Landscape Design – PHC Student Project Opportunity

Each year, Pacific Horticulture College students work with members of the public who are willing to offer their properties as landscape design student projects. This is a great learning opportunity for PHC students, and the participants receive 2-4 gorgeous landscape design possibilities for their gardens!
Please see below for a review of the Landscape Design process from Louisa, a 2018 participant:
“In 2018, our families were selected by the PHC to participate in the student landscape design project. We chose to participate in the project as we are new residents of Victoria and felt that this would be a great opportunity for us to learn about the gardening culture in the area and help us design an appropriate garden for our needs. The project was to include two separate gardens with two separate foci, but to have a contiguous look, taking into consideration, children and pets as well as the time needed to care for the gardens. We completed the application with a description of the design requirements and a list of needs and concerns, as well as photos of the project area.
The process was very easy and was personalized to the availability of our time. We first met with the instructor for a preliminary chat about our ideas and a tour of the proposed garden area. We discussed with her the feasibility of the site, the challenges we had and what was involved in the design process. The instructor informed us of the process and the timelines for the projects.
Following this discussion, we were selected and four students contacted us to meet face to face at our convenience. This first meeting allowed us to get to know the students, answer a set of prescribed questions and for us to describe our needs and wants…..remember we have two families with very different garden ideas. At this time, we set up a time for the students to come and measure the area and look at the current layout and elevation in different areas of the yard.
The students, then returned to the college to work on their designs of our garden. This process, I am sure for them, was stressful, as we were in principle, their first “customers”. We were contacted by the students approximately half way through the design timelines for an initial discussion of their proposed garden design. At this meeting we reviewed the preliminary designs, commented and challenged the students to make changes to reflect our needs. We also clarified any outstanding issues and questions they had.
On our final meeting, we met with the students for their final presentations. The presentations were all very different and beautiful. We came away with a greater understanding of what their visions were and how our needs could be met. We were very satisfied with the designs, came away with list of plants that were appropriate for our yard, and plans that could be implemented over a period of time.
Total time spent: approximately 8 hours meeting with instructor and students
Outcomes: 4 complete plans with plant lists, detailed plans that include layout to fit the gardens”
For more information and to apply to have your home garden designed by PHC students click HERE: PHC Student Landscape Design Application 2019 and download the application!