Plants and Technology II

GSD 6219 addresses interdependencies among technical, cultural, and professional aspects of built landscapes at an advanced level in landscape architecture. Technologies are investigated as critical components of design and as platforms for research practices in the field. The course engages traditional and emerging technologies as applied to constructed landscapes of varying scales. Through lectures, workshops, assignments, readings, lab visits, and field visits, the class explores topics including soil formation; chemical and biological properties of the soil environment; manufacture and placement of designed soils; performance characteristics of designed vegetative systems; and practices of designing, specifying, and managing constructed landscapes.The course builds on previous coursework in the Landscape Architecture core, where landscapes are posited as complex constructed systems; the approach stresses climatic and microclimatic conditions, soil moisture regimes, built contexts, social and political factors, construction techniques, and maintenance practices. Case studies and field trips during the second half of the course stress the analytical, critical, and professional tools required for proficiency in conceiving, producing, procuring, building, and maintaining sustainable urban landscapes.