Landscaping Plans

[oengineer]

Hello

I am reviewing some landscaping plans but I am not sure what I should check for. Also, is it common to have an engineer review landscaping plans? Any comments/suggestion are appreciated.

 

[Retrograde]

I generally look for all the instances where they refer to the engineer on their drawings, eg:

Pavement slab - refer engineers drawings
Pagola structure - refer engineers drawings
Bollards - refer engineers drawings
Retaining wall - refer engineers drawings
Footing - refer engineers drawings
etc

And then make sure you have something on your drawings to cover it.

 

[bridgebuster]

Landscaping plans can cover a lot of ground, pun intended. There can be planting plans with details of soil mixture diagrams; sometimes the landscaping plans show the details for preventing soil erosion and sediment control; there could be plumbing diagrams for sprinklers, water features, or irrigation system. Then there could be the items Retrograde cited.

What specifically are you looking at and what do you feel comfortable reviewing? Are you reviewing the aesthetics, design drawings or shop drawings?

 

[fel3]

Make sure they don't show planting and/or sprinkler heads in hardscaping (e.g. concrete, asphalt, buildings, etc.). I have had this happen several times. It usually results from the LA misreading the civil drawings or the LA using an outdated civil site plan. It's never our fault. Never. Well, maybe once.

==========
"Is it the only lesson of history that mankind is unteachable?"
--Winston S. Churchill

 

[jgailla]

Make sure they have a water source for the irrigation system. I had a LA leave one off one time. It was an expensive change order.

 

[cvg]

aesthetic treatment of structures is often done by LA
agree that LA rarely interprets either the civil or structural plans accurately, recommend close coordination to avoid problems later. They like to plant trees everywhere, make sure they are not doing it where they shouldn't...

 

[gbam]

Don't forget about plant types and heights within Sight triangles etc..

 

[ashtree]

Also check against the project specification if there is one. There may also be specific requirements in the planning or building approval.

Regards
Ashtree
"Any water can be made potable if you filter it through enough money"

 

[emmgjld]

In my semi-arid environment - Drainage & Grading are often directly addressed in the Geotech report, reasonably addressed on the Civil drawings and absolutely forgotten on the Landscaping. Add in my local conditions of extensive expansive clays and collapsible soils, the Landscaping can be devastating.

 

[Pinwards]

Backflow prevention can be an important aspect that some L/S forget if coming off a potable water source for irrigation. On the civil side we often call out for L/S to detail their own backflow prevention and it's often overlooked on their plans, though required by the AHJ.

#

 

[civilman72]

Make sure they don't put trees on top of utility lines. Keep trees out of the road clear zone.

 

[oengineer]

Thank you all for the help

 

[racookpe1978]

All of the above.

Add handicapped access requirements (is the landscape blocking ramps or driveways, parking lot or sidewalk ramps?)

Look for ALL drainage paths that are AIMED AWAY from the building and foundations, that do NOT create ice skating rinks in winter or turtle ponds and mosquito traps in summer.
Check that today's "new" runoff water retention ponds and the drains (over flows ?) from those runoff ponds are actually flowing the right direction, do not themselves become blocks or mosquito traps, nor clammed up with sediment.

 

[Okiryu]

If you have buildings around supported on shallow foundations keep big trees away of the building.