• History and Ideas
  • Prehistory to Middle Ages
  • Renaissance, Baroque, Enlightenment
  • 19th Century
  • 20th Century
  • From Millennium to Olympics
• The Genius of Place
  • Design and Vision
  • Planning the Landscape
  • Management and Conservation
  • Historic Conservation
  • The Science of Landscape
  • Cities and Towns
  • Gardens and Parks
• The Power to Change
  • Climate Change
  • Sustainable Communities
  • Environment
  • Housing
  • Hunger
  • Transportation

Gardens and Parks

The design of gardens and parks is historically at the centre of the practice of landscape architecture, and it still forms a large part of the work of many firms.  A strong knowledge of plants is required, as well as a good understanding of the building blocks of landscapes – soils, geology, the flow of water, climate and the lie of the land. 

Parks and gardens are essential to the health and well-being of people and communities, and serve an important function as a habitat for urban animals needing food and shelter.  Parks and gardens also provide food for people and are crucial for cleaning the air and water and for cooling towns in the heat of summer.

In addition to the overall planning required, designing parks and gardens requires landscape architects to create construction drawings to show how elements are to be built and to provide planting plans which show what types of trees and plants are to be used and where they are to be planted.   Landscape architects often manage the projects as they are built, communicating with and guiding contractors throughout the process.

The Peace Gardens in Sheffield is a new award-winning park, and the Olympic Park in the Lower Lea Valley will from 2012 become a rival to the Royal Parks as a place for Londoners to enjoy fresh air.