February 03, 2022
Many gardens included in The Garden Club of America Collection at the Archives of American Gardens hold a proud distinction: they embody design principles developed by the renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903). In addition to establishing a firm that had a hand for over a century in the design of more than 6,000 landscapes and gardens, Olmsted published influential theories about landscape design that transformed how people perceived, composed, and maintained the outdoor space around them. Olmsted scholars have distilled Olmsted’s ideas down to a list of six design principles (‘ODP’s’). Here is Principle Five.
The National Association for Olmsted Parks (NAOP) defines a sustainable design as one that can be maintained over time, thereby preserving the design’s original intent. That means the original designer should pick “thrifty” plants that can thrive easily and require very little special care. At Boxly in Philadelphia, gardeners have been able to maintain Olmsted’s design for over a century thanks in no small part to his plant choices.
Olmsted also proposed retaining a site’s natural features. In his own work, Olmsted often used native plants and designed spaces that promoted a site’s ecological health. For instance, his firm followed the existing curves of the land and incorporated native tree species into its design for the Memorial Cemetery of St. John's Church in Syosset, New York. At the Rye Nature Center in Rye, New York, designers implemented Olmsted’s principle with a rain garden that collects falling precipitation and relies on a rain barrel when the weather is dry. This arrangement reduces runoff into local waterways.
Olmsted recognized that a long-lasting garden in harmony with nature improves the human spirit. His timeless design principles continue to inspire and guide landscape architects and garden designers today.
“Design Principles,” Olmsted.org, National Association for Olmsted Parks. www.olmsted.org/the-olmsted-legacy/olmsted-theory-and-design-principles/design-principles
Images from The Garden Club of America Collection at the Archives of American Gardens. By Alanna Natanson, GCA Garden History & Design Intern at AAG. June 2020.
PA009, Boxly, Philadelphia, PA.
PA009, Boxly, Philadelphia, PA. Frederick W. G. Peck, photographer.
NY795, Memorial Cemetery of St. John's Church, Syosset, NY. Susan L. Walker, photographer
NY135, Rye Nature Center, Rye, NY. Nadia Valla, photographer
In Other News...
Advocating for the Environment
February 01, 2022
Establishing a Pollinator Garden at the San Antonio Zoo
January 27, 2022