention pond opens a new dialogue between the building and streetscape by elevating the edge. Flow of water: 1. down spout 2. open slit in the concrete border 3. different drains to guide rainwater into the basin 4. forebay to prevent soil from erosion of water falling out of the drians and hold
water until it has the opportunity to infiltrate - or ponding zone
5. cell with different media, vegetation and microorganisms to retain and filter water 6. outlet drain from where water flows into the channel
0,45 m
7. overflow drains flowing into the channel 8. channel running under the bioretention pond
0,5 m
9. zone against splashing water and allows to clean the window
1,6 m
0,4 m
2,5 m
0,45 m section AA 1/50
0,6 m
1m 1,6 m
0,6 m
5,3 m 6,2 m
0,3 m
WATER - Bioretention pond detailed plan section AA
1. down spout 3. Drains 4. Forebay
A. sloped in situ concrete, 2% C35-45 B. waterproof membrane, PVC to protect concrete C. metal curb, stainleess steel to cover water tight seal D. gravel, 8 mm to avoid splashing water E. perforated soil retention curb, 3mm stainless steel F. root barrier, EPDM to protect all surfaces of roots G. drainage layer, expanded clay to drain, aerate and store water for vegetation
L K
5
J
10
I H G
F E B A
1/5
5. Bioretention cell 10. Outlet chamber with pipe boot connection protected with a filter sock
H. filter layer, geotextile prevent fine particles not to clog the drain I.
soil medium, local clay-loam soil plus humus allow plants to grow
J.
vegetation
K. steel reinforcement bars D12 L. steel reinforcement mesh M. prefabricated concrete, C35-45 1
2
M 3 L K
5
J
4
I
H G F E D C B A
1/5
WATER - Bioretention pond detailed plan section BB
1. down spout 3. Drains 5. Bioretention cell 6. Outlet drain A. sloped in situ concrete, 2% C35-45 B. waterproof membrane, PVC to protect concrete C. gravel, 8 mm to avoid splashing water D. perforated soil retention curb, 3mm stainless steel E. root barrier, EPDM to protect all surfaces of roots 1
F. drainage layer, expanded clay to drain, aerate and store water for vegetation
3
5
9 I H G F E D C B
A
1/5
7. Overflow drain 8. Channel running under biorention pond 9. Splashing zone
G. filter layer, geotextile prevent fine particles not to clog the drain H. soil medium, local clay-loam soil plus humus allow plants to grow I. vegetation J. steel reinforcement bars D12 K. steel reinforcement mesh
7
K J
I H G F
6
E D B
8
A
1/5
WATER - Channel
7m 21 m
21 m 0,25 m
21 m
21 m 0,13 m
0,25 m
0,13 m
0,25 m
0,25 m
The channel will guide the water leaving the bioretention to the constructed wetland. As the channel canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be too long to avoid increasing hight, one channel system can capture water from three bioretention cells. In the beginning the channel has a hight of 0,13 m hight and increase towards 0,25 m hight over a length of 21 meter. Two channels will come together in one wetland of 42 meter.
Grate, to protect people not to step into the drain
0,13 m to 0,25 m
keep debris out of the drain
Polydrain, Good chemical resistance, resulting in lower water absorption 0,15 m
The concrete does not degradate by salt, most acids and alkalis
Built-in slope 0,6% : flow velocities 1 m/s
To reduce debris build up in the drain channel.
WATER - Constructed wetland Working system
Subsurface wetland 1 Wetland Vegetation, roots create an ideal situation for micro-organism to grow.
The constructued wetland receives water from two channels or 6 bioretention ponds. As the wetland is filled with gravel and planted with vegetation, water undergoes a cleaning via physical, chemical and biological interactions between the water, plants, micro-organisms, gravel and
will insulate the gravel so the wetland can function in winter
2 Water remains below the surface in a subsurface wetland,
atmosphere. At the end of the process, the treated water will be stored in a storage tank. The wetlands change the physical layout of the street, reducing the dominance of the car. The wetland requires a minimum of 40% open water. This makes the wetland not one large inaccessible buffer zone of 42 meter long, but it becomes a flexible zone with spaces to cross and obser the wetland at different places.
