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I’d skip the structural soil altogether and redesign the structure of the sidewalk to span a tree trench or use something like Silva-Cells where you can use proper soil.

DG with a binder is both permeable and not; water slowly seeps in but will otherwise stand/puddle or runoff.
The surface will erode slowly with foot traffic.  Some maintenance is required.  DG is a good paving material on top of roots.  It has none of the caustic properties that concrete does.
If you are installing treewell irrigation (RB RWS or…[Read more]

A few questions. 
what type of trees are you using?
if you are looking at creating an impermeable surface on top of the rootball and root flare how will the tree have access to water?
what climatic zone are you in?
Realistically with a tree well that small your options are somewhat limited on what species you can and cannot use. Whether or not…[Read more]

Hi,

I have a BA, double major in English and Liberal Arts, from Concordia, took a couple of courses in landscape as an independent student at U de M and I ended up going to U Manitoba for an MLA.

With your academic background, I would suspect you would easily be a candidate.

1st thing you need to know:
it is extremely unlikely that you will…[Read more]

I had some email correspondence with some of the BIM Task Force in the UK.
I felt that one of the most important points to stress regarding Level 2 compliancy was this:
“A quick review shows little of direct relevance to landscape yet”.
In terms of attempting to actually satisfy Level 2 requirements, that would require generating a BIM…[Read more]

I didn’t (don’t) like Civil3D – it’s great for developments/roads but awful difficult to get smooth terrain and not particularly helpful in doing walls with variation in cross-sections, etc.  The software uses lines and sections to do quantities and such so it is a bit clunky.  It was useful to verify grades, but not as useful as Revit is to a…[Read more]

Just created a BIM and BIM Software group here on Land8, if anyone wants to join.
https://land8.com/group/bim-and-bim-software

I’m glad to see there’s a new blog in English. I’ve seen a few other blogs and they’re usually in Norwegian or some other language.

Thanks for posting that video.

There is also a new blog out there- http://bimforlas.wordpress.com/ that seems to be focusing on how Revit can be used by landscape architects. 

Does anyone know of any LARE Grading and Drainage or Site Design prep courses anywhere near Las Vegas?? I am hoping to take the exam in August/September pending I pass Exam 2 in April. 

I agree.  My biggest concern was understanding the context of the test.  I took prep classes for the old-version C & E through UT @ Arlington and bought books to study the multiple choice sections.  With a lot of hard work I passed all sections first time around.  The two prep classes no doubt were a huge help and worth the cost (though they wer…[Read more]

And I too knew how to do grading before the test.  What I lacked was knowing what was going to be tested.  
I did not want to use a test for practice and have no feedback about where I went wrong, only to have to do it again six months later.  The cost of the test was close to the cost of the review, so why not.
What it did was teach to the te…[Read more]

I forgot to mention EROSION CONTROL.  You are responsible that the landscape does not fall onto thehighway. I have no idea  of wind, soil, or water conditions where you live, but  EVEN Howard Roark would approve of a design based on EROSION CONTROL.

Everybody has made valid points regarding unnecessary ornamentation vs. needed function next to a highway (although basing the level of detail on speed should mean in my twisted world that the 405 anywhere near LAX should resemble Versailles more than a DMZ). Unfortunately, places immediately adjacent to highways tend to lack any function -…[Read more]

Thanks for your help.  The links to videos and the Norwegian lecture is useful. I don’t think the Vectorworks route would suit us as our internal architectural team use Revit exclusively.  It looks like we might have to get training on both Revit and Civil3D and use whichever is appropriat to the situation.  I intend to talk to some engineers to…[Read more]

Please consider the following regarding the planting along new highways:
First and foremost–repair the landscape that existed before the surface was ripped open.  Doesn’t that make sense?  It does especially if the original condition is ‘natural’.  
Second–do not attempt to distract the drivers with detailed fluffiness.  Driving is dan…[Read more]

I’d say the key to most people having a job (or having kept a job through the past few years) is versatility.  Not always true in every firm, but most levels and titles within the office do Cad to some extent — from intern through PMs and associates, etc…  it’s a necessary evil skill.  We all get that; so brush up on it.

But, aside from Ca…[Read more]

We have personal experience with interacting with Architects using REVIT. We have moved to Vectorworks Landmark and exchange files with them using IFC files. You get the added benefit of using a software package that has planting design with fantastic 3D tools and graphics. Additionally it is far more affordable than autodesk.

I stumbled across this video a few days ago, which might help: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7r28EMrzFM
If you decide you really need new software for BIM, I’m not sure civil 3d by itself would be the best option. You might want to look into Landcadd, which can work with either revit or civil 3d.
Working with revit by itself isn’t impossible for…[Read more]