Designing with Plants II

Abstract

The knowledge of plant species is at the core of most designs in landscape architecture. This course will introduce basic knowledge about the following topics: biotopes of Switzerland (phytosociology, plant societies, habitat conditions), expanding plant knowledge of native herbs.

Objective

The students will be able to recognize and determine around fifty native herbs and implement them in their designs. They will understand the greater biogeographic connections in Switzerland and know the most important biotopes with their characteristics. They will further expand their knowledge about botanical terms and vocabulary which allow them to use botanical literature for their designs.

Content

Expansion of the plant knowledge of native species is at the core of this course. The course builds up on module 5 “Designing with plants I”. Theoretical and conceptual lectures are supporting the students to expand their knowledge. They will broaden their botanical knowledge which will allow them to professionally integrate plants in their designs. The concepts will be illustrated and discussed with realized examples to tie the theoretical basics with practical cases. The course is structured into three topics: 1) The understanding of biogeographic connections in relation to climate, soil, altitude, exposure, etc. is essential to implement a design in architecture landscapes successfully. 2) We use the most important biotopes of Switzerland to explain plant societies and phytosociology. This knowledge is essential to find the most appropriate planting in the designs. 3) The knowledge plants will be expanded to ca. sixty native herbs using fresh plant material during the lecture. A one day excursion will be organized to observe the plant species in their natural habitat. The students will learn how to use a plant identification key in order to be able to identify plants on their own. Thereby they will also expand their knowledge about botanical terms.

Resources