No health risk for people, as it is public accessible
little risk for odours
no breeding place for insects
3 Distribution zone,
non-soil substrate of pea gravel, 10 mm
4 Impermeable liner, PVC 0,75 mm between two geo-textile to prevent liner against roots 5 Storage tank, collect treated water before it is used in the houses
Tank store 5 % of annual amount of rainfall, 971 mm / year
One wetland collects water from 6 houses
5% of annual rainfall x buildings footrpint x 0,9
0,05 x 971 x 600 x 0,9 = 26 217 l
1 2 3 4
0,53 m 0,6 m 2 3 6,6 m
5 Average household of 4 persons: tank will be used for 378 l /day => 26 217 = 11,56 days water in tank 378 x 6 for 5% annual amount => 11, 56 x 20 = 231 days a year water in tank
WATER - Constructed wetland Dimensions
Dimension data Maximum monthly flow Q: Rainfall:
971 mm / year or 50 mm / day
Initial treatment zone
2m
30% of Length
Fractured bedrock
Will perform most of the treatment
40 - 80 mm
Capture water from 6 bioretention cells: 6 x 50 m2 = 300 m2 => Q = 50 mm x 300 m2 = 15 m3 day day Maximum monthly influent BOD, Co:
Inlet zone
20-30 mm gravel
big decrease hydrolic conductivity (K=1% of 100 000 m/d )
100 g / m3
ALR: 6 g / m2 / day
2m
Required depth:
12 m
Water depth at inlet DW0: 0,4 m Media depth Dm:
0,6 m
max headloss initial treatment zone dhi = 10% Dm = 0,06 m Bottom slope 0,5%
Dimension calculation 1. Surface area needed for flow: Darcyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s law A = Q. Co = 250 m2 ALR Initial treatment zone Ai = 30 % of A = 0,3 x 250 m2 = 75 m2 Final treatment zone
6,6 m
Af = 70 % of A = 0,7 x 250 m2 = 175 m2
2. width and length: Width: W2 = Q . Ai = 46,8 m K . dhi . Do
W = 6,6 m
Length initial treatment: Li = Ai / W = 10,9 m
-> 12 m
Length final treatment: Lf = Af / W = 25,5 m
-> 27 m
Total length treatment = 2 m + 10,9 m + 25,5 m + 1 m = 39,4 m Average length one house: 7 meter -> 6 houses = 42 m. OK 3. Bottom elevations Elevation of bottom at outlet Ebe = 0 m Elevation of bottom at beginning of final treatment Ebf = s . Lf = 0,005 x 25,5 m = 0,13 m Elevation of bottom at inlet Eb0 = s . (Li + Lf) = 0,005 x (10.9 x 25,6) = 0,18 m 4. Water surface elevation Elevation of water surface at beginning of final treatment zone Ewf = Ebf + Dwf = 0,13 m + 0,4 m = 0,53 m Elevation of water surface at outlet Ewe = Ewf - dhf = 0,52 - 0,01 m = 0,52 m Elevation of water surface at inlet Ew0 = Ewf + dhi = 0,52 m + 0,06 m = 0,59 m
0,59 m 0,18 m 0,53 m 0,13 m
Final treatment zone
outlet zone
70% of Length
1m
little change in hydrolic conductivity (K=10% of 100 000 m/d )
Fractured bedrock
20-30 mm gravel
40 - 80 mm
27 m
1m
42 m
0,52 m 0m
WATER - Reed bed Working system
5,5 m 2,2 m
1. Primary treatment tank
Wastewater flows into a primary treatment tank to remove large solids and oils.
4.Reed tidal flow system
wastewater undergoes a complex series of natural treatment process Tidal flows result in higher pollutant removal
2. Terrace concrete tiles
Reed beds detain the water for a period of 5-7 days to settle and break down nutrients
Rainwater falling on the shot-blasted pavement, will slip on top of the primary treatment tank that has a slope of 2%. The are lying on pedestals so they can be removed if the tank need to be cleaned. The water will be guided by the ceiling of the treatment tank towards the beginning of the reed bed filter system.
3. Garden wall
Water falling on the back of the roof will be guided towards the reed bed via the garden wall. This wall provide storage place to store outdoor materials such as barbecues and garden material and has bench that can contain vegetation.
