THINKING ABOUT LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
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Figure 6.1 A: Stone vessel garden, Chinese Academy of Art, Hangzhou, China; B: Doorway garden,Vence, France.
A project type is the equivalent term for category and in this chapter we will learn about the common project types landscape architects design, beginning with gardens. While it is convenient to present the range of design work done by landscape architects under project type headings, the reader will quickly realize there is an unavoidable blur and much cross-over between project types. But nonetheless, we shall proceed.
Gardens The word garden is freely used to cover a range of designed landscapes. In its narrowest sense, a garden is an outdoor space (open to the elements) for the display and enjoyment of plants and other natural elements (stone, wood, art, water). Specialized gardens are created to attract wildlife such as hummingbirds, butterflies, and dragonflies—yes, dragonflies. The activities of cultivation and care are associated with gardens, suggesting a degree of human toil in order for a garden to remain healthy and capable of functioning as intended. Cultivation involves systematic, routine maintenance and care. It takes work to care for and maintain a garden. The request by clients for a design that requires low maintenance does not mean no maintenance, as all gardens, regardless of the plants selected, irrigation system installed, and a variety of amenities, will still require maintenance if the garden is to survive, let alone flourish. One usually associates caring with a garden as opposed to a park or urban public landscape, where the personal activities required for caring for the garden are practical and not necessarily a personalized enterprise. A residential garden, for instance, might be created out of a love or appreciation for plants or for some utilitarian purpose such as a rain garden to collect and retain storm water. This is in contrast with a garden installed on the grounds of a commercial building where the need for a garden may have something to do with meeting a government requirement (landscape ordinance) or as an economic strategy for attracting customers, renters, and possibly investors. 112
