LANDSCAPE DESIGN

UNIT 2 : ELEMENTS IN LANDSCAPE

Assistant Professor : Rashmi Maniyan

Landscape Architecture
• It is the design of outdoor and public spaces to achieve environmental,
socio-behavioral and aesthetic effects.
• The term Landscape architecture was invented by Gilbert Laing
Meason in 1828.

Horticulture
• It is the science of Plant cultivation including the process of preparing
soil for planting seeds, tubers or cuttings
Basics of Landscape Design
• The basic concept of landscape design is to create attractive and
functional outdoor spaces for the user by using horticulture science,
aesthetic composition and spatial organization.
• The design process begins with determining the needs and desires of
the user and the condition of the site.
• The design should enhance the quality of life for the users.
• The elements and principles of landscape design are used to create
spaces visually pleasing to the eye.
• The features of a landscape can be physically described by the visual
qualities or elements of design.
• The principles are the fundamental concepts of composition to
organize the features to create a beautiful landscape.
Elements of Landscape

COLOUR

LINE SCALE

ELEMENTS

FORM TEXTURE
Form
This element focuses on the
composition of the landscape
and the shape of the plant foliage.
• Spreading
• Rounded
• Oval
• Columnar
• Pyramidal
• Drooping
• Among these, the most common
plant shows are spreading and rounded.
They create neutral patterns in contrast
with unusual forms of plants.
• Columnar and pyramidal shaped plants have visual characteristics.
• Picturesque and drooping forms are useful as accents or focal points.
Form can also be created through the massing of plants, the overall
mass creates a different form than an individual plant.
• Vertical form adds height and the horizontal form adds width.
Form
Shrub and Groundcover Form
Choosing shrub forms often depends on whether the shrub will be used
in a mass or as a single specimen. Mounding and spreading shrubs
look best in a mass, and cascading and vase-shaped shrubs do well as
specimen plants.
Texture
It refers to the visual roughness or smoothness of a plant.
Course-textured plants tend to be dominant and attract attention. They
usually have dense foliage or broad leaves, irregular edges, varied colours
and thick branches.
Texture
Fine-textured plants appear delicate and tend to recede from view. They
usually have fine foliage or needle leaves, tiny twigs, long stems and
delicate flowers.
Medium-textured are characterized with simple shapes and smooth edges,
the branches are not densely spaced nor widely spaces.
In a planting composition Medium-textured plants should dominate and
contrast with either coarse or fine textures.
Texture
Properties of Texture
• Texture affects the perception of distance and scale.
• To make a space feel larger, locate plants so that the fine textures are
along the outer perimeter, the medium textures are in the middle, and
the coarse textures are closest to the viewer. The small size of the
fine texture recedes in the landscape and is perceived as being
farther away.
• To make a space feel smaller, place the coarse textures along the
outer perimeter and the fine textures closest to the viewer. The detail
of the coarse texture makes the plants appear closer and makes the
space feel smaller.
Colour
• It is one of the most appealing visual plant characteristics.
• It includes colour of leaves, flowers, fruit, branches and bark. Green is
the predominant plant colour.
• A variety of green have more visual appeal when displayed against
neuter green background.
• Plant colours can also be used to suggest certain emotional or
psychological feelings.
Colour
• Dark green gives a sober, gloomy feeling.
• Light green creates cheerfulness.
• Cool colors tend to recede and are perceived as being farther away,
making a space feel larger.
• Warm colors tend to advance and are perceived as being closer,
making a space feel smaller.
Line
• Line in landscape is created by the edge between two materials of long
linear feature.
• Three primary line types create form in landscape. Bed lines, hardscape
and plants.
• Bed lines are created where the edge of the plant bed meets another
surface materials such as truf, groundcover, gravel, patio paver.
• Lines can also be created by long and narrow materials like fence or wall.
Line
• Curvilinear line suggest a naturalistic look that invite the user to casually
stroll through and experience the landscape.
• Linear lines are found in a straight hedge or the edge of paving materials
suggest quick, direct movement.
• Angled lines can create opportunities for creating the bones or the
framework of the landscape.
Scale
• Scale can be understood most simply as relative size.Scale usually
nears reference to the size of a thing or object that appears to have a
relationship or to the design as a whole.
• A long thin garden has to be treated in a different way than a squat or
rectangular or triangular garden.
• A long and narrow garden can improve by breaking it's length into
separate spaces.
• A garden may appear longer by establishing a long axis.
Elements of Landscape Design
Elements of Landscape Design
Softscape
• Softscape is the “soft”, living part of landscape, the vegetation. These
features may be permanent, such as shrubs and evergreens, or
temporary like perennials. Examples of softscape include:
• Trees, Shrubs, Grass, Flowering plants, Soil, Mulch,Topiary
Softscape - Tree
• Tree are grown for shade, cooling effect, screening, reducing dust,
sound and air pollution. Based on available space, large or small
canopy trees can be grown. Trees can be classified as
• Evergreen or Coniferous (which do not shed leaves) and
• Deciduous (which shed leaves during a particular season of the
year) or as flowering and foliage trees.
Softscape - Trees
• Coniferous or Evergreen trees keep their leaves throughout the
year, shedding only the oldest leaves. Usually these leaves are lower
down on the tree and do not receive as much sunlight as newly
developed leaves higher up. Some of the best-known members of the
conifer family are pines, spruces, firs, and hemlocks. The cones of the
conifers are its flowers.
Softscape - Trees
• Deciduous trees are also known as broadleaf trees or hardwood
trees, because the leaves are generally larger and wider than those of
conifers. The larger leaf size means a greater surface area for
photosynthesis, but it also mean the leaf is too fragile to withstand
winter conditions. Therefore, most deciduous trees drop their leaves
in autumn.
• Example: Oak, Sandalwood, Maple, Banyan, mango, Neem
Hardscape
• A hardscape comprises all of the inanimate elements within a
landscape, including pavers, bricks, and concrete.
• Apart from providing a sense of organization to the outdoors natural
features, it can also define the use of a certain space.
• For instance, patios and gravel pathways establish spaces for
gathering or leading people through different areas of the outdoor
space.
• Hardscape design takes two main approaches into account—formal
and naturalistic. The formal design puts the spotlight on the linear and
symmetrical aspects of the landscaping, while the naturalistic design
utilizes a collection of asymmetrical components to create an overall
design that highlights balance and order.
Hardscape
• Common hardscape elements are Patio, Retaining walls,
Pathways/Walkways/Driveways, Steps, Benches/street furniture.