Multisensory Garden Design | THE GROUNDING GARDEN

Site location: Nelson Park, Vancouver

In cities, anxiety disorders are on the rise, especially in children. The 5,4,3,2,1 grounding technique asks an anxious person to remain present by locating five things they can see, four they can touch, three they can hear, two they can smell, and one they can taste. Nelson park, located in central downtown Vancouver by a hospital and elementary school, embodies a place of constant movement with opportunities to pause. The Grounding Garden responds to a question: How might a garden design help people relieve anxiety using the 5,4,3,2,1 grounding technique ? 

Site immersion, observation, & recording

Nelson Park is located in central downtown Vancouver, in the West End neighborhood adjacent to a school, hospital, and multiple care facilities. The park has high occupancy throughout the year and captures a blend of user groups moving through the dense urban core from high rises to residential zoning; I primarily observed dog walkers, children playing, and people meeting to socialize on surrounding benches however, I particularly paid attention to people who rushed through the site, moving along the central axis.

My first visit was conducted in early January and over the course of the month, I undertook multiple site explorations at various times of the day through sketches, site diagrams, and photography to capture the sensory experiences of the site. 

I began considering how anxious visitors may move through Nelson Park as I watched a nearly constant flow of workers, people on errands, and joggers fast through the central field, often cutting directly across. From personal experience, I find plants help me alleviate my own anxiety and feel connected to them and present during times when I feel disconnected. I considered a few questions during this phase of the project:

1. Where might an anxious person feel comfortable in the current park?
2. How do current sensory experiences alleviate anxiety and help with relaxation at the site? How do they detract and possibly increase feelings of anxiety?

I employed the cube diagram to understand the site temporally and spatially, focusing on an approximately 1000 square meter area of the southern portion of the park’s open field. Prospect and refuge became a central site exploration where I observed users sitting alone, socializing, and relaxing the most under large canopied trees. This lent a unique design challenge: How can spaces be designed to maximize refuge while enabling people to be seen 

Upon further research, I found the 5,4,3,2, 1 grounding method is one coping technique used during periods of anxiety based on acknowledging exterior observations using five senses (University of Rochester Medical Center)

A primary design question emerged: How might a garden be designed around the 5,4,3,2,1 grounding technique to alleviate anxiety? Techniques in the garden were explored using a diagram.

I modeled existing topography and circulation using a simple site model. (Materials: cardboard, quinoa, matcha powder)

Synthesis & ideation

During this phase, I explored iterations and concepts to answer my initial research questions. My first iteration was set on rounded, amorphous shapes with circulation encouraging people to experience five ‘grounding’ spots around five things you can see, four things you can feel, three things can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. I explored through vegetation size and seating where locations may encourage people to rest alone or socialize in small groups.

My final design concept emerged with a design utilizing a bioretention pond featuring five central islands linked by a raised boardwalk path with distinct planting palettes for each sensory theme. The design utilizes existing pathway circulation while connecting the larger site through a more direct path. It also captures rainwater on-site while filtering through plantings during heavy weather events while enabling summertime play in the rock garden through a series of sloped entrance platforms. 

GARDEN DESIGN

The site redesign works with existing topography to take pressure off the stormwater drainage system and responds to a nearby bioswale located south of the playground. Materials would be removed and refilled directly onsite to create the central grounding islands. Circular boardwalks offer tree protection while creating bench nooks for solo reflection. Throughout the garden, a variety of spaces exist to catch people walking through from all sides of Nelson Park. One can pass through on the outside and look in, yet never see the entire garden. Adventuring through the inner ‘grounding’ garden lends a sensory experience throughout the seasons, with no control over where one can go.

To explore planting, I generated schematic renderings of seasons and moments I wanted to capture in the garden. These renderings helped refine my form and eventual species selection. Every plant was selected to address specific (or multiple) sensory experiences.

The final planting plan consists of 12 key garden zones with five as the focal planting zones. Plantings were selected for each 5,4,3,2,1 garden zone so five plantings could be seen throughout seasons, four to touch…and so forth. Surrounding garden zones were selected to provide moments to see in and moments to hide the field of view. The planting list includes colors associated with each plant that correspond to each garden planting zone. Plantings were selected in consultation with Karin England and for the bioretention pond using the City of Seattle’s Stormwater Manual Appendix E.

Seasonal moments were carefully curated through planting selection. A walkthrough of the five key moments below illustrates the season of sensory interest, though senses also emerge outside of plantings, such as the birds that the tree species attracts, or the sound of the water in the retention pond.

Through perspective, I wanted to represent the ultimate feeling of anxiety (and reprieve from anxiety) by animating plants in ‘molecular’ form as they enter the human ‘soul’. The perspective at the top represents the Birch Hill garden zone in the summer (a space of refuge) with a dense understory planting of horsetail. The bottom perspective illustrates a fall day where an individual seeks reprieve on a solo bench seat.

FINAL REMARKS

We interact with plants and they interact with us; by being around plants, they can help us alleviate anxiety by helping to ground the self and remain in the here and now. Using the 5,4,3,2,1 grounding technique in Nelson Park aims to encourage all users to slow down, interact with plants, and remain in a present state (not in any past or future).

Special thanks to Daniel Roehr, Maren McBride, Karin England, and my fellow studio mates for suggestions, feedback, moral support, and lots of coffee trips along the way.