According to the American Society of Landscape Architects, a landscape architect plans and designs the use, allocation, and arrangement of land and water resources through the creative application of biological, physical, mathematical, and social processes. While architects design buildings and structures, landscape architects are "architects of the land," designing parks, housing developments, zoos, waterfronts, and so on, as well as stormwater drainage systems, wetlands, and species habitats. Some of the specializations they pursue include regional landscape planning, urban planning, ecological planning and design, and historic preservation and reclamation. Forty-six states require landscape architects to be licensed by completing a bachelor's degree in the field and passing the Landscape Architect Registration Examination.

Among other skills, landscape architects must be sound mathematicians and be able to integrate mathematical models and planning methods into a technical design. To do this, it is necessary to take accurate measurements and compute areas, volumes, and the quantity of materials needed for each component of the job, all while staying within a budget. It is important for landscape architects to be competent with CAD (computer-aided design) software to help plan projects. Additionally, they need to understand the underlying mathematics principles in construction processes and support systems, as well as in methods of construction. For example, problems of drainage would require the landscape architect to manipulate contours and spot elevations, to calculate slopes, grades, and volumes of material, and to understand hydraulics.

The work of a landscape architect is cross-disciplinary because it spans tasks ranging from urban planning to designing species habitats.

See Also

Architect.

Bibliography

Dines, Nicholas T. Landscape Architect's Portable Handbook. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2001.

Lnternet Resources

American Society of Landscape Architects. <http://www.asla.org>.