LandscapingChapter 6

The Outdoor Room Concept

Objectives• Identify indoor and outdoor use areas• List and define the features of the

outdoor room

Categories of Use of the Home

• Public Area– Portion of the home that is seen by anyone coming in

• Includes—entry foyer, reception room, enclosed porch• Family Living Area

– Rooms that are used for family activities and entertaining friends• Living room, dining room, family room, game room

• Service Area– Rooms that are used to meet the family’s operating needs

• Laundry, sewing, kitchen, utility rooms• Private Living Area

– Rooms that are only used by the family for personal activities• Bedrooms, if present dressing rooms

Outdoor Use Areas• Areas of the landscape are identified

by their location• Should instead by identified by the

function it is to fulfill• Function of the areas should be

physically linked as closely as possible to the same areas of the home

Outdoor Public Area• Usually refered to as the front yard• In regard to its region on the landscape

—it is the area that is seen by everyone who passes the home or approaches it

• 3 functions– Put the house in an attractive setting– Identify the point of entry– Provide access to the entry

• Fig 6-2, p. 86

Outdoor Public Area• Should connect with the front porch,

entry foyer or reception room and attatched garage

• Does not need to be large• Sun orientation is not as sensitive as

other areas of the landscape

Outdoor Family Living Area• Place where designers plan for the patio, outdoor

dining, swimming pool and spa, lawn games, children’s play and assorted other uses

• Should link with the house in a way that allows for uninterupted continuation of social activities from indoors to out

• Typically linked through large windows• Usually the largest area• Should be oriented to maxamize the number of hours

each day and the number of days per year that the area can serve its residents– Best orientation—south and west

Outdoor Service Area• Home to storage sheds, dog yards,

gardens, clotheslines, compost piles, storage for campers, wood storage

• Should be placed as close to the kitchen and laundry room as possible

• May be more than 1• Size varies• Sun orientation depends on its use

Outdoor Private Living Area• Typically adjoins the master bedroom• Purpose is to allow total privacy• Not large• Should be screened• Best oriented on the east side of the

house, second best is the south

The Outdoor Room• Composition is the same as the

indoor room• Comprised of– Outdoor Wall– Outdoor floor– Outdoor Ceiling

Outdoor Wall• Defines the limits or size of the outdoor

room• Can slow or prevent movement in a certain

direction• Should not be placed in the middle of

lawns• Materials used for form outdoor walls may

be natural or man made– Shrubs, small trees, ground covers, flowers,

fencing, masonry

Outdoor Floor• Provides the surfacing for the outdoor room• May be natural or man made– Grass– Ground covers– Sand– Gravel– Water– Brick– Concrete– Patio blocks– tile

Outdoor Ceiling• Defines the upper limits of the

outdoor room• May offer physical protection or

provide shade– Trees– Awnings– Aluminum coverings

Examples• P. 91-93

Assignment• Practice Exercise B• Homework Exercise—– Take pictures of each area of the property

around your house that seems to have a different purpose. Print the pictures and bring them to school. Remember try to find one of each of the four use areas described in the chapter. Have your pictures here on Monday March 1.