Designers are the dreamers
By Daniel Fuller
Landscape architects and designers are the dreamers of our industry. They are afforded the luxury to find inspiration and the creative talent to visualise a concept while the rest of us run around like headless chooks with one eye on the clock. Almost everything that happens in the landscape begins as a thought in a designer’s mind, but that’s just the beginning of the story.
If the designers are the dreamers, with their heads in the clouds, the rest of us are the boots on the ground, with our hands in the dirt. Nursery folk, construction crews and maintenance operators are responsible for bringing designers’ dreams to reality. It’s not our job to re-imagine the landscape, it’s our job to bring the original imaginings to life.
Sure, there are many times when a plant is unavailable, and a nursery person needs to recommend a suitable replacement (always confirm the replacement with the designer before making the change), or a landscaper needs to move the ag pipe a bit to the left, or the maintenance operator needs to replace a dead plant. In these cases, it’s important that we honour the original design intention.
Too many cooks can spoil the broth though. There’s probably a reason why the designer chose a flood-tolerant plant for the depressed part of the landscape, or why the drainage needed to be in a particular spot, or why there’s so much blue in the colour palette. If the nursery, landscapers, and maintenance crew all have their say in the design, it will lose the original spirit that it was imbued with.
You see, every landscape has a “sense of place.” Landscape architects and good designers have been trained in ethereal aspects that a horticulturist like me can only begin to understand. I know a lot about which plants will do well in which spots and for which reasons, and which aftercare is required, so the end design benefits from having a horticulturist at the design table.
But when it comes to evoking emotions, promoting accessibility, and designing usable spaces, a horticulturist may not be as successful as a good designer.
You’re probably reading this and thinking, “I know a few designers who don’t know how to create usable spaces.” Fair call, but I’m talking about good designers. The type of designer whose vision you wouldn’t mind serving.
I don’t want to give the impression that the designers are smarter than the rest of us or that the industry needs them more than the rest. On the contrary, without the boots on the ground, the head will disappear into clouds of ideas that don’t work in the real world.
When designers learn from and collaborate with nursery folk, construction crews, and maintenance operators, they gain access to a wealth of practical insights that can inspire innovative solutions and creative adaptations. This synergy often leads to more imaginative and feasible designs.
Just like in nature, the built landscape is ordered. It begins with a dream in the mind of a creative person and is manifested into reality through the hands of practical people. Hopefully, the creative mind is somewhat practical, and the hands are somewhat creative, but the mind needs to focus on what it does best while the hands do what they do best.
The best designers I know have a sound background with their boots on the ground and their hands in the soil, so if you feel you’ve got a dream to offer the landscape, I would encourage you to start learning about the fundamental design principles such as colour theory, harmony, form, function, and so forth. Who knows, maybe you were born to be a dreamer!
Daniel Fuller
M: 042 6169 708
E: hello@plantsgrowhere.com