• Organizing and developing the site for maximum use and pleasure.
• Creating a visual relationship between the house and the site.
• Reducing landscape maintenance to a practical level.

Then how does the designer arrange space so that people will find it useful, beautiful, meaningful and functional? His methods include:

• Observing and analyzing the habits of the people who will be using the space, including their needs, desires and how much space each of their activities requires.
• Studying past methods.
• Surveying available materials to solve design requirements.
• Analyzing the environment of the site including the view in and around the site. The ecology of the site should be carefully analyzed since it is an important design determinant.

Not all landscaping improves the appearance of a building. The work of an insensitive designer can subdue a building, conceal important features or contradict the architect's intent. Good landscape design can significantly improve the building's appearance by adding warmth, liveability and personality. It can also relate a building to its site and environment and give it the desired degree of dominance.
Growth and change separate landscape designs from other arts. Most works of art such as architecture, sculpture and painting look their best when new. Landscape designs, however, are at their worst when new and improve with age. A well-designed landscape will seldom look the same any two months of the year.
The temptation to begin planting immediately is almost overwhelming. Whether you are landscaping a newly-built home or redesigning an existing landscape, the results will be much more satisfying if you plan first. Ideally, you should consult a professional landscape architect on planning, but you can produce good results if you follow these steps.

..Base Plan
..Needs
..Diagram

Base Plan

Draw a base plan to scale. For most properties a scale of 1/8"=1' is workable; for small properties or a particular area of a larger development 1/4"=1' may be better. Graph paper with lines indicating a particular scale may also be helpful. Include all major features on your drawing such as existing walks, terraces, outbuildings, trees, shrubs, drives, property lines, easements, utilities, etc. After preparing the base plan, place tracing paper or tissue paper over the original plan to sketch possible ideas and solutions to your landscape needs and problems.

 

Steps for Drawing a Base Plan





Step One                                   Step Two




      Step Three                         Step Four



       


Step Five                                         Step six

Step seven

Always indicate compass directions in relation to the house by drawing an arrow (N->) pointing north. You may also want to show the direction of the rising sun. In winter, the sun rises a little south of east and sets a little south of west. In summer, the sun rises somewhat north of east and sets somewhat north of west.

Needs

List your needs. Observe and consult each family member and consider them in your plans. These needs may include a driveway and turnaround space, off-street parking, play space for children, an outdoor living area, a vegetable garden, privacy from certain areas, windbreaks, etc. There are usually several ways of satisfying every need, and you must decide on the most appropriate one for you. The most satisfying landscapes are both practical and beautiful.

Diagram

Diagram and place space needs. Again, tape tracing paper over your plot plan and go back to your list of needs from step two. Place needs and activities where they can serve best and provide enough space for each need. (For example: and outdoor living area should be of sufficient size for the use it will receive.) Rather than decide upon the shape of a lawn, terrace or parking area at the beginning, let these forms develop from and reflect the needs listed in the beginning.

The following areas are frequently found in the home landscape. Develop each according to your family's needs and priorities.

Work or Service Area

The work or service area can be convenient, orderly and attractive. Lawnmowers, wheelbarrows, tools, insecticides and fertilizers all need to be stored in a dry convenient location. If tool and equipment space is not already provided, plan for one. Since many service areas are most convenient when adjacent to the garage or carport, consider adding your storage area to an existing wall.
Garbage storage and clotheslines should be near the kitchen and laundry rooms. Allow at least four feet around the clotheslines to keep clothes from rubbing against fences, plants and walls. If only used occasionally, retractable or folding clotheslines may be the most practical.
Service areas can also contain a compost pile or space for cutting flowers and vegetables.
Consider screening the service area from view with either structures or plants to make it an attractive as well as functional part of the landscape.

Recreation or Active Sports Area Features such as a swimming pool, shuffle board and tennis courts require considerable space and investment. A tennis court is normally 120 x 60 feet and a badminton court is 22 x 44 feet; swimming pools vary in size.
If some of these facilities are on your list of needs but not practical for immediate installation, you may consider leaving open turf areas that can be used for badminton, other games and play.