A. Impermeable liner, PVC 0,75 mm between two geo-textile liners to prevent liner against roots B. Gravel, 10-20 mm and around intlet and outled, gravel: 50-100 mm C. planted with macrophytes D. The inlet and outlet pipes, below gravel and surface to minimising the risk of exposure to the
wastewater, mosquito breeding, unpleasant odours
Dimensions
Surface area needed for one person: 3 m2 Average household 4 persons: 12 m2 length/width ratio: 4:1 to 1:1 length reedbed : 5,5 m - total width terrace is 7 m width reedbed: 2,2 m - total width terrace is 6 m
3
2 D
1
4
C B A
WATER - Spatial relationships
By transforming the artificial boundaries into larger surfaces, new subdivided spaces give the impression of a coherent area where biodiversity is enhanced by different techniques to deal with runoff water and where peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s relations change. The front places of peoples house are converted from litter storage places into front gardens. The range of available raingarden vegetation will express the owners identity and at the same time make a statement about living in a neighbourhood. The dominance of the car is reduced by the constructed wetland that respond to its surrounding by providing bike storage places as sitting elements and allows people to cross the wetland at different places from where the wetland vegetation and habitats can be observed. By removing the garden walls, a inner courtyard becomes visible that gives opportunity to give a hidden green oasis to the inhabitants. This space is located between the private outdoor spaces that is protected from view by the reed bed filter system. The garden can correspond to different habitats and programs and accomplish the different activities to coexist in mutual interference. Through various openings along the edge, this inner oasis can become part of a green network between different neighbourhoods. Each courtyard will have its own character as the vegetation will change the visual impact.
3. Air The earth meets the needs of anchorage, water guides and allow flows to stay in the landscape. Air offers the possibility of expansion, opening and taking off processes of change that can happen on the created basis. The physical presence can be intellectually and analysed and sensually perceived. We can see, feel hear and even smell it. Events that take place are mixed up with things that have not happened yet or that never will happen. Air will be in a permanent change and metamorphose unpredicted multiple circumstances, intentions and accidents.
VEGETATION Philosophy
Wildflower meadow with oak woodland trees
Reed bed filter
Raingarden vegetation
Wetland vegetation
The inner courtyard will blur the boundaries between isolated gardens and their surrounding. This
Water that is flowing through the landscape will allow new process to establish.
will create a large communal garden where light can penetrate. This light will play with the space as
The front gardens will allows people to express a personal identity while at the some time, they
the different oak woodland trees will filter the light in a different way. The different light-intensities
provide a sense of locality by contributing to wildlife habitat. This bioretention pond will compose
will be visible in the wildlfower meadow that correspond and change to the change of light. The
raingarden vegetation that will be able to withstand both extremes of very wet periods and drought,
gardens can empower the area by allowing the wildflower to colonize the landscape.
and sun and shade.
As the trees will grow, pruned, coppiced, die, etc, the meadow will always respond, resulting in a
The wetland will compose of wetland vegetation that filter the water and change the visual quality of
garden tat always is in progress and evolution.
the neighbourhood.
Peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s private space is buffered from the communal garden by the reed bed filter that provide a screen.
The Acreage of gardens in England is greater than the acreage of nature reserves. Thus, gardens play a significant part in providing fauna en flora habitat. By giving local, ignored wildlife species a place in the garden, they can start to reconquer the surrounding landscape. Time and space will come together in the mosaic of vegetation. Proper and continued development of amenities and wildlife functions requires ongoing and active management that respond to unpredictable movements.
Create living landscape out of historic abandoned land Inhabitants maintenance will help to evolve the landscape in both ecological rich and locally distinct space. Sense of ownership can be increased through involvement of community in the design process, planing days, educational events and so on.
Use local vegetation Local-wild plants will support regional habitats and anchor the generic neighbourhood in its specific environment. It will maintain links with the past while provide opportunities for the future. By embracing local, ignored species, the garden will have the power to change what surround them in the landscape.
The way the plants will remove nutrients and heavy metals are considered together with their potential for enhancing the public function of the space and attracting wildlife. When pollutants enter the wetland, they are acted upon by biological, chemical and physical interactions between the wastewater, plants, micro-organism, soil and atmosphere.
