Talk:Planting Design 2013 - Working Group 30

Case study D and case study B focus on the necessity of planting design as an input to improve the environmental and social quality of those spaces. Stabilizing dunes in case study B is a very important aspect of landscape architecture practice and it´s done in many projects in Portugal (my country). Its very important to stop the coastal erosion, protected it from the strong winds, creating new recreational places for people to enjoy and also protect the coast from urbanization sprawl. The case study D, an urban park, also aims to improve the function and quality of planting design with new vegetation structures taking into account the ecological succession as a intentional design process. This two approaches were well done described and had an holistic design thinking. Case study C focused on planting maintenance and management of a beautiful garden in a difficult dry climate. This case study developed a strategy on different time frames, improving the soil quality and then to purify the water channels changing the techniques used. The management and maintenance of a green space it´s a crucial aspect for the future of those spaces and without a strategic and integrated approach a garden/park is condemned. This case study analysis gives importance to this issue in a well explained example.

Good work for every cases, you have presented very interesting images of nature in different contexts!

Sérgio Ribeiro, Group 1, Case study B

The case studies presented focus on three relevant types of nature images in the city: the "all natural" environment (Case study B), the "man made" structured landscape (Case study C) and the "half and half" natural ecosystem with human intervention (Case study D). The fist case, Estuary of Mino River shows the importance of preserving natural ecosystems from urban development. This is a very important aspect we are faced with, and I consider the approach used for the future development to be really pertinent. The two main methods used: developing new pathways to control the human presence in the area and stabilizing the dunes through planting design are very accessible and show that sometimes "less is more". Case study D, President Ronald Reagan's Park focuses on the same issue of preserving the natural environment and shows how an urban park can be a key factor in the ecological development of a city. A really important aspect used in the planting design was to let nature develop freely, and use native plants as an addition to the existing vegetation. These two cases placed great emphasis on the environmental importance of nature in the city context. Case study C presented a very structured image of nature and it is a good example of the interaction between natural elements and culture. Recreating the pattern of a persian carpet through planting design is a beautiful metaphor of the past. This case brings into focus the importance of maintenance in a garden and how the lack of management can have negative effects on the natural elements, especially in a rough climate.

As a conclusion, I found all the cases really interesting, presented in a good manner and I consider this a good opportunity to learn new approaches and ideas. Monica Ciovica, Group 1, Case study A