Outdoor Living and Entertaining Areas

Terraces and patios are an integral part of many Texas homes and should be located, if possible, where they will receive summer breezes and afternoon shade. If sun is a problem, add trees of overhead shading structures. Outdoor living areas are usually adjacent to living areas of the house where they can easily be served and seen from inside. With the cost of interior floor space at an all-time high, outdoor living areas can economically add entertaining and living space. Even when not in use, well-planned, attractive decks and terraces adjacent to the house give a feeling of added space to interior rooms. Attractive, long-lasting outdoor furniture and accessories (such as water features, sculpture and container plants) can be useful and enrich outdoor living areas.
Some families have several outdoor living areas. Small terraces adjacent to bedrooms, bath areas and dining rooms are becoming more popular. A terrace may be placed away from the home to take advantage of a striking view. good breezes or the shade of an unusually beautiful tree.

Public and Entrance Areas

A large front yard is often a questionable use of land and resources. The parklike expanses found in some of our older subdivisions are pleasant but of little practical value. If your lot is small and building codes allow, consider developing the entrance area as a courtyard providing more use area for the family. If street parking is a problem use part of this area for off-street parking. Parking and enclosed front courts can be both attractive and functional.
Provide shade where it will most benefit your home's energy conservation. Keep plantings simple with shrub masses, groundcovers and flowering trees used to serve real purposes.
Build walks and drives well and have them as direct and convenient as possible. Walks should be a minimum of 3 1/2 feet and preferably 4 feet wide. Provide a larger paved area at the entrance, if possible, since people tend to congregate there.
A few container plants, small flowering trees or specimen shrubs help to make the home's entrance a focal point. Other features which focalize the entrance include architectural accessories such as attractive light fixtures, street numbers and front doors.

Children's Play Area

Locate the play area where someone inside the house can easily see it. A sand pile and swing sets are popular as well as paved areas for riding toys, play houses and tree houses. Keep the designs simple and easy to maintain and consider how the area might be used after the children are grown.

Plants

Living trees, shrubs, vines, groundcovers, annuals and perennials are usually the most important materials in landscaping. Their selection, placement and maintenance are the main criteria the layman uses to evaluate landscape work. It is extremely important, therefore, to select plants that will serve the function as dependably as possible. For every landscape need there are numerous plants to choose from.

Native Plants

Native plants are rightfully gaining a prominent place in the landscape. Although we have seen an increase in planting and preserving native plant species, we are still a long way from maximizing their potential. Often the native plants are more resistant to drought, insects and disease. If species are selected that are native to the immediate vicinity of the home, there is an additional bonus of visually relating the new landscape to the natural environment.
Unusual challenges for landscaping with native plants can be found in some of our more densely populated areas. Subdivisions around Austin and San Antonio, for instance, are often located in hilly areas to take advantage of views. The ecology of these sites is very delicate with a thin soil layer over rock supporting a few small trees such as Texas persimmon (Diospyros texana), live oak (Quercus virginiana), agarita (Mahonia trifoliolata) and sumac (Rhus lanceolata).
If the property owner has a stereotyped concept that landscaping should consist of planting various broadleafed evergreen trees and flowering shrubs, he may clear the site of all the "brush." Then, after spending considerable time and money trying to provide topsoil, irrigate adequately and reduce soil pH as well as deal with insect and disease problems, the property owner wonders why maintaining the landscape is such a big and expensive job.
With some careful thinning, pruning, transplanting and a few well-placed groundcover areas, the property owners could have an attractive and functional landscape. Builders, developers and homeowners need to evaluate natural growth on the site before destroying it.
Diverse temperatures, topography, soil and rainfall in Texas give every part of the state its own unique character. We can develop more functional and attractive home landscapes by utilizing native plants.

