The Elements of Planting Design Supporting the Plants In A Composition Designing the Natural Composition

2 To fill this void, the planting designer often uses several alternative materials to take the place of plants.

3 Stone The most popular of these materials is stone. Allow soil pockets to collect below and between the stones. This provides the shade needed to support plant growth.

4 Do not place stones perpendicular to the soil base. This does not allow the stones to protect the soil for plant growth. Allow only a portion of a large stone to appear above ground; expose only the weathered part. If stratified material is used, make sure that all stones follow the same formation. With a large collection of stone material, use large boulders for the central elements and support them with smaller ones around the edges of the composition.

5 Water As a reflecting pool, a producer of soothing sounds, or a supplier of moisture for exotic plants, water can be an excellent support element for planting designs.

6 Aquatic varieties can be classified as: deep aquatics, marginal aquatics, or floating aquatics

7 Screens and Fences A screen is a freestanding visual barrier, while a fence functions more as a physical barrier. Screens or fences can be used independently from plants, in association with small shrubs or groundcovers, or as the framework for the support of vines or climbing groundcovers.

8 Berms Berms are mounds of soil, used when visual niches or vistas are needed in the composition.

9 Plant Containers Useful for the introduction of annuals or exotic species into a composition, the container itself should not be the major concern of the planting designer. The plants in the container are still the most important considerations, and regular design approaches should be used in solving design problems with these plants.

10 Designing the Natural Composition To solve this problem, the planting designers need only look at the relationships between the two terms. The following principles may help in developing a natural landscape setting:

11 Final composition should lack formality and repetition of elements. The plants should be placed according to their environmental needs first – and then according to their design functions. No artificial or mechanical devices should be used to supplement growing conditions.

12 The design forms should follow the basic life forms as they are found naturally.

13 The composition should represent, as closely as possible, the successional stage in which the plant materials are found.