The document discusses principles of planting design, including: 1) Artistic composition is derived from physical plant properties like forms, textures, and colors. Horizontal and vertical shapes create different effects. 2) Physical plant properties like stems, leaves, bark, and buds determine texture. Texture appears finer from farther away. Warm and cool colors are used. 3) Unity is created through repetition, variety, emphasis, balance, sequence, and scale. Simplicity prevents monotony while variety adds interest. Elements are balanced on either side of axes. Sequence moves the eye through the landscape. Proper scale relates to human size.

1. Principles of Planting Design

2. • Artistic composition derived from physical
properties of plants
• Plants can be viewed as mainly horizontal or vertical
– Horizontal shapes are less dramatic than vertical shapes
– Form:
• Tree forms depend on branching patterns
• Shrub forms result from growth habits (e.g. upright or
creeping)
Principles of Planting Design

3. • Physical properties of plants important in
landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
• Stems, leaves, bark, and buds determine texture of plant
– Large or widely separated plant features create effect of coarseness
– Texture:
– Thick, tight foliage results in finer texture
– Simple leaves appear coarser than compound leaves
• Distance of view affects texture;
farther you stand from plant, the
finer its texture appears

4. • Physical properties of plants important in
landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
• Warm colors: yellows to reds
– Bright, inviting and lively
– Color:
• Cool colors: greens to violets
– Restful, receding, not as conspicuous
• Foliage most often considered in
landscape design, but flowers,
bark and fruit also important

5. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
• Characters that provide unity in landscape design
– simplicity
– Landscapes need some characteristics to tie together
different (functional) units and plants within a unit
– variety
– emphasis
– balance
– sequence
– scale

6. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
• Created with repetition of form, texture, colors, or specific
plant species
• Must prevent
monotony; variety is
used to ‘control’
repetition
– Simplicity (repetition)

7. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
– Variety
• Varying forms, textures and shapes to prevent boredom

8. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
– Emphasis
• Drawing attention to important features of landscape
– Can draw attention to front door of residence by using plants that
offer variety in color, texture or form near the door

9. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
– Balance
• Symmetrical balance = elements on either side of an axis
are identical (formal feel)
• Asymmetrical balance = unlike elements of equal visual
weight on each side of an axis (less formal)
– achieved by balancing forms of unequal size (e.g. 1 tree balanced
by 3 shrubs)
– Color adds visual weight; brightly colored plant may need to be
balanced with several plants of equal size but not brightly colored
– Coarse textures are visually heavier than fine textures (more fine-
textured plants needed to balance coarse-textured plants)

10. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
– Balance

11. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
– Sequence
• Move viewer’s eyes over landscape in orderly fashion
– Achieved by
gradual
progression of
form, texture or
color
– Any plant that
breaks gradual
progression
becomes a point
of emphasis

12. • Unity in landscape design
Principles of Planting Design
– Scale
• Relative scale or proportion of landscape affects viewer’s
mood
– Most landscapes
should be
proportional to
human height or
height of
structure

13. Use of trees in landscape design
• Form
• Branching
• Function
• Visual aspects
• Ecological values
• Soil erosion
• Habited for wild life
• Wind & dust buffers

14. Use of trees in landscape design
• Form
–The general form of trees are broad, round, square, tapering,
and columnar.
–Tapering –
Polyalthia logifolia
Grevillea robusta

15. Use of trees in landscape design
–Broad & round
Mimusops elegi,
Delonix regia

16. Use of trees in landscape design
• Branching
–Horizontal, weeping, angular, spreading, and arrow.
–Weeping- Callistemon lanceolatus

17. Use of trees in landscape design
• Function
–To provide timber for commercial gain
–To serve as a wind break or screen
–To act as a noise baffle
–To provide shade
–To give scale to building
–To provide color & form

18. Use of trees in landscape design
• Visual aspects-Color & form , texture
–Planted for contrasting shades
–Used as a backdrop for something important
–As a focal point
–Used from an enclosure to accentuate the land form
–To frame a building or to emphasis a specific view or focus
onto feature

19. Use of trees in landscape design
• Ecological values
–In improvement of urban soil condition by intercepting
rain.
–Improvement in the functioning of hydrological cycle
by retention of water and less evaporation.
- Increase in the diversity and quantity of wild life by
providing range of habitats.
- To moderate the extremes of urban microclimate.

20. Use of trees in landscape design
• Soil erosion
–Trees protect soil from being eroded as it prevents the rain
from falling directly on the ground and moist
of the moisture to be absorbed gradually into the soil.
• Habitat for wild life
-Trees provide living spaces and food for small animals
birds and insects.

21. Thank you