VEGETATION - bioretention pond Raingarden vegetation
Constructed wetland: vegetation will grow on scraped clay-loam top-soil from gardens
Raingarden vegetation
Ajuga reptans
Campanula glomerata
Bugle 9 m2
Clustered bellflower 5 m2
Caltha palustris
Eupatorium cannabinum
Marsh marigold 7 m
2
Hemp agrimony 5 m
2
Iris foetidissima
Filipendula ulmaria
Stinking gladwin 7 m2
Meadowsweet 5 m2
Iris pseudacorus
Helleborus foetidus
Stinking hellebore 5 m
2
Lysimachia vulgaris
Yellow loosestrife 7 m2
Lythrum salicaria
Yellow flag 7 m
2
Purple loosestrife 5 m
2
Rudbeckia fulgida
Succisa pratensis
Serratula tinctoria
Valeriana off icinalis
Orange coneflower 7 m2
Saw-wort 2 m
Devilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bit 7 m2
Valerian 3 m2
2
Sedge - Rush - Grasses
Butomus umbellatus
Flowering rush 7 m2
Carex nigra
Common sedge 4 m2
Carex pendula
Pendulous sedge 5 m2
Carex rostrata
bottle sedge 3 m2
Planting plan
Deschampsia cespitosa
Tufted hair-grass 5 m2
Molinia caerulea
Purple moor-grass 6 m2
Trichophorum cespitosum Deergrass 3 m2
Management
Species illustrate a possible list of vegetation that can withstand both wet and dry conditions ans
The roots competition of the grasses will allow the perennials to follow their normal growth
sun and shade. Inhabitants can experiment themselves with other species as this will enhance a
pattern and not outgrow each other. Weeding and watering in periods of drought will be necessary
diverse streetscape. The hight of the species is something to consider in order not to block the view
in the first to years and some thinning in later years as the plants mature.
from the windows and will vary corresponding the amount of sun in the bioretention pond.
Once the garden has matured and the plants have established their thick root system, the weeds
As starting point, plants will be planted in groups of 3 to 7 to give a bolder statement of colour and
will naturally decline and the front garden will be maintained with little effort.
texture. The grass species will provide a permanent year-round green field, while the perennials will emerge in different periods of the year, giving seasonal accent and changing over the years as the plants will intermingle in a natural way. This will give the front garden a natural aesthetic that is flexible and can develop over time.
VEGETATION - constructed wetland Wetland vegetation
Edge vegetation
Acorus Calamus
Butomus umbellatus
Alisma plantago-Aquatica
Epilobium palustre
Sweet Flag 7 m2
Great water plantain 7 m2
Glyceria fluitans
Flowering rush 7 m2
Water mannagrass 5 m2
Marsh willow herb 4 m
2
Iris pseudacorus
Yellog flag 7 m
2
Juncus effusus
Soft rush 2 m2
Menyanthes trifoliata
Ranunculus lingua
Sparganium erectum
Phalaris arundinacea
Scirpus sylvaticus
Typha Latifolia
Potamogeton natans
Sagittaria sagittifolia
Stratiotes aloides
Bogbean 2 m2
Mentha aquatica
Water mint 6 m
2
Canary grass 5 m2
Great spearwort 5 m2
Wood club-rush 4 m2
Bur reed 6 m2
Reedmace 8 m2
Open water vegetation
Callitriche platycarpa various-leaved
water-starwort 3 m2
Callitriche stagnalis
Common water-starwort 4 m2
Hydrocharis morsus ranae Frogbit 3 m2
Phragmites australis
Common reed 4 m2
Planting plan
Broad-leaved pondweed 2 m2
Arrowhead 3 m2
Water soldier 1 m2
Management
The compact form of the wetland is subject to large fluctuations in water level. The plants are
The plants are competitive-type growers and tend to fight out for space. The open water ratio need
adapted to specific wetting and drying cycles, sun and shade. A range of evergreen emergent and
to remain around 3:7 to maintained the ecological utilisation. The wetland need to be checked the
submergent plants remain active throughout the year and will enhance the ecological and visual
first and second year to ensure that the plants establish and remove invasive species. It require a
interest. The emergent plants will remove nutrient, metals and biotoxins directly fro the water.
significant maintenance between the 15 and 25 years.
