Green keeping

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The One and Only Royal Mirage Dubai is cited as an example of a project that has been well maintained. (Image courtesy of Desert Group)

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More sustainable use could be made of green waste in the region.

Keeping a landscape true to the original vision is complex, but crucial if a design is to have value long term. Lauren Hills takes a look at the role of maintenance in outdoor design.

On paper or computer, the finished design is near to perfection, a studied solution combining aesthetics and functionality.

All too often, however, the design that gets realised is already a departure from the original, compromised by conflicting opinions and too tight budgets.

Five years on, and on visiting a site, a designer may find that the vision before him bears little resemblance to his original drawing.

Maintenance is integral to sustaining the landscape architect's vision. Once the design is implemented and the ground cover, trees, mulching and paving all in place, it is only the maintenance that stands between the designer and his original idea. From adequate watering to regular pruning, weeding and waste removal, if a landscape is not maintained, the design cannot be kept in place, and neither client nor designer will be happy.

Maintenance is a key aspect of landscape architecture, said Geoff Sanderson, principal of Green Concepts, in an interview with Commercial Outdoor Design earlier this year.

"People tend to think of landscape once it is built as something that is finished and you walk away. As far as I'm concerned, that is just the start," he said.

"Unless somebody knows what the design intent was, for example, instead of the hedge staying at a certain height, it grows too high and blocks whatever is behind it, because no-one has ever explained what its role is and why it needs to be kept at a particular height."

James Balderstone, project manager at Desert Group, the UAE's largest landscape contractor, agrees. "The problem with landscaping is that when you install it, it can look good for the next six months or even a year, but then depending on how well it has been installed or how well it is being maintained, it starts to fall apart," he says.

Once a landscape has been installed, there is typically a period after construction when the landscape contractor is still involved. After that the client takes over responsibility for the maintenance. Typically, they will outsource the maintenance with contract renewal on a yearly basis, but the frequency of the maintenance, as well as the period of time that the contract will cover, can vary.

Consistency

Consistency in maintenance is particularly important. While many clients change contractors or choose to employ their own garden service after the initial year-long contract has been completed, both the landscape architect and the contractor agree that for continuity reasons it is best to keep someone who was involved with the original project on site for as long as possible.

"We have done projects where we have built it, and maintained it for a year, and then after a year, we have basically been told that we are too expensive, and someone else has been awarded the contract. That happens a lot," says Balderstone.

Cost cutting is often cited as a reason for a change of contractor. But any short term savings gained may be at the risk of a longer expense over the longer term, warns Mohammed Zafar, operations manager at contractor Royal Gardens.

"If the contractor who is doing the maintenance is not aware of the concept behind the design, then the whole scheme changes," he notes.

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