Sustainable Landscape Design Eco-friendly landscaping ideas & information

Sustainable Landscape Design

Eco-friendly landscaping ideas & information

The main goals of sustainable landscape design are to minimize both the input of resources and the output of waste in our yards and gardens. In order to achieve these eco-friendly aspirations, residential garden owners should treat water as a resource, value the soil, preserve existing plants and conserve materials.

Whether you are starting your landscaping from scratch or revamping an existing garden, you can make choices that are sustainable. Some strategies include using recycled materials in your landscape such as broken concrete or salvaged metal, mulching your garden beds, installing permeable paving, planting drought-tolerant trees and perennials, and using a passive solar landscape design that maximizes sun exposure in the winter and shade in the summer. Upgrading to sustainable landscaping is not only a good choice for the environment, it can also save you money on utility expenses and through sustainable landscaping rebates. The amount of maintenance required for your yard will also be reduced dramatically.

Get these tipsIn this section, you'll find tips from landscaping professionals who specialize in sustainable design on:

• The four key principles of sustainable landscaping and what each entails.
• What type of landscaping upgrades may qualify for sustainable landscaping rebates, where your city will reimburse you after the completion of your project.
• Where sustainable landscaping rebates are being offered and how to apply.
• Ten ideas for using recycled materials in your landscape.
• The benefits of using permeable paving to prevent stormwater runoff and replenish the groundwater supply.
• Permeable paving options, including crushed stone, dry-laid pavers, open-celled grass pavers, and recycled materials.
• Four tips for planting a drought-tolerant landscape that will minimize watering requirements.
• Ideas for reducing landscaping maintenance time and costs, such as mulching and using low-maintenance plants.
• Ways you can reduce the amount of lawn on your property to save on water usage.
• How to conserve water by zoning plants based on their watering needs.
• Keys to planting a successful kitchen garden, where you can grow your own herbs and vegetables.
• The benefits of using ornamental grasses in a sustainable garden.
• How to repurpose salvaged items, such as old watering cans or tires, for use as planters.
• The fundamentals of passive solar architecture, which uses the sun's energy to naturally heat a home during winter and keep it cooler in the summer.
• How to use trees in your landscape to reduce the costs of heating and cooling your home.
• Advice on orienting your garden to take advantage of sun exposure.
• A checklist for choosing the best trees for a sustainable landscape.
• Ideas for creating a courtyard that eliminates the need for a lawn.

Many landscaping professionals are experienced in sustainable landscaping techniques, materials and technologies.

Fulton Mall Rehabilitation Plans Spark Concerns

Plans are underway for the reconstruction of Fresno’s Fulton Mall – an early example of an outdoor pedestrian mall, significant for incorporating into its design one of the first displays of public modern art outside of a campus/institutional setting. This Modernistcorridor, which showcases work by local and regional artists, was designed by landscape architect Garrett Eckbo and completed in 1964 as part of architect and urban planner Victor Gruen’s master plan for downtown Fresno. A 2013 Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) with proposals that would threaten the integrity of the mall has raised concerns among members of The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TLCF), National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP), California Historical Society (CHS) and the California Preservation Foundation (CPF).

Fulton Mall, 2008, courtesy Tim Davis

As the city of Fresno has expanded outwards, it has seen the deterioration of its downtown core. This urban flight has led to high vacancy rates and the gradual disintegration of the public infrastructure. In August 2008, TCLF added Fulton Mall to its Landslide® list, in response to its diminished condition and ongoing discussion to open the pedestrian-only street to vehicles.

In 2010 the City of Fresno began a process to explore alternatives to invigorate the downtown spine, engaging experts and members of the public to create an option that was amenable to all parties as well as a transparent review process. The city assembled a team of consultants that met during a Fulton Corridor Specific Plan Community Advisory Committee Meeting (FCSPCAC) in September 2010. Discussion focused on the corridor’s six central blocks and adjacent cross streets. In a second meeting the public was presented with a series of design alternatives. Participants in this second meeting, a charrette called the Fulton Corridor Specific Plan Design Workshop, which was led by architect and urban designer Stefanos Polyzoides, included TCLF president Charles Birnbaum, preservationists and other consultants. Three separate tactics to address the mall’s deteriorated condition were examined: retain the corridor as pedestrian only; open the street up to vehicular traffic; or create a hybrid option, opening up some streets to vehicular traffic while maintaining the pedestrian core.  Commentary from the workshop resulted in the production of ten alternatives that were presented to the FCSPCAC for a vote.