Plant Grouping

Plants are basically used as specimens, in lines, in groups or in masses. Each method creates a different effect. Most landscapes will use all four types of groupings.

Specimen or accent: Using plants as specimens is a good way to emphasize a character shrub or an unusually beautiful tree. If used sparingly, accent plants create interest and contrast. Too many specimens, however, result in visual chaos. Flowering trees such as crape myrtles, dogwood and redbuds are often used for accent.
Using a specimen plant or small tree near the entrance can help focalize on that area. Container plant specimens are another good possibility for accent if plants and container are scaled to the area.




Line: Lines of trees, shrubs and other plants can effectively carry the home's architectural lines into the landscape. Straight or curved lines of tree plantings can shade parking or play areas or serve as a windbreak. Select hardy, well-adapted plants to form a line since the visual effect can be spoiled if one or a few of the plants are damaged. Also be sure that the same soil, drainage and sun conditions occur along the length of the row since any or all of these factors can significantly affect the plant.

Group: Grouping is a relatively natural way to use plants. Place several trees, shrubs, etc. fairly close together for a more massive effect. Since plants are often grouped naturally, this is a good method to relate your landscape to the natural environment. Also group container plants for emphasis.

Mass: The mass is really just an extension of the group. In mass plantings, individual plants tend to lose identity. Mass plantings are especially useful in relating large buildings to the site since these plantings can be large enough to be in good scale.

Accessories

Landscape accessories are details which may have no functional purpose, such as surfacing or enclosure, but do have definite visual effects. Accessories also help express individual tastes and preferences. Major accessories, however, should not be afterthoughts; they should be planned as the design evolves. Accessories add character and dimension to a garden, but poorly selected and placed accessories may spoil an otherwise well-designed landscape.
Many landscape accessories are available. Much of what is available, however, has little or no aesthetic value. To determine whether or not to use an accessory in the garden, ask yourself these questions: (1) Does it have practical use? (2) Is it beautiful in itself? (3) Does it fit or relate to the overall landscape design? Probably the most important of these three questions is the last one.
Garden furniture offers a real opportunity to add utility, color and beauty to the landscape. Comfortable and attractive items are now available in a wide variety of low maintenance outdoor furniture. Outdoor furniture must be large enough to be practical and must be in scale with its surroundings. Built-in furniture has the added value of being permanently in place and enhancing the overall design. Occasionally the surface of a retaining wall or raised planter can serve as a seating area. The living terrace is the most usual place for outdoor furniture.
An interesting piece of driftwood, tree roots or limbs, boulders or rocks provide interesting substitutes for good sculpture. These items are easily blended with the design and may be readily available.
Birdbaths are often used in home landscapes. To be useful they should be shallow, not exceeding 1 1/2 inches in depth, and contain fresh water. Bird houses and feeders should also be selected on the criteria discussed earlier.
Other accessories, such as stained glass, relief sculpture, outdoor chandeliers and plant containers are finding their way into the well-designed landscape. A stained glass window, partially enclosed in an outdoor area, or a burning outdoor chandelier may be added for interest, illumination and possible insect-repelling qualities. Hanging or conventional container plants can add a great deal of interest. With the current trend to return to natural materials and handmade workmanship there is an almost limitless variety of accessories available for our use. The temptation to "overdo" has never been greater. Like other fine things, garden accessories should be used with considerable restraint.
Outdoor lighting can add a great deal to the attractiveness and usefulness of the landscape. Specialists often recommend two separate lighting systems: one for functional and safety purposes and another designed to be beautiful and interesting. Dimmers, low voltage units and other special lighting equipment have become popular and add versatility to outdoor lighting. When placing outdoor lighting for beauty only the effects of lighting should be seen; the source or fixtures are usually hidden in the ground or in tree branches.
Good landscaping is a major investment in time and money. Many people feel that they obtain double enjoyment by including well-designed outdoor lighting to increase the hours of pleasure from their outdoor environment.