Landscape design and ecologically managed farms

Abstract

This study deals with designing rural landscapes based on ecological principles. It is not about landscape design of farms in general and it is not about ecological production per se. Rather I have chosen to look more specifically at the landscape design of productive units that are managed according to ecological principles.

This study begins with an examination of both the ecological and orthodox approaches to productive land use and their consequences from a landscape perspective. As will be shown, there is a need for landscape design specific to ecological productive units and a discussion of an approach to such design follows. The hidden processes involved in and which need to be accounted for in such design are considered more deeply along with a more specific examination of the natural system relevant to rural productive land use. From such research several main issues are identified for the landscape design of ecologically managed productive units and various options discussed. As an ecological approach is holistic it is essentially integrative. This separation into issues is necessarily arbitory but provides a useful base for further investigation. A case study will then illustrate the application of gathered information.

Objectives: - To examine orthodox and ecological systems of productive rural land management from a landscape persepctive. - To discuss design approaches to ecologically managed productive rural land. - To establish issues concerning ecological management of rural productive land and discuss options for design and management relating to those issues.