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As landscape architects, we can have the big ideas certainly – but what makes those big ideas work is the detail. We are all too often presented with glowing Photoshop rendered images but how do those images become a reality? That is the real job of the landscape architect, not to just produce the big idea on a poster but to instigate it, to deal with the materiality of the project. It is the technical details that are given to the construction team or engineers that physically enables projects to be built. In this book Virginia McLeod seeks to re-engage the reader with those details. We are presented with 40 intriguing projects and the details that make them work. Through a small introduction, photographs, site plans and construction details a whole overview of each scheme is given and th...Read More

Called the “guru of grasses” by Sunset magazine, John Greenlee is an outspoken advocate for the American meadow and the numerous benefits of grassland ecologies. In this interview, John speaks about growing up in suburban Southern California, designing with grasses and sedges, and the ecological wisdom of replacing that conventional lawn with vital habitat. Read on!   “For me, the draw of the meadow has to do with how meadows capture light and movement.  No other group of plants can do what grasses and grass ecologies do.“   What makes a meadow a meadow? While there is actually no real scientific definition of a meadow, it is pretty much a term used to describe grass ecologies that are mostly comprised of cool-season growing grasses.  Prairies are generally made up ...Read More

Client relationship management is essential to small-business success. Running a small business doesn’t begin and end with making one sale, which is why owners have to learn how to keep customers coming back if they want to thrive in a competitive market. Here are five tips to help improve your brand and keep customers coming back for more. 1. Tell a Story. Customers like to feel connected to a company, even if they never meet the owner and make purchases only online. If you don’t already have a section on your website explaining the history and mission of your company, start by adding a few blurbs about your business. Don’t be afraid to add in a few personal details. Depending on the type of business you run, leave behind stiff corporate talk and opt for a casual tone. Did you first...Read More

Although Taksim Square in Istanbul and Tahrir in Cairo are well on their way to becoming iconic squares of political flavour, here we give you ten existing examples…not necessarily all sites of revolutions but still major players in their respective country’s political, social and historical development. Presenting the stage for public activities that changed the course of their history and shaped their society to what it is today as well as laying down the foundation for the future.  10. Vijay Chowk, The Rajpath, New Dehli Part of the city plan for New Delhi by the British architect Edwin Lutyens, the architecture of the square and surrounding area is most definitely colonial, and as such has many political overtones. Now however, it has been reclaimed by an independent India and Vi...Read More

Staten Island is probably the most under-appreciated of New York City’s 5 boroughs.  Besides riding the Staten Island ferry for a free waterborne tour of the harbor, I have had little reason to visit in the past.  But a New York City Parks & Recreation Department private hike of the Freshkills Park reminded me that there are some hidden treasures on that forgotten Island.    Having never explored Staten Island, I decided to add some adventure to my site visit at Freshkills by riding my bike to meet the group.  The most direct route from the ferry landing to Schmul Park, the group meeting point, was Victory Boulevard, a distance of about 8.5 miles. The ferry was bike friendly, providing a designated space equipped with bike racks, bike maps and information, but the ride itself was a muc...Read More

We are back with another selection of ten amazing drawings created by our talented readers and carefully chosen by our team. Sit back and enjoy the stunning work by true artists – by graduates as well as students of landscape architecture. And if you feel that our selection is lacking, why not send us your own piece? We are constantly looking for beautiful drawings, inspirational sketches and stylish illustrations! 10. By Merima Pernjak, BA Landscape Architect, from Cyprus “I graduated in Landscape Architecture two years ago. I work on residential and commercial projects all over the beautiful island of Cyprus. I found out during my drawing lessons just how much I enjoy to draw and that I have a little talent, just waiting to be explored. This drawing was created during my seco...Read More

The simple art of reading literature – one of the most beneficial ways of procuring knowledge — is one that is fast disappearing. Books mentally stimulate the creative part of your brain by allowing you to form an image of the words inside your head, while also giving you a unique pause button for understanding and insight. Stress reduction, vocabulary expansion, and improved writing skills are yet more perks from interpretation of the written word. With that in mind, I present the top 10 books for landscape architecture. 10. Lexicon of Garden and Landscape Architecture – by Meto J. Vroom An alphabetically arranged list of more than 250 garden and landscape architecture terms, concepts, and objects, each complete with definitions, critical commentary, and recommendations for fu...Read More

The immobile nature of site furnishings has long been an issue for landscape architects and urban designers working in the public realm. While immobility is traditionally a necessary characteristic to prevent theft or vandalism, members of a Nashville, Tennessee think tank, The Agile Landscape Project, have been working towards an innovative solution that could bring mobility back to site furnishings. Heavily influenced by the maker movement, tactical urbanism, and the Lean Startup philosophy, The Agile Landscape Project has developed their own hands-on experimentation driven approach to addressing issues and discovering design solutions. This approach is focused around creating minimum viable products that will be used for “Adaptive Generative” and “Intelligent Landscape...Read More

Okay, so you went somewhere and talked to lots of people.  You followed my advice on the best places to network and you even tried to apply the best kept secret in networking, but you still don’t have that shiny new job or fabulous client, and you’re cursing the very seat I’m sitting on.  ‘Thanks for all the lousy advice, Jen’, you say.  Well shoot, man, what’d you expect?  Those new contacts don’t know you yet; your work is far from over.  In fact, networking is never over.  For those of you who hate it, I’m oh so very sorry to have to tell you that. The point of networking isn’t to ask for opportunities from everyone you meet.  It is to build relationships that are mutually beneficial.  When it works in your favor, you can usually look back and see how an opportunity came along through y...Read More

With thousands of Android drawing apps out there, it is easy to get confused and frustrated while wasting your time installing them just to try them out. To help you save your nerves, time, and space on your tablet, we chose the 10 most interesting free drawing apps, played with each a bit, and wrote down our impressions. The apps were tested on a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet, running on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean. We decided to check out a variety of apps — best for sketching, painting, vector work, and making quick notes, to make sure that each of you finds some of them useful for every kind of work you encounter. All listed apps are free, which means you can safely try them out before buying a full, paid-for version. Enjoy! 10. Fresco Paint Lite A very basic, simple-to-use app, s...Read More