Are you thinking about a new garden?
Are you considering engaging a Landscape Designer or Landscape Architect?
If you are, we strongly recommend you spend 5 minutes reading this article to help familiarise yourself with many of the common terms you will need to know to ensure you can understand your designer.
Every industry has its own 'jargon' and the landscaping industry is no different.
Getting to know these terms and what they mean will help you avoid making mistakes based on misunderstanding. They will also empower you to make informed decisions at every step of your journey.
Concept Design – A Concept Design allows you to see what your new garden might look like in a broad overview before it’s built. It’s a digital representation by your landscape designer or landscape architect showing how your garden will function, with all key elements laid out in place. It is usually not highly detailed, rather it provides a starting point to discuss or confirm the details later. Your concept design presents an overall theme and style for the garden such as modern minimalist, coastal, native, cottage, Mediterranean, etc
Master Plan - A set of detailed drawings with notations that finalise all the details presented in the original Concept Design, including the proposed plants and materials to be used in your new garden. It may also include elevational drawings to show how certain aspects of the garden may look or how to navigate levels and heights. With a Master Plan your landscaper is able to cost the new garden and source all the requirements for it. (If you engage Whyte Gardens we take your Concept Design right up to the Master Plan stage in our design package.)
Engineering - After the Master Plan stage but before construction can actually commence, an Engineer may be needed to specify and detail precisely how major features will be constructed and to consult on various aspects of the planned construction. Sometimes the engineer is required to sign off on plans just to satisfy permit requirements, even if your landscaper already knows exactly how to build any garden element.
Working Drawings - Working Drawings are detailed drawings of the exact construction methods, materials and measurements to be used in building garden features, such as decks, pergolas, patios, verandas, etc.
Planning Permit – Issued by your local council, this permit allows you to use land in a certain way or to build structures on it. Planning permits are mostly to do with how your proposed use of the land may affect others, such as when your new deck may overlook your neighbour’s garden or where a structure may be close to a boundary fence, or how your proposal may affect the neighbourhood in general, etc If you do need a Planning Permit, it will need to be approved before you can apply for a Building Permit as it forms part of the application for the Building Permit. Note that Planning Permits are dependent on local council’s specifications and so can vary from council to council. Depending on your project, for a simple garden, you may only need a Planning Permit with no Building Permit.
Building Permit - A type of permit issued by registered building surveyor (either employed by a council or privately) allowing you to build a deck, pergola/veranda, retaining wall or other structures above a certain height, in accordance with submitted plans. Building permits are governed by Australian Standards and do NOT vary from council to council. They are concerned mostly to do with safety. A building surveyor must be engaged and site inspections conducted to make sure what is being built will be constructed in compliance with relevant building regulations. It differs from a planning permit as it is concerned mostly with safe, quality construction.
Easement - A section of land that has been set aside by a relevant authority for future or current use. Typically, easements are created to allow sewer pipes, stormwater drains, electrical cables or other underground assets to be laid and/or accessed, repaired or replaced at a later date. You need a Build Over Easement permit when constructing anything over or close to an easement.
Landscape Designer - Someone who has studied landscape design at a tertiary institution. Landscape Design courses range from 18 months – 3 years depending on where it is offered. Graduates are granted a diploma. They may or may not also have practical experience in the field.
Landscape Architect – To call yourself a Landscape Architect, you must first complete a 5 year degree course at a University or College. They study a wider range of subjects than landscape designers and must be registered and licensed by the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects before being allowed to practice.
Horticulturist/Horticultural Designer – A horticulturist is an expert in garden cultivation and plant management who has completed an 18-24 month certificate course. They can assess soil conditions, identify plant pests & diseases and create an ideal environment for plants to thrive. Some landscape designers or landscape architects also study horticulture to become Horticultural Designers.
