- - AGRICULTURE CORE CURRICULUM - - (CLF6000) Advanced Core Cluster: ORNAMENTAL HORTICULTURE (CLF6700) Unit Title: LANDSCAPING ____________________________________________________________________________ (CLF6705) Topic: DESIGN TECHNIQUES Time Year(s) 1 hour 3 / 4 ____________________________________________________________________________ Topic Objectives: Upon completion of this lesson, the student will be able to: Learning Outcome #: (M-2) - Prepare a simple landscape design. (M-3) - Prepare a landscape plot from a plan layout. Special Materials and Equipment: Drafting tools, landscape templates, architect scales, tracing vellum, landscape base plans, to fit under tracing vellum. References: Hannebaum, Leroy. (1981). LANDSCAPE DESIGN: A PRACTICAL APPROACH. Reston, VA: Reston Publishing Company. Ingels, Jack E. (1987). LANDSCAPING (3rd ed.). Albany, NY: Delmar Publishers. Editors of Sunset Books and Sunset Magazine. (1984). LANDSCAPING ILLUSTRATED. Menlo Park, CA: Lane Publishing Co. Evaluation: Unit Exam, and evaluation of activities described below. ===================================================================== *** INSTRUCTORS PLEASE NOTE *** The detail of this topic presentation goes beyond the scope necessary to meet the requirements of the Core Cluster in this area. It will take longer to teach than indicated above if covered entirely. It is included for local enrichment as appropriate to the class. ===================================================================== TOPIC PRESENTATION: DESIGN TECHNIQUES Developing quality landscape plans takes not only broad experience with the landscape, but considerable drawing and drafting skills as well. Below are some basic considerations the student should understand when beginning to design landscapes on paper. A. Tools for Landscape Design: There are a number of essential drawing tools and supplies which are necessary to develop a quality landscape design. Some tools simply make the job easier and faster. 1. Drawing Board: A sturdy drawing board in the studio should be covered with a smooth, resilient covering such as "Borco." A landscape designer should have a lightweight portable board for making sketches in the field if necessary. 2. T-Square: This is used to draw horizontal and vertical lines. Usually, buildings in a landscape design are centered squarely on the drawing, and the T-square is used to draw this and related features. 3. Drafting Machine: This tool, which attaches to the drafting table, replaces the T-square. While expensive, the drafting machine speeds the drawing of perpendiculars, and can serve instead of a protractor as well. 4. Triangles: These are used in combination with the T-square or each other to draw angled lines. They are also commonly used as straight-edges for guiding drawing. Triangles of 30-60-90 degree, and 45-45-90 degree proportions are most common. 5. French Curves: These come in a seemingly infinite assortment of shapes and sizes, and are used for drawing even curves for a landscape design. Circular arcs can appear boring in the landscape, so the landscape designer has good use for the tapering curves provided by these templates. 6. Protractor: Used for determining angles. The irrigation designer finds use for the protractor to determine the irrigation arc required for turf and ground cover plantings. 7. Compass: This tool is used for drawing circles of variable diameters. The compass is particularly useful for determining the center point between landscape features, and for drawing large circles. 8. Templates: A wide variety of drawing templates are available to speed the work of the landscape designer. Some examples: a. Lettering Templates, for forming consistent letters, or for drawing guidelines used in hand lettering. b. Circle Templates: These are particularly useful for drawing smaller circles used in plant symbolization, and drawing repetitive features to the correct scale. c. Landscape Templates: Some templates are available with symbols specifically designed for landscape applications. Some of these templates are better than others. d. Specialized Templates: Templates for designing irrigation work, masonry specifications, and other specialized drawings can be helpful. 9. Pencils and Pens: A wide variety of drawing implements are available for the designer's use: a. Pencils: Pencils are available in a number of degrees of hardness. This facilitates the drawing of lines of different widths and "weights." Darker, "heavy" lines are used for different parts of a landscape drawing than light lines. b. Pens: Ink pens offer very consistent line quality, a variety of line widths, and superb contrast but are more difficult to work with. These are best left to experienced draftspersons. c. Color Markers: These are used for adding interest and detail to more elaborate landscape drawings, usually in the effort to sell a design to a customer. They are not necessary for working drawings. 10. Erasing Shield: This is used to protect the drawing when erasing guidelines and mistakes. 11. Tracing Vellum: A quality tracing vellum facilitates trying out various design concepts and drawing preliminary sketches. 12. Architect's Scale: The architect's scale enables the designer to draw all of the landscape features to the same scale. A common scale for small-to-midsize landscape projects is 1" = 4'. B. Lettering: 1. Importance of Lettering: Clear, consistent lettering is essential for the landscape designer: a. Clarity is essential, since the landscape design is used by the contractor or homeowner for directions guiding landscape installation. Everyone must be able to correctly interpret the specifications and instructions. b. Neatness and consistency of lettering reflects a degree of professionalism to the client. A poorly lettered design will not convey a sense of proficiency to those looking at the drawing. 2. Guidelines for Hand Lettering: Basically, the key to good lettering is repeated practice. Some guidelines for the beginner to keep in mind: a. Use block capital letters. These are universally recognized, and are not exceeded for clarity. b. A straight or slanted style may be used, but consistency is required. Don't mix styles on the same drawing. NEVER mix upper and lower case letters. c. Use lightly sketched guidelines, or a straightedge for guiding placement of letters. d. Space letters evenly. e. Keep the pencil sharp for consistent line width. An "F" grade lead is adequate for lettering. 