This document provides instruction on conducting a site survey and creating a garden plan. It discusses assessing user requirements, performing a site appraisal to record soil type, slope, sun exposure, and drainage. Basic surveying techniques like using tapes, offsets, and triangulation are described. Methods for accurately recording data and drawing the site plan to scale are outlined. The learning objectives cover assessing user needs, surveying methods, recording data, and naming suitable evergreen and deciduous hedging plants.

1. RHS Level 2 Certificate
Year 1 Week 27-
Garden planning.
Site survey and plan
drawing.

2. Learning objectives
 1.3 State what needs to be recorded when carrying out a
site appraisal, including soil type, contour, aspect,
microclimate, exposure and drainage
 1. Garden planning
 1.1 Describe how assess the garden users requirements
in preparation for the production of a plan.
 1.2 Describe how to carry out basic linear surveying
techniques, including the use of tapes, offsets and
triangulation
 1.3 Describe the methods used for recording surveying
data.
 2.6 Name FIVE evergreen and FIVE deciduous plant
species, suitable for hedging or screening (including
formal or informal use).

3. Site appraisal - topography
 ‘Topography’ : the configuration of a surface
and the relations between its man-made and
natural features. Particularly in the design
context, the mapping of the changes in
surface level of the site.
 Slopes and hollows must be recorded
accurately onto the survey plan and taken
into account in the layout of the site.

4. Measuring slopes
 Taking a datum point at a known
height on the house front (bottom
of the door frame). Measure out to
a peg in the ground and mark that
level on the peg.
 Take a second peg and level with
the first. Put a tall pole at the fence
bottom of the slope and use a taut
straight string line to mark where
the line meets the tall pole.
 Measure down from the string line
to the ground at 1m intervals.
Record this and you are recording
how much the ground at that point
is below the datum point at the
house. This can then be plotted on
a cross section plan

5. Environmental factors in design
 Prevailing wind – where should windbreaks go?
 Aspect – where does the sun fall at different times of
day? Where should seating areas be positioned,
what need for shade is there?
 Views – borrow favourable views and hide ugly ones.
Views into the garden – creating privacy
 Soil – pH (hard to change and will therefore affect
what can be planted); depth (if insufficient then
raised beds can be used).

6. How user requirements relate to the
plan
 What, Why, Where, When and Who? (not
necessarily in that order).
 Once requirements are established the areas
of use can be plotted onto the plan (quiet
area, productive area etc) as can the
circulation routes that people are likely to
take.

7. Equipment needed for basic surveying
 ‘Chain’ – a 100ft (30m aprox.) long tape on a
reel.
 A metal tape measure or folding rule
 Wooden pegs
 A set square
 A compass
 A string line (with as little stretch as possible)
 A clip board, paper and pen
 A spirit level (if surveying slopes)

8. Surveying techniques
 Single point surveying –. Triangulation of points from
defined points (such as the corners of a courtyard). Small
areas.
 Measurements along a base line – used to plot the house
outline and features
 Offset measurements from a base line – used to plot
curves and features less than 8m from the base line.
 Triangulation from two points on a base line – used for
fixed points in a larger area (more than 8m from the base
line).
 Always orient the survey to North using the compass –
that is, record the deviation from magnetic north of your
base lines. Note that plans should be drawn with North at
the top.

9. Drawing to scale
 This method ensures that the distances on the
ground are accurately represented in the correct
proportions on the plan.
 Using a scale and the right size of paper means that
the entire site can be seen from above on the plan.
 A scale ruler makes the conversion easy. A scale of
1:1 is actual size, 1:50 means that each centimetre
on the plan is 50cm on the ground etc.
 The scale chosen should be large enough to show
sufficient detail but not so large as make the plan
unmanageable. For most gardens 1:100 or 1:50 is
appropriate

10. Drawing the plan
 Having chosen the scale, plot the building first taking
the information from your survey notes. If there is no
building then draw on your base line in pencil to
scale. Plot the building or base line at the
appropriate deviation from North (North is at the top
of the page – use a protractor to measure the
degrees).
 Work out from the building. To plot triangulated
points use compasses set to first one measured
length and make an arc on the paper, then set them
to the other length and make an arc. Where the two
arcs cross is the point of the feature recorded.
 To plot offset points use a set square and ruler.

11. Learning outcomes
 1.3 State what needs to be recorded when carrying out a site
appraisal, including soil type, contour, aspect, microclimate,
exposure and drainage
 1. Garden planning
 1.1 Describe how assess the garden users requirements in
preparation for the production of a plan.
 1.2 Describe how to carry out basic linear surveying
techniques, including the use of tapes, offsets and triangulation
 1.3 Describe the methods used for recording surveying data.
 2.6 Name FIVE evergreen and FIVE deciduous plant species,
suitable for hedging or screening (including formal or informal
use).