What Does Sustainable Landscape Design Mean?
Sustainable landscape design
The concept of sustainability—using resources efficiently and protecting the natural world—is essential to effective landscape design. Creating outdoor spaces that serve human beings and also support a thriving environment involves careful consideration of plants, soil, and hardscaping elements. A healthy landscape is an extension of nature, blending best ecological practices with individualized style.
Plants
Simple as it might sound, the saying “right plant, right place” is of vital importance when considering a landscape design. In order to thrive, plants must have the correct “cultural requirements” for their type, i.e. solar exposure, water needs, and soil type. Also, it is important to consider a plant’s size at full maturity when choosing the area it will occupy. Constant pruning puts plants’ health at risk and the constant trimming and hauling of plant material hold a sizable carbon foot print. California native plants are a great choice. California natives are adapted to thrive in the local conditions requiring fewer inputs such as water, fertilizers and pesticides. Beyond being less recourse intensive, California native plants provide crucial forage and habitat for native birds and insects, allowing us to live in harmony with nature.
Water
In California, landscapes account for 50 percent of domestic water use. Understanding how to appropriately irrigate a property can save a lot of water while providing a lush, beautiful landscape. Directing rainwater from gutters into the garden, where water can be stored in the soil for months, greatly reduces the amount of supplemental irrigation a landscape will require. If plants with low-water-needs are used, and rainwater is kept on site, it is possible to get by without any added irrigation. If irrigation is required, then maximizing the efficiency of one’s irrigation system is of utmost importance.
Drip systems, and multi-trajectory rotating spray heads, reduce runoff and water loss from evaporation. Understanding your irrigation valves, and knowing the type of emitters the valves are connected to, allows optimal settings for irrigation run times. Reprograming irrigation run times seasonally helps more accurately irrigate—irrigation run times should be greater on the long, hot days of August than in December when the weather is cooler and days are shorter.
Soil
Healthy soil is the backbone of a landscape. Healthy soil is rich in biodiversity. Whether sand, slit, or clay, the greater the biodiversity in one’s soil, the better plants will perform. Pesticides, herbicides, and synthetic fertilizers all reduced the biota in soil—whereas compost, composted manures, and worm castings all increase biodiversity. Mulch is the next step in creating healthy soil. Carbon-based mulches such as wood chips, leaf litter, and straw, serve as food to the soil biota and also help retain water and reduce weeds. The combination of biodiverse soil and mulch is one of the primary ways that carbon is sequestered from the atmosphere. Mulching also works to feeds plants, strengthen their immune systems, and reducing the need for external inputs.
Hardscape
Hardscape refers to all the elements built in the landscape that are not plants, including paths, patios, walls, retaining walls, and fencing. When considering flat work such as paths and patios, it is important to think about percolation. Materials like gravel, un-mortared flagstone, and pavers keep precious water out of storm drains, and allows it to be absorbed into the soil where plants can access it instead. Beyond flat work, it is important to be aware of the ecological implications of the materials one uses. Local materials, as well as repurposed materials, make great options.
Style
Once one understands plants, water, soil, and hardscape the work of putting it all together to create a practical and aesthetically pleasing landscape begins. The ultimate goal is to create a landscape that requires minimal inputs, that is beautiful, structures and allows for a space that is beneficial to human, plant, and animal life.
To see examples of these principles in action check out my portfolio https://www.sweetsmilinglandscapes.com/projects
Sweet Smiling Landscapes, Landscape Design
Serving Santa Barbara, Ventura and beyond