Submergent plants will achieve the same result when they are physically removed from the water
remove invasive vegetation and plant new species of necessary
or eaten by herbivorous aquatic animals like grass carp, tilapia and nutria.
maintain adequate water depths.
The wetland will function as artificial ecosystem due to the combination of plants that show a
Monitor sediment accumulation and remove periodically
high level of compatibility and so remain relatively stable with little maintenance. However, some
remove decaying algae and macrophytes
natural processes are dynamic, so change is inevitable and the wetland plants tend to obey their
When vegetation need to be replaced, the treatment need to continue. Thus only sections of the
own rules.
bed should be removed at one time and maintain at least 35-40% coverage.
VEGETATION - reed bed
Macrophyte species
Cladium mariscus Saw-sedge
Eleocharis palustris
Common spikerush
Raingarden vegetation
Ajuga reptans
Bugle 9 m2
for reed bed
Lycopus europaeus Gypsywort
Phragmites australis
Schoenoplectus Lacustris
Typha orientalis
Rudbeckia fulgida
Succisa pratensis
Valeriana off icinalis
Common reed
Bulrush
Broadleaf cumbungi
for the garden wall
Iris pseudacorus
Yellow flag 7 m2
Lythrum salicaria
Purple loosestrife 5 m2
Orange coneflower 7 m2
Planting plan Reed bed
Devilâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bit 7 m2
Valerian 3 m2
...
Management Reed bed
When sitting on the terrace, people be hidden behind the screen of macrophytes vegetation that
Gloves need to be worn when undertaking maintenance
works as a buffer to create intimate zone in the communal garden. But the vegetation is more
Checking the blockages in inlet/outlet
than just buffer. It will treat the water within the reed bed and need therefore be planted 4 to 5
Clean the effluent filter
plants per square meter. The denser they are planted, the better and it is important the plants do
Cleaning the primary treatment tank every three to five years to remove accumulated sludge
not dry out.
Remove dead material Harvest
Planting design - Garden wall The vegetation used in the garden wall can be the raingarden vegetation, people use at the front of their houses as these plants can have both periods of wet and dry conditions and both sun and
Harvest material can either be mulched onto the reed or removed Harvest in late spring to maximise the amount of nutrients that are removed when the plant send out new shoots when the weather gets warmer
shade. The continuity in vegetation will connect the front and back of the houses with each other.
Garden wall See maintenance of the raingarden vegetation.
VEGETATION - inner courtyard Garden
Disturbed soil
Meadow
Trees
Much of biodiversity is lost due to eutrophication of soils, resulting
Gone due to increased fertility, but not forgotten are the hay
The key of having diverse courtyards lies in the continuity of
in an ‘obese’ landscape. Hefty seed banks of perennial weeds and
fields meadows full of rich and vibrant wildflowers as they became
management practice. Management of wildflowers, but also
grasses dominate as the soil is too fertile.
victims of increased herbicide use and ‘improved’ agricultural
introduction of trees that will give a new scale to the urban
Species-rich sites have a stressful nature, such as low soil fertility,
practice in the area. They were characterised by a dense growth
condition. Based on the local oak-woodland tree species, a
water stress of wetland, light stress of woodland, etc. The destroyed
of grasses and herbaceous plants, buzzing with both colour and
uniformity with the hinterland is created. By introducing different
ground that is the result from removing fences and walls between
beneficial insects. It gives people the choice how to move and
sizes of trees, the meadow will respond to the light change.
the gardens, can be seen as a first stress-factor to establish a
decide how to use the space in order to inhibit it.
This will create harmony and at the same time create distinctive
meadow.
If meadows flower well, they can become donor sites from where
characteristics, that allow identification and continuity as the
meadows can expand into the countryside
vegetation will link the different neighbourhoods with each other and with the surrounding landscape.
VEGETATION - inner courtyard Soil preparation
Year one Spring
1. Disturbed Soil
After romving the fences and walls, pick up the
Autumn
2. Topsoil stripping, 18 cm
To remove nutrient rich topsoil. As this is good
3. Plough
One meter ploughing on the stripped ground to
clutter from the garden to prevent later damging
compost, it can be sold to fund the wildflower
bury leftover weed seed banks. This process will
of machinery used to create and maintain the
sowing or be used in the bioretention pond.
bring more subsoil, lower in nutrients, to the surface.
meadow.
