1. Horticulture Science Lesson 81 Putting the Plan on Paper

2. Interest Approach Begin the lesson by putting the students in groups of two or three. Pass out copies of several landscape plans to the students. Ask the students to work together to answer the following questions: How many shrubs are on the plan? How many trees are needed for this design? Are any evergreen plants needed for this design? How large are the shrubs by the front door?

3. Interest Approach Once the students come up with several possible answers to these questions, begin a discussion to determine how the students arrived at their answers.

4. Student Learning Objectives Demonstrate how to draw plants on a landscape plan. Describe how to label a landscape plan. Illustrate how to render a landscape plan.

5. Terms rendering title block

6. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? Transferring your thoughts to paper so other people can see your design is important. A landscape plan is used to sell the project to the client, to order necessary construction materials, and as a guide for installation of hardscape and plant materials. –Therefore, the plan must be easy to understand. –Placing the plants on paper is done by following some basic steps.

7. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? Beginning by drawing a rough draft of the landscape plan is advisable. This can be done on an overlay of trash paper. 1. In an earlier design step, the bed patterns were established. –All the plants should be located within the planting beds, except trees, which may be placed in the lawn.

8. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? 2. For the draft, draw light circles that represent the different trees and shrubs. –Detailed plant symbols can be drawn as the final plan is completed. 3. Creating a plan involves erasures and some messiness. –A rough draft allows you to try different solutions to landscape problems while keeping the final plan clean.

9. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? Locate the trees on the plan. –At this point, draw simple circles to represent the trees. –Draw small trees to scale. –For large trees, use circles smaller than the mature spread of the trees. –Drawing the large trees smaller contributes to an easy-to-read plan.

10. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? Using simple circles, draw shrubs at their mature size in the planting beds. –For instance, if a grouping of 4-foot shrubs is desired, draw ½-inch (the same as 4/8 at c-inch scale) circles using a circle template. 1. Locate plants in the planting beds by placing the larger shrubs toward the back. –Smaller plants should be placed in front of these. –The smallest plant material should be to the front of the planting.

11. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? 2. Also, group plants of the same species by slightly overlapping the symbols. –Shrubs planted close enough to each other to form a massing create a more attractive view than individual shrubs scattered throughout a planting bed.

12. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? After the sizes of the plants have been determined, decide whether the plants are to be deciduous, evergreen, or broadleaf evergreen. Then, indicate the forms, textures, and colors for the plants. 1. Codes can be written on the rough draft on or next to the plant symbols. –Codes for textures could be C = coarse, MC = medium- coarse, M = medium, MF = medium-fine, and F = fine. Codes for colors might be G = emerald green, BLG = blue- green, YG = yellow-green, RG = red-green, GG = gray- green, and BG = black-green. 2. Keep the principles of design in mind as the textures and colors are selected.

13. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? Select plants that meet sizes, forms, textures, and colors determined in the previous steps. Refer to reference sources that describe the design qualities of woody plant materials. 1. As an example, you may have decided that a grouping of 6-foot shrubs with medium texture and emerald green color is best for a particular location. –A review of reference materials might indicate that the compact American cranberrybush viburnum (Viburnum trilobum compactum) and dwarf winged euonymus (Euonymus alatus compactus) fit the desired characteristics. –Jot these names down as possible selections for the symbol. 2. Remember to consider hardiness, shade requirements, fall color, and other factors before making your final choice.

14. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? Trace the plan onto quality vellum. –Tape a piece of vellum over your rough draft. –Be sure the drawing is centered and square. –Then, trace the house walls and paved areas through to the clean paper. –Next, trace the bed patterns. –Slight changes may be necessary at this point to make a more functional and attractive design.

15. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? The last items to trace are the plant symbols. 1. Different symbols are used to indicate deciduous plants, evergreen plants, broadleaf evergreen plants, trees, shrubs, groundcovers, flowers, and hardscape (fences, patios, pools, etc.). –Usually, designers have their own unique styles, and the appearance of the symbols often varies from one designer to another.

16. How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? 2. By changing the type of pencil used (2H, HB, and 4H) and making lines thicker or thinner, trees and shrubs can be made to stand out on the landscape plan. –Trees should be drawn with thicker, darker lines to give the impression that they create a canopy over the items beneath. –Draw the darkest lines last to lessen the chance of smudging the lead. 3. Designate the center of all trees and shrubs with a dot () or a plus sign (+). –The center point informs the installation crews where to locate the plants.

17. How is a landscape plan labeled? To sell your landscape plan to the potential client, you must have a well-designed plan that is neat and easy to interpret. –The plan must be labeled in such a way that the average person can read what is being presented. –Print clearly, using uppercase letters. –Hand printing is popular because of the personal touch it gives a plan. Labeling done with a computer program is usually easy to read. –The plan should be labeled in an organized manner. –The logical way to label is to start at the lower lefthand corner and move in a clockwise direction. –Typical labeling includes plant identification, a list of notes, and a title block.

18. How is a landscape plan labeled? The plant should include a numbered list of plants used in the landscape. –Both the common name and the Latin name are given for each plant. The list is placed to the side of the design. 1. Different labeling techniques are used in the industry. –One method involves drawing a line from the center of the plant symbol to an open area where the plant name is written. 2. A similar method involves drawing a line from the center of the plant symbol to an open area where a ¼-inch circle is drawn. –Each plant species is assigned a number on the plant list, and that same number is placed inside the ¼-inch circle.

19. How is a landscape plan labeled?

20. The list of notes consists of any information needed to describe details of the plan. –Some possible notes would include the type of edging, the type of mulch, the location of lights in the yard, and any physical features, such as a fence. –Labeling is handled much like that for plants, except letters are used instead of numbers. The title block includes the client’s name, the scale used in the drawing, the date, and the designer’s name. –In an open area on the plan, a type of arrow symbol should be used to indicate which direction is north in relation to the site.

21. How is a landscape plan rendered? Presenting a plan to a client in an attractive format is important for the landscape designer. One way to enhance a landscape design is to add color to the plan. The process by which the designer adds color to a plan is called rendering a landscape plan. –Rendering is often done with markers or colored pencils. –Plant material and physical features, like a pool or driveway, are colored.

22. How is a landscape plan rendered? Different shades of color are used to create the appearance of depth and shadows within the plan. –Start by making an entire plant a light color. –With a medium shade, color about half the plant; then, with a darker shade, color half of that. –Try to blend the colors together.

23. How is a landscape plan rendered? When a plan has a tree with a lot of underplantings, the designer can choose to color the tree or the shrubs under the tree. –If the designer colors the shrubs, the tree is usually just outlined in color. An effective rendering technique provides shadows that create a 3-D appearance. –All the plants are colored as if the sun were shining on them from one direction. –The shadows are drawn on the side opposite the light source.

24. Review/Summary How are plants drawn on a landscape plan? How is a landscape plan labeled? How is a landscape plan rendered?