(upper) 2010; (lower) courtesy Tim Davis, 2008

The 21-member FCSPCAC, composed of residents, property and business owners, and experts in a variety of related fields, selected three of the ten concepts for further exploration during the environmental review process, though none featured a hybrid approach: 1. Reopen the street and remove the existing mall 2. Reopen the street keeping selected elements of the mall design as “vignettes”. 3. Restore the mall in its entirety. TCLF believes that none of these options represents a viable alternative and are instead a direct result of the city’s concern that a hybrid alternative may disqualify the project from receiving a specific federal transportation grant. Additionally TCLF believes that moving forward with the specified options could threaten the site’s eligibility for National Register of Historic Places listing.

Birnbaum developed a whitepaper during the charrette process that argued for a hybrid alternative, stating: “As discussed during the charrette, the idea of opening some of the cross streets to vehicular traffic has great merit. For example, in Charlottesville, VA two of the cross streets along the eight block mall have successfully been opened in recent years…” He goes on to issue a warning about the delicacy of such an approach: “In general, by opening the Mall to moving/parked vehicles there is a diminished integrity of design. These changes to accommodate vehicles will need to be viewed on a case-by-case basis, ideally guided by a set of overarching design principles that balance use, design and historic preservation.”

In response to these concerns The Cultural Landscape Foundation, National Trust for Historic Preservation, California Historical Society and the California Preservation Foundation provided their comments on the DEIR to Elliott Balch, Downtown Revitalization Manager of the City of Fresno. The letter, dated January 13, 2014, emphasized the need to consider a hybrid alternative stating: “The Coalition would very much like to see the City of Fresno take positive steps to reinvigorate its historic downtown, and to sensitively redevelop the Fulton Mall as a part

(upper) courtesy Tim Davis, 2008; (lower) 2010

 of that process. We believe that the City has the clear authority to adopt a hybrid alternative that will not compromise the integrity of the Fulton Mall to a degree that it would be ineligible for the National Register. Further, because several alternatives were analyzed in the DEIR, but rejected, selection of such an alternative will not require re‐circulation of the DEIR.” 

Chicago City Hall Rooftop Garden

by Christopher Parr in Green

Chicago’s most famous rooftop garden sits atop City Hall, an 11-story office building in the Loop. City Hall and the adjacent Cook County building appear to most people as one building spanning a city block bounded by LaSalle, Randolph, Clark and Washington streets. First planted in 2000, the City Hall rooftop garden was conceived as a demonstration project – part of the City’s Urban Heat Island Initiative – to test the benefits of green roofs and how they affect temperature and air quality. The garden consists of 20,000 plants of more than 150 species, including shrubs, vines and two trees. The plants were selected for their ability to thrive in the conditions on the roof, which is exposed to the sun and can be windy and arid. Most are prairie plants native to the Chicago region.

Like all green roofs, the City Hall rooftop garden improves air quality, conserves energy, reduces stormwater runoff and helps lessen the urban heat island effect. The garden’s plants reflect heat, provide shade and help cool the surrounding air through evapotranspiration, which occurs when plants secrete or “transpire” water through pores in their leaves. The water draws heat as it evaporates, cooling the air in the process. Plants also filter the air, which improves air quality by using excess carbon dioxide to produce oxygen.

The rooftop garden mitigates the urban heat island effect by replacing what was a ballasted, black tar roof with green plants. The garden absorbs less heat from the sun than the tar roof, keeping City Hall cooler in summer and requiring less energy for air conditioning. The garden also absorbs and uses rain water. It can retain 75% of a 1 inch rainfall before there is stormwater runoff into the sewers.

 

Baseado no conceito dos jardins verticais nasceu a Flower Box. Trata-se de uma caixa com plantas que é colocada na parede. Da gama de produtos fazem parte caixas de cartão, madeira, aluíinio e cerâmica e também estruturas com outras formas como tubos, totens e sacos. É uma solução interessante para espaços pequenos, com um potencial decorativo surpreendente. O produto teve origem em França e já existe uma loja em Portugal .