Philadelphia gets about 36-42 inches of rainfall annually, mostly in small storms. Historically, most of this rainfall would seep into the ground, supporting native ecosystems and replenishing groundwater. Today, as a result of too much construction, too much pavement, and too little concern for green space, 33 inches of annual rainfall runs into our streams and sewers. So what? You might be asking. So…the smallest storms cause streets to flood and rivers to fill with sewage,

Four Leaf - White Clover (Trifolium repens) White Clover ( Trifolium repens ) is a perennial ground cover introduced from Europe centuries ago, and now fully naturalized across the US. As its common name implies, the plant is recognized by its small white flowers and, as the scientific name implies, its three small leaves. But every now and then— 1 out of every 10,000 clovers by some estimates —a white clover will have four leaves due to a rare mutation. The rarity of the fou

At Viridian, our mission has always been to heal ecological systems while making beautiful places for people. Recently, we’ve been thinking a lot about the “people” part of that mission — who we’re designing for (and with). This isn’t a pivot away from ecology, but a reminder that healthy landscapes support communities as living systems. So now in this post we want to talk about healing ecological systems. Because without that, neither “beauty” nor “people” will last long. F

“Love languages” are five ways people express love to strengthen relationships. The five best known are Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, Receiving Gifts, Quality Time, and Physical Touch. Not every love language resonates with every person; we all have specific ways we need or want to be seen, supported, and inspired.  We believe that landscapes, like relationships, can also make us feel seen, supported, and inspired. In the last year, we’ve advanced five projects that

The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources featured Lions Pride Park as DCNR Grant Success Story. DCNR supported...

Excerpt from Percussion Play: Outdoor Musical Instruments: Great public spaces draw people together, bring communities alive, generate...