Landscaper - A Landscaper is the person (or company) who actually constructs your garden from a design created by a Landscape Designer or Landscape Architect. There are both qualified and unqualified landscapers as unfortunately, anyone can call themselves a ‘Landscaper’ without any qualifications or experience. But the best landscapers have practical experience and have served an apprenticeship or have undergone other relevant training.
Registered Building Practitioner - This is someone who has met the required qualifications, experience and regulatory standards to be registered by the Victorian Building Authority as being capable of carrying out building works. You enjoy additional consumer protections if you use them. Note: not all landscapers are Registered Building Practitioners in their particular speciality or field and so there are extra risks if you use them.
Paving – Pavers are typically stone or concrete blocks, measuring 20-40mm thick. They vary enormously in both shape and size. Pavers are primarily used to create flat areas such as driveways, paths or entertainment areas.
Exposed Aggregate Concrete - Concrete that is poured then sprayed with a retardant before setting to slow down the curing process. The following day, a high-pressure water spray is used to remove the very thin top layer of the concrete allowing the aggregate within it (gravel or pebble stones) to be slightly exposed.
Warranty Insurance – This is a form of consumer protection that is only available to you if you use a Landscaper who is a Registered Building Practitioner. It provides a safety net for you by offering compensation for losses due to faulty workmanship or non-completion of work should the landscaper become insolvent, not return to site or lose their license.
Project Coordination – When you engage a company (like Whyte Gardens) that provides both landscape design and landscaping under the one roof, you enjoy a seamless transition from one stage to the next. It also means you have one central contact who is in charge of project coordination, so you don’t have to coordinate or liaise with any tradesmen, landscaping crew, installers etc working on your project. We take care of that for you.
Decking – usually constructed from timbers or timber substitutes, decking creates a flat, open outdoor space for entertaining, relaxing or dining. Sometimes used to create freestanding decks, it is more commonly used around homes or pools to connect both in a seamless manner. You will almost certainly require a Planning and/or Building Permit to construct a deck in Victoria.
Coping – this is the edging or cap of the swimming pool that surrounds the top perimeter of it to effectively join the paved area to the side of the pool. Usually created with an overhang that provides a finishing touch aesthetically while also protecting the pool structure. It prevents excess water from splashing out of the pool and prevents water leaking down behind the pool wall.
Pergola – this is a free-standing structure (not attached to the house or other building) that provides shade, a place to grow vines or just for aesthetics. It may have an open, slatted or louvered roof depending on how much shade is desired.
Gazebo – also a free-standing structure, not dissimilar to a pergola, but it has a fully enclosed roof providing complete cover from the elements and shade protection. Often used to provide a gathering place near a pool, deck, outdoor BBQ, etc
Veranda – a veranda differs from pergolas and gazebos because it is attached to a house and depending on the style of construction it can effectively act as an extension to the house if the roof and walls are fully enclosed. An open style veranda may still have a covered roof but be open on all 3 sides. Some verandas have open or slatted or louvred roofs.
Estimate – an estimate is an approximation of what something might cost. Generally it is expressed as a range rather than a fixed single amount – so your landscaper might say the driveway will cost between $5,000 - $6,000. They draw on their long experience to give you the estimate, but it is not a quote. Estimates are given until exact specifications for a job or project can be obtained in order to provide a more accurate quote.
Quote – a quote is usually in writing and provides an actual fixed amount, rather than a range like an estimate. So, for example the quote for your actual driveway, based on the specifications supplied, materials quoted might be $5,428.45. Quotes are usually valid for say 30 days and the supplier should be held accountable to that amount, unless something extraordinary occurs forcing it to be higher.
Costing – costing is more like a process than an outcome like an estimate or quote. For example a landscaper will need to find out how much per sq m a specific paver will cost from the supplier or how much certain plants are in a specific size. They then have to do a costing to work out how much labour will be involved in laying the pavers, how many extra pavers need to be purchased to allow for breakages on site,
Hope you enjoyed reading this article.
If you still have unanswered questions about landscape design or landscaping in general, please feel free to contact us at 
