The Meadowscaping Handbook: Designing, Planting and Managing an Urban Meadow
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GreenWorks was honored to work with great scientists and ecologists of Portland to create planting diagrams for Meadowscaping diagrams and compile this great publication. We would like to thank Mary Logabo and Carolyn Lindberg with the West Multnomah Soil and Conservation District for trusting us with their ideas, words and photos. And special thanks to Mark Griswold Wilson with Mark Griswold Wilson Urban Ecology for introducing GreenWorks to WMSWCD.
Meadowscaping is a landscape type that supports pollinators, helps reduce our ecological footprint, conserves and increases biodiversity, and bolsters our awareness of natural and cultural heritage. To make this landscape accessible to, and implementable by, a diverse audience, a local Willamette Valley district and group of regional ecologists and landscape professionals collaborated to create The Meadowscaping Handbook: Designing, Planting and Managing an Urban Meadow. Capturing knowledge and “lessons learned” in a fun and accessible format, the book includes beautiful original graphic renderings, easy-to-understand language, and a thoughtful structure that leads the reader clearly and confidently through the handbook. The book, which was released in 2016 and is available for free to anyone who would like it, has received extremely positive feedback from the community and is already into a second print-run (with over 500 copies distributed around the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and British Columbia, Canada).
Purpose: Meadowscaping is the practice of designing, planting, and managing urban meadows in order to provide ecological functions and benefits such as habitat and stormwater improvement. As intensive urbanization and agriculture, pesticide use, and diseases/parasites continue to weigh heavily on pollinators, meadowscaping offers important habitat in spaces that would otherwise be devoid of beneficial native plant species. Meadowscapes not only support pollinators, but also help to reduce our ecological footprint, conserve and increase biodiversity, and increase awareness of our natural and cultural heritage. The Meadowscaping Handbook was, therefore, designed to help gardeners, landscape professionals and ecologists in the Willamette Valley implement their own meadowscapes. As a how-to publication, the book provides guidelines, examples, and instructions for planning, designing, planting, and maintaining meadows on small urban plots (less than 0.25 acres in size) using plants that are native to the Willamette Valley.
Audience: The Meadowscaping Handbook was specifically written and designed for a broad audience of gardeners, landscape professionals and ecologists. The writers and designers struck an important balance between accessibility (for gardeners), high-level design (for landscape professionals) and academically cited research (for ecologists) through word-choice, tone, style, diagrams, and graphics. By capturing both first-hand experiences as well as data, the handbook is a relatable guide that is useful to anyone who is interested in learning more about or implementing a meadowscape.
Message: The Meadowscaping Handbook clearly and creatively captures a comprehensive approach to planning, designing, installing, and maintaining meadowscapes. From defining meadow types to providing extensive plant lists and design templates, the book is a comprehensive yet accessible resource that inspires and educates readers to try meadowscaping for themselves.
Impact: This guide has helped beginning gardeners to professional ecologists understand urban meadows. Since the guide has an extensive appendix with practical resources, users have been able to use the book to create their own meadow spaces. Five hundred copies of the book have been distributed around the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and British Columbia, Canada, and the response has been incredibly enthusiastic with quotes from readers including,"Best book I have ever come across for our purposes; it covers everything! I read it from cover to cover in one night," and "Such a beautiful and useful book. So readable!"
Distribution Method: The Meadowscaping Handbook is available for order or download on the client’s website for free and has been distributed by the client at numerous conferences and community events.
Look Ahead: The client has successfully distributed the entire first print run of The Meadowscaping Handbook and has already ordered a second printing! Each version of the book will be updated to make sure that the book stays up-to-date and accurate.