Landscape

Harmony House is located within an older subdivision originally developed in the 1950’s and is governed by the RS2 zoning requirements of the City of Burnaby. The subdivision was developed over 50 years ago so the land use impacts that can be affected in this project are limited to the site the home is located on.
The Harmony House Landscape Design includes several features intent on demonstrating better ways of developing residential gardens. The site sits adjacent to a steep ravine with large tracts of native forest protected within a local park designation. The close proximity of this natural area lead to one of the key principles of the landscape design - to enhance the wildlife habitat value of the site through providing shelter, food and water. In addition food production, minimal maintenance, drought resistance,  and microclimate modification were other principles guiding the design. (see preliminary landscape plan below).
The Landscape Design responds to the clients interest in Japanese style gardens, with a Pacific Northwest plant material based version of a Japanese ‘zen’ garden. The front yard is defined by large B.C. sourced basalt columns in a ‘sea’ of crushed rock, surrounded by landscaped mounds planted with layers of textures and hues of green. Combined with splashes of colour throughout the year the front yard creates a discernable transition from the public sidewalk to the front door of the house.

Other noteworthy landscape design features include:

• The front and rear gardens include evergreen, deciduous and perennial plants that produce a variety of flowers and edible berries that will attract birds and butterflies.
• Located in the front and rear yards are hybrid water feature/ rain water detention basins that provide small water cascades (and the peaceful sound that goes with moving water) and rain water detention ponds, that receive some runoff from the building’s downspouts via bioswales.  The 'bioswales' allows for both infiltration of runoff and increases the site's biologically diversity. A small PV powered pump reticulates the water in the ponds.

• The driveway is constructed of pervious paving to help reduce storm water runoff and reduce the 'heat island effect' of a conventional driveway pavement.
• Lawn areas are not included in the front yard to avoid the use of energy necessary to mow the turf. A small area of Bluestem Nursery’s “Enviro-Turf” is used in back garden to provide an area for informal play and picnicing. The Enviro-Turf has extremely low water needs and grows slowly meaning little irrigation will be required and few mowings with a push mower.
• A small patio abuts the east facing french doors that open off the lower in-law suite to provide a generous outdoor area for whomever lives in the unit..
• A small wood deck wraps around the east side of the house and the south side, in front of the solarium.
• An oval patio made of pervious paving, and accessible from main living area, provides an area to sit outside and entertain.
• Along the hotter south side of the house are drought tolerant plantings that provide a green landscape buffer between the house and the property line without blocking the solar access of the basement suite.
• A shade garden, comprised primarily of native ferns and non native bamboo, runs along a small area adjacent to the north property line to provide visual interest from the kitchen and a screen from the neighbouring property.
• A medium sized deciduous native shade tree is located near the southwest corner of the building to help moderate afternoon heat loading while avoiding shading of the PV array on the roof.
• A similar tree is located at the southeast side of the house to control southeast solar glare while trying not to shade the solar thermal collectors on the garage roof.
• Rainwater from the roofs will be collected and held in a 4650 liter cistern to provide a portion of the water used to irrigate the various landscaped areas.
• Local precast concrete unit pavers are used throughout the development to avoid the need for concrete form making materials and the waste that commonly follows cast-in-place concrete.