What is a green landscape (also called environmental landscape design)?
An environmental landscape design is the use of native plant material to integrate the built environment with its natural surroundings. This type of landscape uses native plants for the purpose of reducing the need for fertilizer, pesticides, and watering. When the landscape is designed completely with a green concept, each part of the landscape is addressed. Plants are selected for each part of the site – shade loving for northern exposure, sun loving for southern exposure, and wetland plants for wet areas. This is a simple breakdown of the complex types of environments in each landscape. Each landscape has many types of micro environments which require more specific use of plants within a larger site. Water runoff including downspouts can be routed into rain gardens which absorb excess water and filter pollutants. These techniques help recharge the underground water resources.
