The secret behind a successful planting - the assessment of the site conditions

The assessment of the site conditions

-The secret behind a successful planting

The process of building a garden starts with a very important step and that is the assessment of the site and the soil. Therefore if you are planning to build your garden and you have a potential site for your project then you need to follow some important steps just to be sure that you are choosing the best design and plants for your site conditions. 

According to William Thompson in his book "Sustainable landscape construction: a guide to green building outdoors" it is very important to assess the site for the garden as healthy or not, and to treat it accordingly.

The sites that are healthy are characterized by the following: 

•They support strong ecosystems and high biodiversity.

•They are not dominated  by species imported there by humans.

•They are essentially self-maintaining, not dependent on outside resources supplied by people.

•Their species are reproducing at normal rates. 

In order to asses your site qualities you can start by checking the local environment and climate, as well as the topography and soil conditions. The  exposure, which influences the sun and shade in a garden, and the soil type, helps to discover its moisture and nutrient content. 

To check how much sun and shadow you garden receives can be an important step in the plant selection process. This can be determined with the help of an compass, by checking which areas are facing south and which areas are facing north. The exposure can be however affected by various factors such as the weather or the time of the day. The different conditions in your garden can lead to microclimates which can increase the biodiversity and the number of various ecosystems. Different species of plants can be selected if the  temperature, water levels, air and wind circulation around your yard are assessed correctly. 

A healthy site should be maintain healthy by using specific procedures. Firstly the site should be treated with care throughout the design and construction process because the quality of such choices can make the difference between irreparable damage and minimal impact.