What is Landscaping?

What is landscaping all about? What is meant when someone refers to a process as landscaping or discusses work on a landscape design? Landscaping essentially refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land. These activities can vary based on size, scope and location of a piece of land.

Landscapers often are primarily considered to focus on the living elements of a piece of land. The living elements would include both flora and/or fauna in some combination. This is most commonly referred to as gardening. Garden landscaping is the art and craft of growing plants with a goal of creating a beautiful environment within the landscape.

Landscapers also can be called upon to manipulate and maintain other natural elements such as landforms, terrain shape and elevation, or bodies of water on a property.

Human elements such as structures, buildings, fences or other material objects created and/or installed by humans might also be maintained by some landscapers.

Most landscapers take into consideration abstract elements such as the weather and lighting conditions when working on a property landscape.

Landscaping is both science and art, and requires good observation and design skills. A good landscaper understands the elements of nature and construction and blends them accordingly.

Construction requires study and observation. It is not the same in different parts of the world. Landscaping varies according to different regions. Therefore normally local natural experts are recommended if it is done for the first time. Understanding of the site is one of the chief essentials for successful landscaping. Different natural features like terrain, topography, soil qualities, prevailing winds, depth of the frost line, and the system of native flora and fauna must be taken into account. Sometimes the land is not fit for landscaping. In order to landscape it, the land must be reshaped. This reshaping of land is called grading.

Removing of earth from the land is called cutting while when earth is added to slope, it is called filling. Sometimes grading process may involve removing of excessive waste, soil and rocks, so designers should take into account while at planning stage.