Around the World in 80 Gardens

International Student Design Competition started!

The international garden show hamburg will design 80 imaginative gardens in seven ‘worlds’ covering different topics, leading visitors on a journey through time to the landscapes of our globe. So what could be more obvious than to invite young, ambitioned people from different cultures to participate in this design effort?

For this reason, igs 2013 is asking landscape architecture students from ten different countries to contribute to a garden show in Germany.

The task of the competition is to create an open space design for one of ten gardens selected from the 80 gardens of the international garden show hamburg 2013. Students of international universities will develop designs for a garden assigned to their universities by igs 2013. Each participating university will work on a different garden. The international garden show hamburg 2013 is looking forward to the various designs and intends to construct the winning design submitted by each university by 2013.

Further inquiries

Estonian University of Life Sciences, Estonia
Garden of Flying Strawberries (65), World of Nature

1: On which ground (substratum) will the gardens be constructed?
A: The substratum will be chosen depending on the need of the planting/vegetation.

2. F: Which surface elevation do the gardens have?
A: The elevation of the gardens can be chosen up to the height of the surrounding enclosure (North 1,07m and South 1,13m above sea level). The grade has to be met at the subsequent balks. There is no limit of height modeling inside the garden as far as the modeling meets the proposed height of enclosure at the ‚garden edges’. The base of the surrounding enclosure connects the hights of the garden with the boardwalks.The material of the enclosure is not defined yet, but but there will be walls of 3m height and made of semitransparent canvas. These walls are the reason for the surface elevation of 4,10m indicated in the plan (see dwg/pdf-files).The landscape architects have the following picture of the World of Nature: Walking on the boardwalk, you will come across white cubes in the homogenous landscape.. Their content (elevation, elements, planting) will be visible through the light walls like a relief.

3. F: Must we keep the pathways inside the garden?
A: No, the pathways within the gardens itself may be changed and can be chosen upon the design proposal. But the pathways within the world and their connections to the specific garden site cannot be altered.

National University of Singapore, Singapore
Asia’s Pearl (09), World of Ports

4. F: In the competition brief, it says: 17. Formal Requirements
: All plans and illustrations must fit on a maximum of two DIN A1 plans (portrait format). Detailed information about the required layout of plans is included in the competition documents. Where do we find this ‘detailed information’?

A: There is no detailed information. As the garden sites are very different, it’s difficult to require one fixed layout for all of the gardens. Furthermore, the intense working periods differ from country to country, so some students have already finished their proposal by now. If possible, we would like to have the spatial organisation (M 1:500) and the site plan (M 1:100) on the first page (DIN A1) and the other requirements on the second page (DIN A1).

5. The declaration of authorship contains a field for a code number consisting of six figures. Even when the authors are supposed to put their name on all documents, should they put a number of six figures on top? 
A: No, the students don’t have to put a code number consisting of six figures, their name is sufficient.

6. F: In which way can the proposed containers be used? Are there any requirements? Are we allowed to work with them as we wish? What is the height of the containers on our site? One or two layers or even higher?
A: The shipping containers may be altered. In doing so, however, it is important to maintain the basic character of the containers (e.g., the rectangular shape of the base). It is even conceivable that the containers be represented through the use of a lattice structure or hedges. The quantity and location of the “containers” may be varied. The design and height of „containers“ is entirely dependant on the design. Elevations of 2 to 3 layers are imaginable. Regardless of what elevations are decided upon, it is important to keep in mind the fact that the grade has to be met at the garden’s edges.

7.Q: Will the ‚seasonal planting beds’ be performed by the internal garden exhibition or is their design up to us?
A: The theme of the ‚seasonal planting beds’ should be considered in the design proposal. Similar to the shipping containers, the exact locations and size may vary (maintaining the overall grid). Although an external planner will create an overall planting plan for all of the beds, design criteria such as color and leaf texture should be considered at this stage.

University of Pennsylvania, USA
Ellis Island (14), World of Ports

8. Q: Are there any limitations to altering the surface elevation? Must we keep the proposed grading? If the grading can be altered, must we meet grade on the edges?
A: Site elevations within the garden itself may be changed. If existing elevations are altered, however, grade has to be met at the edges of the garden.

9. Q: In regards to the orange plots, are they a volume?  In other words are they a flat or raised surface?  Are they a defined space in some way that needs to be honored in our design?  If they are flat, do we need to meet grade with the orange plots?/
Q: What is the difference between the orange and striped rectangles? Are they raised or at grade? Can we move them or build over them? Are there any permanent plantings that we need to work around?/
Q: Because the file has so many layers and the „translation“ file does not clarify what each layer is, we wanted to confirm if the garden is an entirely open site or if the various orange/turquoise/etc rectangles represent existing site constraints.
A: The orange colored plots are seasonal planting beds within the context of the garden show. The elevation of these beds may vary, i.e. raised or at ground level, according to the design of the garden. The shape of the beds as illustrated in the plan should be used (It is important that the overall site grid be maintained). Although an external planner will create an overall planting plan for all of the beds, design criteria such as color and leaf texture should be considered at this stage. 

10. Q: Are there limitations for altering the shipping containers?  Do any of the surfaces need to be kept intact? Can they be occupied? Can they be altered, cut, reconstructed however we see fit?
A: The shipping containers may be altered. In doing so, however, it is important to maintain the basic character of the containers (e.g., the rectangular shape of the base). It is even conceivable that the containers be represented through the use of a lattice structure or hedges. The quantity of the “containers” may be varied.  

