 This is a questionnaire about the family  How many and what ages?  Hobbies?  Pets?  Do they like to garden?  Do they prefer patios or decks?  Open lawn or play ground area?  Do they entertain outside much?  Do they have any favorite plants?

 The more questions you ask the more customized and tailored to fit you can make the design.  You can either ask them directly and write down everything they are telling you, or make a printed questionnaire and leave it with them for a few days for them to think about and fill out at their leisure.

 The site analysis plan is a piece of paper with an accurate sketch of the house and lot on which observations are recorded.  Some of the features to be notes on a site analysis plan follow are:  Orientation of the House  The lay of the land

 Cont..  Soil  Existing Vegetation  Natural Features  Climate  Views  Take measurements and pictures

 Orientation of the House  Need to know your directions N,S, E, W  Locating the activity areas of the land.  Need to know how much shade an area gets  Need to know how much wind exposure the area gets.

 The lay of the land:  Need to know about hills, valleys, and flat areas  Need to know the slope or grade of the land  Need to know about the drainage of the land

 Soil:  Need to know the soil texture which is the proportion of different sized particles in the soil like sand, silt, and clay.  Need to know the soil structure is the arrangement of the soil aggregates in the soil  Topsoil is the soil found near the surface and is the most valuable for healthy plant growth

 Soil Cont…  Need to know about the subsoil which is a lighter colored soil below the topsoil  Soil is classified into horizons  A horizon is the topsoil that has humus, roots, organisms in it  B horizon is the subsoil that has fine particles, leached materials, and some roots  C horizon is the Parent Material where there is weathered bedrock and some leached materials  R horizon is the Bedrock underlying solid rock

Existing Vegetation: This include the existing vegetation in the site. What is a Native plant? are those naturally and not introduce by people

Existing Vegetation: What is ornamental plants? are those planted by people for the attractive characteristics they possess.

 Natural Features  What are considered natural features  Rocks  Earth  Water  These are all that are found on the site.

Climate Climate is broken down into two categories: Macroclimate Microclimate

 Climate Cont..  Macroclimate concerns the temperature, precipitation, humidity and wind over the large areas or region  Microclimate is the temperature, precipitation humidity and wind on the landscape site.

 Views Study and make note on the site analysis plan views to and form the landscape site. Those living in a house will frequently look away from their property to the surrounding areas

 Measurements and pictures  Take accurate measurements with a tape measure and a measure wheel.  Measure the outside walls, windows, doors, visible utilities(electric, gas, phone), trees and other features that may affect your design.  Take pictures from many angles and view points.  This is to help your memory  It is also a good idea to mark on your sketch where you took pictures from for a better perspective

 Any Questions?