You probably know by now that burning fossil fuels to heat your home, run your appliances and drive your vehicles creates carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (GHG), but you may not have thought about the GHG produced with watering, mowing and fertilizing landscapes. The problem is that there are not good tools for calculating this. Carbon and other GHG calculators do not typically include the embodied energy of water nor landscape maintenance in their equations. (more…)
Sustainability and Annual Plantings June 2, 2010
An interesting question is beginning to be raised in terms of sustainable landscaping, how can we use annual plants in our sustainable landscape? This presents an interesting topic for discussion and we would be interested in your opinions. In most areas of the U.S., annuals can play an important role in many landscapes such as healing environments. The benefit of certain colors and mental restorative factors is a consideration in landscapes and human health.
So how might we make the use of annual plants more sustainable? Could we perhaps use better more appropriate soils with healthy biology? Soils with moisture holding characteristics that slowly release water to the plants and extend the time period between watering. How about supplemental watering gained from rainwater harvesting systems and the use of composting on site? The University of Minnesota Sustainable Urban Landscape Series provides some good practices for herbaceous plant maintenance.
Another source or reference looking at the production and growing of plants is VeriFlora. Like SITES – a focus is placed on ecosystems and protection of our resources. VeriFlora is an agricultural sustainability certification and eco-labeling program recognized as the gold-standard in the floriculture and horticulture industries according to their web site .
As sustainable landscapes become a larger segment of the landscape market place we need to continue looking at all aspect of the landscapes and explore techniques to enhance the sustainability chain. These are a few of the resources to make your colorful annual plantings a little more sustainable in practice.
LEED-ND is an Opportunity for Landscape Architects to Advance Sustainable Community Design June 1, 2010
Do you want to become a LEED-Accredited Professional, but are not sure whether any LEED specialty suits you as a landscape architect? Or are you already a LEED-AP, accredited before the revised credentialing system took effect, and are considering becoming a LEED-AP in a specialty?
If your answer is “yes” to either question, then consider accreditation for LEED-ND (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development). This rating system was launched in April 2009, after going through a pilot stage and subsequent revisions. LEED-ND evaluates neighborhood planning and development based on the combined principles of smart growth, New Urbanism, and green infrastructure and building. Developed jointly by the US Green Building Council, the Congress for the New Urbanism, and the Natural Resources Defense Council, LEED-ND is intended to establish a national leadership standard for assessing and rewarding environmentally superior green neighborhood development practices within the framework of the LEED Green Building Rating System. (more…)
