1'01 The Ecology of Planting Design The Biological Components

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1.01The Ecology of Planting Design The
Biological Components
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The common thread that links us, as landscape
architects, to the environments we design, is
plant materials. It is important, therefore,
to begin an understanding of the elements of
planting design with the processes of plants as
they occur in natural spaces.
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Solving intricate design problems with plants
requires an understanding of - how plants
live - where they live - why they live where
they do
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The biological components of the physical
world consist of a variety of interrelated
energy levels.
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The Producer The first level is green
vegetation, the part of the system that collects
and stores energy from the sun. Green
vegetation thus becomes the producer level for
the system.
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The Herbivores The second level, the
herbivores, ranges in size from a parasitic
fungus to an elephant and is dependent upon the
first level for its energy and food.
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The Carnivores Levels three and four are both
comprised of carnivores animals that eat
herbivores. Man, the omnivore, eats both
plants and animals.
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The Decomposers Level five is made up of
bacteria, fungi, and protozoa the decomposers
which use dead plants and animals for food and
energy.
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The Basic Communities The community of green
vegetation known broadly as plants is divided
into four groups or sub-communities known as
divisions

• Thallophyta (thallophytes) are non-chlorophyll-bea
  ring comprised of bacteria, lichens, and fungi.
• Bryophyta (mosses and liverworts) are small green
  plants without flowers .
• Pteridophyta (ferns and fern families) are green
  plants with vascular tissue.
• Spermatophyta (seed plants) are distinct
  flowering plants and considered to be the most
  highly organized.