3. Alternatives to Hand Lettering: For presentation drawings, or for large size letters, special lettering techniques can be used: a. Transfer letters can be set in place from adhesive-backed sheets. These are inexpensive, but slow to put in place. b. Lettering machines represent more of an investment, but give rapid, consistent results in producing clear, consistent letters. The Kroy machine is a common model. c. Computerized fonts and laser printers have made the above techniques obsolete in many offices. __________________________________________________________ ACTIVITY: 1. Have students practice lettering, emphasizing use of block capitals and consistent, well-aligned letters. 2. Have students start out by practicing the alphabet. As consistency and skill levels develop, have them practice copying landscape specifications. __________________________________________________________ C. Landscape Symbols: Landscape symbols should communicate to the client a sense of how the finished landscape will appear. Also, the contractor or landscape installer should be able to refer to landscape symbols to accurately carry out the project design. 1. General Principles: a. Simplicity: Landscape symbols should be kept as simple as possible while still suggesting the elements they represent. 1) Large presentation drawings will require more elaborate symbols. 2) In contrast, working drawings for the contractor can be skeletal, and should be drawn clearly. b. Scale: Symbols should be carefully measured and drawn to represent landscape features at the correct scale. 1) The contractor, using an architect's scale, should be able measure the dimensions of landscape features directly off the drawing. 2) If there is any question as to the size of a particular feature, as with a very small item, it should be labeled with a "call out." c. Planting Location: The exact location for planting various shrubs, trees, and vines should be marked on the plant with a small "X" or a dot near the center of the plant's symbol. This is especially important when representing massed plant material. d. Massed Plant Material: Massed plant material is represented without overlapping plant outlines showing. 1) This simplifies the appearance of the symbol. 2) Often, plants of the same species planted next to one another will be symbolized by connecting the center markings with a light line. e. Underlying Plant Material: Plant material located under a more expansive feature (such as a low shrub planted in the shade of a tree) is symbolized with either a broken line, or a very light line. Parts of the plant that extend out from under the higher feature should be drawn with a conventional line. f. Shadows: Shadows can be added to plants and landscape structures to add depth and interest to a drawing. This technique is used for presentation drawings, not working drawings. g. Line Weight: Heavier, darker lines are used to represent features in the landscape which are closer to the viewer. 1) In a plan view, looking down on a landscape, trees and buildings are drawn with heavier lines. 2) In an elevation drawing, looking straight across at the landscape, features closer to the point of view will appear darker. h. Orientation: The orientation of the landscape should always be indicated on the drawing with a north-pointing arrow. i. Plants should be represented on a plan at their mature size. 2. Specific Elements and Common Symbols: Brief descriptions of common landscape symbols follow. The beginning designer should obtain and study a variety of landscape plans and design texts to see how specific features are commonly represented. a. Coniferous Evergreens: A circle with sharp, jagged edges. b. Broadleaf Evergreens: A circle with gently lobed edges. c. Deciduous Shrubs: A circle with irregularly lobed edges. d. Deciduous Trees: A circle with deep semi-circles cut in the edge, or "branches" radiating out from the center. e. Vines: A flattened circle with wavy edges. f. Ground Covers: A wavelike pattern or patchy pattern filling the area devoted to groundcover. Specific planting locations are not indicated. g. Paving: A variety of textures can be used, from a brick- like pattern for masonry, to irregular shapes representing flagstone. h. Decking: Parallel lines, closely set, often symbolizes a deck. i. Concrete: A combination of small triangles and dots evenly spread over an area can be used to indicate concrete. j. Property Lines: Typically represented by a dark line broken intermittently by two short segments. k. Fencing: A light line with evenly spaced "X"s can represent fencing. l. Buildings: Residences, especially, are represented by a double outline darkened in except for the segments where windows occur. __________________________________________________________ ACTIVITY: 1. Provide students with drawing tools, tracing vellum, architect scales, and base plans for a residential landscape. 2. Have students diagram the landscape of their choice using the symbols described above, and symbols available on landscape templates. __________________________________________________________ D. Computer-Aided Landscape Design: There are a number of quality computer programs available for making landscape drawings. Some guidelines to keep in mind when considering computerized landscape drawing: 1. A fairly powerful computer is needed. To take full advantage of computer capabilities such as scaling, alternative view development, and graphics, a numeric co-processor is sometimes necessary. 2. A conventional printer will be inadequate for producing landscape drawings. A plotter capable of handling large widths of paper is necessary for producing working drawings. 3. A large monitor is helpful to the designer working on a computer. 4. Computer generated drawings may have a more utilitarian "feel" than hand-rendered drawings. This may be considered an advantage or disadvantage, depending on the client. 5. For work requiring lots of calculations or repetitive symbolization, a computer speeds work considerably. For one-of-a-kind drawings requiring unique details, the computer has little time advantage. 1/7/91 MH/clh #%&C