Year two Spring
4. Spot-treat unwanted emerging weeds
The weed seedbank can be viable for 70 years.
5. Harrow
The seeds will germinate close surface, so the
6. Sow wildflower mix : annual cornfield perennial wildflowers
Germination is triggered by soil disturbance
harrow does not need to be deep. This pocket of
Bulk the wildflower mix up with sand or sawdust.
and exposure to light.
bare soil is ready for sowing.
This helps to spread the seed and shows where you have sown.
Establishment meadow
Year two Spring
7. Roll - or harrow -
To tickle seeds into soil with light scattering of soil to create a good seed - to - soil contact.
Summer
8. Cornfield wildflowers will flower
Cornfield flowers germinate very well on the
9. Create narrow path
The narrow paths will give access to the garden,
disturbed soil. The seedlings help to anchor the
without disturbing the young plants by random
shifting soil particles.
trampling. It allows to examine the growth and change and see the habitat life in the garden.
Year two Autumn
10. Mow at 50 mm + take up
More fertile soils need up to four cuts. Cuttings need to be removed to allow light to reach the developing seedlings.
Spring
11. Perennial wildflowers will flower
Autumn
12. Mow
Keep the sward short by regular mowing and removal. Mowed areas can be used as normal grass gardens.
VEGETATION - inner courtyard Wildflower meadow
Cornfield wildflowers
Agrostemma githago
Corn Cockle 30 %
Anthemis austriaca
100 %
Corn Chamomile 5 %
Bupleurum rotundifolium Thorow-wax 5 %
Centaurea cyanus
Cornflower 25 %
Chrysanthemum segetum Corn Marigold 15 %
Papaver rhoeas
Common poppy 10 %
â&#x20AC;&#x153;You reap what you sowâ&#x20AC;? The wildflowers are based on the local species that appear in Cumbria In order to avoid a monoculture of some dominant species, a percentage is made, based on the Emorsgate seeds wildflower mixes.
1 meter
Year one: Annual Cornfield wildflowers Corn act as nurse crop to shelter perennial seedlings. They have a transitory role: they disappear once the perennials and grasses start to flower the next year Give a thin scattering of colour and pleasure but it is the developing the perennial that is important
1 meter
Year two: Perennial wildflowers Combination of spring and summer wildflowers will give a prolonged display, responding to different conditions
Silene noctiflora
Clammy Cockle 10 %
Perennial wildflowers
20%
Achillea Millefolium
Euphrasia off icinalis
Knautia arvensis
Lotus corniculatus
Polygonum bistorta
Ranunculus acris
Silene vulgaris
Centaurea nigra
Galium verum
Lathyrus pratensis
Malva moschata
Primula Elatior
Rhinanthus minor
Stachys off icinalis
Conopodium majus
Geranium pratense
Leontodon hispidus
Narcissus pseudonarcissus
Primula veris
Sanguisorba off icinalis
Trifolium pratense
Cardamine pratensis
hyacinthoides non scripta
Leucanthemum vulgare
Plantago lanceolata
Primula vulgaris
Silene dioica
Trollius europaeus
cynosurus cristatus
Festuca ovina
Festuca rubra
Phleum bertolonii
Yarrow 0,4 %
Common knapweed 1,4 %
Pignut 0,2 %
lady’s smock 0,8 %
Eyebright 0,1 %
Lady’s bedstraw 1,2 %
Meadow cranesbill 0,2 %
Bluebell - bulb
Field scabious 1,1 %
meadow vetchling 0,1 %
Rough hawkbit 0,4 %
Oxeye daisy 1,2 %
Perennial, non-competitive grasses
Agrostis capillaris
Common brent 10 %
anthoxanthum odoratum
Sweet Vernal grass 1 %
Birdsfoot trefoil 1,0 %
Musk mallow 0,4 %
Wild daffodil - bulb
Ribwort plantain 0,8 %
meadow bistort 1,4 %
Oxlip 0,7 %
Common cowslip 0,9 %
Primrose 0,8 %
meadow buttercup 1,4 %
Yellow rattle 0,8 %
Great Burnet 1,1 %
Red Campion 0,8 %
Bladder campion 1,1 %
Wood betony 0,3 %
Red clover
0,6 %
Globeflower 0,8 %
80%
Briza media
Quaking grass 3 %
Crested dog’s-tail 32 %
Sheep’s fescue 10 %
Creeping red fescue 20 %
Smaller cat’s tail 4 %
VEGETATION - inner courtyard Establishing meadow
Meadow variation
1 meter
The meadows will establish differently in relation to microclimate, such as local variations in soil fertility and drier or wetter soil. The use of the garden can influence the hierarchy of the flowers as by active use of the garden, the soil will be more routed. This will allow more seeds to get nested. The management regime will dictate if spring or summer wildflowers will emerge. A lot of variation will emerge, depending on the
Local variation meadow
degree of control and non-control.