11. Q: Are we free to incorporate the lawn, shipping containers, and orange plots that lie directly outside the boundary line into our design?
A: Yes, but the character and basic rectangular shape of the containers cannot be altered.

12. Q: How will be the enclosure of the garden? If, are there any specifications to the material or height (data in the plan is 2,24m)?
A: There will be no vertical enclosure at the edge of the gardens. The 2.24m indicated in the plan is the planned elevation above sea level of the garden at its edges, where grade must be met.

13. Q: Is there a height limit to the display?
A: The elevations are entirely dependent on the design. Elevations which are two to three times the height of the containers are imaginable. Regardless of what elevations are decided upon, it is important to keep in mind the fact that grade has to be met at the garden’s edges.

14. Q: Can we relocate the oversea containers (Übersee-Container)?
A: Yes.

14. Q: Will electricity be available for lighting or a re-circulating water display?
A: Yes.

15. Q: How much, if any, maintenance will be provided for any plantings?
A: The long-term intensity of maintenance is entirely dependent on the design. Complete maintenance will be guaranteed until the end of 2013. 

16. Q: What is the intent of the „seasonal planting beds“ (Gärtnerische Ausstellungsfläche „Wechselflor“). Can the design strategy impact the internal organization of these 2.438mx6.10m or are they static objects?
A: The seasonal planting beds are intensively prepared planting beds. They will be used primarily for seasonal plants and perennials. During the garden show the beds will be replanted two to three times so that typical spring, summer, and fall plants can be shown. To this end, it is important that external planners are responsible for developing an overall planting plan. Individual designs may deviate from the grid, even though in principle maintenance of the given structure is desired. Within this structure predefined areas may be varied in terms of their location and size.      

Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz
Playing and Circus Arts (74), World of Activity

17. Weather: Is it in a total open air or a green house will be provided?
A: The garden site will be open air, there are no green houses provided. (Depending on their design proposal, the participants are free to decide for roofs or horizontal elements.)

18. Plants: Are we allowed to use brazilian plants (for cold regions) or do we have to use plants typical of your region, only?
A: It would be nice to show brazilian plants inside the garden, but they have to survive in Germany’s climate. „ All plants and materials used in the gardens should be appropriate for Germany’s temperate Central European climate zone. A precise analysis of all planned vegetation and its growth requirements is necessary. Special or rare plants are commonly used at garden shows and they are often planted in unusual combinations in order to increase overall variety.“ (page 36, competition brief)  

19. Soil: are they going to be potted plants or are they going to be planted directly in the ground?
A: The planting is entirely depending on the design proposal. Up to your ideas, you can choose if pots will be used or if the plants will be planted directly on the ground.

20. Timeframe: How long should the garden last? Is it a permanent or temporary garden? (regardless of the duration of the expo). If permanent, it is very important to know the type of soil (Q5).
A: The garden is supposed to be temporary, it should last for the duration of the exhibition from April to October 2013. For the planting, it is especially important to consider the entire site’s high groundwater levels. The gardens are only one meter above mean sea level. Soil conditions are also difficult, as the soils are marshy and consist mainly of clay and silt (page 36, competition brief)

21. Maintenance: Again, if permanent, who will be responsible for maintaining the garden? Should we use annual or perennial plants? Is it necessary to provide a maintenance manual?
A: During the exhibition, the igs 2013 GmbH will provide a maintenance for the garden. We do not ask for a maintenance manual. You can use annual and perennial plants. In a lot of cases of „garden shows“ in Germany, the perennial plants will be sold after the exhibition is closed.

22. Budget: Does the E$ 40.000 for the project include from the purchasing of plants to the deployment of the garden? Will we have to calculate and inform such costs?
A: It is the igs 2013’s intention to build all of the ten university-designed gardens. A maximum of 40,000 euros is available for the construction of each garden. Participants must consider this limit when designing the gardens, and should also strive to reduce maintenance costs. Even though garden shows generally have an intensive maintenance concept, reduced maintenance will improve the chances of preserving the garden for the future. (p. 36)

If the students find a sponsor to support their gardenidea (for examble the Brasilan embassy, a Brasilian garden company, etc.), which means the igs 2013 does not have more costs higher than 40.000 EUR, there won’t be a problem to spend more money for the realisation.

You do not have to calculate costs, but we ask you to think about costs and plan it in a realistic way.

23. Furniture: is it allowed to use it?
A: Yes, the participants are free to use furniture or even design it themselves.

24. Integration: Will the design be integrated with the neighboring gardens?
A: The igs 2013 has taken on the challenge of creating 80 gardens that each has an individual theme. The gardens should distinguish themselves through a variety of feelings and impressions; each one should be unique while together they should create a strong overall image. The grouping of individual gardens in a particular ‘world’ places them thematically within a larger context, i.e. every garden has a neighbouring garden and thus no garden stands alone. Every garden therefore has to fit into a superordinate structure and into the theme of its particular ‘world’. A dramaturgy will be created along the entire path system, in which each garden will play its part. (page 33, competition brief)  

25. Interactivity: Will the public be invited to interact with the elements in the garden?
A: Depending on the concept of the garden, the students are free to develop possibilities of interacting elements inside the garden.