The final project for Introduction to Planting Design was another redesign of the UW Quad, this time as a group project, incorporating one of a variety of “sense of…” categories. My group chose Sense of Nature, and created both a design board and a shoebox model. The overall experiential idea was to immerse the visitor in a variety of typical Pacific Northwest ecosystems in a small space. This translated into the shoebox as Nature breaking free of its concrete container.
Slight mounds were necessary to create patches of wet and dry, conducive to a wider variety of plant types, creating patches of different vegetation and canopy experiences for the visitor.
The uniform elevation of the outer path allows both easy access to and around the Quad for the student on the go, as well as a more casual stroll. The constructed oval is a treated wood boardwalk, with stilts, stairs and bridges as necessary to elevate it slightly above the ground level, preventing soil compaction and root damage. The open design also allows for more infiltration of stormwater. The northern corner (which appears NE in plan view) receives the most sun, making it more suited for prairie and wildflower installations. The opposite corner, in the south, is typically darker and moister throughout the year, so provides an opportunity for a moss garden similar to the Hall of Mosses in the Hoh Rainforest. A level, oval boardwalk around the space, allows
The interior lacks definitive paths, leaving the visitor free to explore at their own pace. Tree spacing is dense enough to obscure hidden wonders, but wide enough to allow easy navigation.
If I’d designed it with an eye level component, or more attention getting paths, it might have been more effective as an “intervention.”
