Summary: When doing a landscape rehab on a older property with a worn out, out dated or plain old ugly landscape design, “the plan” is very much like that of a new landscape project. Find out what is different – if anything.
When a landscape design or plan has seen its last days and it is time for a landscape rehab and give the property some new “curb appeal”, the plan or technique is much the same as that described in our article on – Garden Planning: either draw the lot to scale on a piece of paper, or cut a piece of cardboard corresponding to the size and shape of the property. Show the position of the house, and mark important doors and windows. Then indicate the existing layout of walks, steps and beds, the position of pronounced changes in level, and the location of trees and shrubs.
For the survey of an old garden, it is easiest to work with paper and pencil, since it is simpler and quicker to locate objects with pencil dots than with a lump of clay or a block of wood. Fasten the paper to a board with masking tape and carry it outdoors. If it is not convenient to scale each distance as you go along, simply write in the number of feet. Name the various objects, and if you cannot identify a plant, put a descriptive label.
It will be much quicker if two people can work together, one at each end of the measuring tape. One method is to establish two base lines at right angles to each other and make all measurements from these. The base lines can be projections of two sides of the house, or they can be fence or boundary lines. Another method, which is sometimes practical on a small place and saves a good many steps, it to measure out from a point on the house, such as a window, door, or angle, and to keep moving from object to object. With short distances, the eye is a sufficiently accurate guide as to whether an object is in line. Very important objects can be double-checked.
If the measurements are written in and not scaled on the preliminary drawing, take the board to a table when you have finished measuring and draw the plan to scale. This project may seem a tedious one, but it will give a total view of the layout that cannot be obtained in any other way.