Balance meadow
The balance of species may take several years to settle down as germination is unpredictable. But the meadow will return year upon year without
1 meter
necessitating top-ups of human sowing. The plants will evolve together and many species are interdependent for their survival. Overall species richness will increase with the majority of meadows getting better with time.
Spring wildflowers
1 meter
Summer wildflowers
Maintenance
1 meter
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
June
July
Aug
Sept
Oct
Nov
Dec
Spring wildflowers
Summer wildflowers
The key to diversity in the meadow lies in the continuity of low input management practice, follow the same principles of traditional hay-meadows cutting and grazing. Different cutting regimes will change the hierarchy of the meadow: spring or summer wildflowers
Cutting of hay, baling and removing after flowering is finished leave hay on the ground for few days - 3 to 5 to allow animals to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;escapeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;
mowing the meadows
Mimic the technique of grazing animals, giving the grass regular cuts. The cuttings should be removed to allow light to reach developing seedlings.
shed seeds back into meadow or harvest them they can be used immediatly where needed or saved to create a meadow elsewhere
Rake or harrow the field
Stop mowing
to create gaps that will allow new seeds to shed back
To allow seeds to grow
These are normally made by the hooves of the grazing animals.
ground nesting birds can nest in growing sward
VEGETATION - inner courtyard Establish trees
Year Five Autumn
Reinforce pathways
People will have used and moved through the space.
Plant trees
Plant trees on a grid, but allow new changes
Planting extra flowers
Plant bulb spring flowers of bluebells and daffodil
Reinforce the spontaneous created paths with a
corresponding to use of space. The trees will
and sow spring wildflowers mixed with sand.
geogrid.
establish well on deep ploughed ground, as result of
They flower during the critical period of suitable light
more friable soil structure and moisture held in soil.
level when trees are not in leaves.
Year two Spring
Meadow will change
Degree of shade will change the hierarchy of flower
Management trees
To prevent the development of excessive shade,
Grid will change over time
Corresponding to the use of the garden and natural
species. Open canopy of oak, ash and birch will lead
pruning of the trees will allow light to the meadow.
succesion of trees. The ever changing game of light
to more diverse selection of species.
Dormant seeds will pop-up until the shade will
and shade will result in a diverse community of
More dense shade of beech will limit the range of
dominate again.
plants without the need for introductions.
plants that are able to grow.
Oak woodland tree species
Acer campestre Field maple
Betula pendula Silver birch
Fagus sylvatica Beech
Fraxinus excelsior Ash
Prunus avium Wild cherry
Quercus robur common oak
Sorbus aucuparia Rowan
Whitehaven contains oak-woodland vegetation. These trees are the basic components to create different atmospheres in the communal gardens.
1. Quercus robur
The oak grows straight up and require little if any pruning to create good form. The crown forms an open structure with large branches.
40 %
2. Betula pendula
20 %
10 %
10 %
10 %
Birch trees are small, medium-sized trees, up to 30 meter. The crown will evolve from oval-shaped in the narrow to pyramid-shape in the open.
60 %
3. Prunus avium
10 %
20 %
10 %
10 %
10 %
10 %
Wild cherry is a large, spreading tree up to 30 meter. It forms a natural pyramid shape becoming rounded with age
40 %
20 %
20 %
VEGETATION - inner courtyard Change meadows
More open canopy oak diverse mix of spring and semi-shade tolerant summer flowers under the tree
1 meter
Summer wildflowers
Spring wildflowers
Summer wildflowers
More dense canopy beech limited range of wildflowers species underneath the tree
1 meter
Summer wildflowers
Spring wildflowers
Summer wildflowers