Design guide · Cork County Council
Cork Rural Design Guide
The council's guidance on siting and designing a house in the countryside.
Cork County Council · 128 pages
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- 39 Site Selection Guide: See pages 34 & 35 for an explanation of the context of these illustrations G EAST FACING SLOPE – Site Above Road • Fall across site pushes house up hillside with septic tank and percolation area on lower meadow closer to road • House located to northern boundary of site, off hillside access road • Both garage and utility area located to rear of house and screened from road by garden and landscaping • Site layout maximises privacy to evening sitting out area, however location of vehicle entrance and garage reduces size of evening patio Conclusion: A potentially good site with safe access off a side route. H EAST FACING SLOPE – Site Below Road • Fall across site places septic tank and percolation area at lower area to the rear of house and away from road • Garage location coupled with new planting screens off car court from road • As with West Facing Site above road, boundary will form backdrop to house when viewed from road Conclusion: Potentially a good site but effective short-term leading to longterm privacy screening of South and West areas of house will need careful handling. NORTH NORTH UP HILL UP HILL
- 40 dealing with contours It is important to pay particular attention to the sloping contours of the site to determine if a specifically designed dwelling could be accommodated on the site; making use of, and working with, the sloping site levels. Digging out a site, or creating an artificial platform, is expensive and can make the house unduly prominent. In some less sensitive landscapes it may be possible, and indeed appropriate, to modify the site by excavation in order to reduce the visual impact of the development. In certain circumstances, excavation or under-building may also be used to reduce the exposure of the dwelling(s) to the prevailing winds by directing wind around or over structures while enabling a more pleasant visual integration into the surrounding landscape. However, caution should be exercised as excessive excavation can lead to permanent scarring of the landscape, in the form of a conspicuous building platform which may not be concealed by the dwelling (as per the illustration below left). Similarly excessive under-building will appear as an unnatural platform unrelated to the surrounding landscape (below right). Where excavation techniques are adopted, the excavated material should be graded over the remainder of the site or recycled to create a landscaped garden. Avoid mounding up to form a flat site. This makes the house more conspicuous in the landscape, reduces its ability to retain heat/energy and exposes the exterior to the worst effects of weathering Avoid over excavation. A deep gouge from the hillside creates long term land slippage problems and a poor environment for the householders
- 41 11/2 & 2 Storey Split Contemporary Monopitch Split Traditional Stepped Levels run with the slope A slope can be accommodated without altering the ground, simply by changing the internal floor levels to suit. Seek a naturally flat site or cut into the hillside. Try to orientate the building with the contours to give an integrated appearance with the land, provide shelter and warmth, and reduce energy loss due to exposure. 5048 49
- 4242 rural gardens for rural houses In part one of the guide, the importance of ‘linking with the land’ when choosing where to build was emphasised. The essence of this link is of course the garden and garden design which will determine how well this link is achieved. Irish country gardens stand out from their suburban counterparts by the way they embrace the house and appear to seamlessly connect to the natural landscape from which they arise. Enclosure, privacy, semi-wild habitat, the absence of expansive lawns and the appropriate rural boundary treatment are hallmarks of a more naturalistic approach. 52 53 54 a planting zone between path and house softens its appearance Principles for ‘natural’ Gardens • Plant in tune with the landscape character of the site location; • Avoid suburban type garden layouts and plant species - e.g. Leylandii and Grisellinia hedges, shaped dwarf Conifers, Phormiums and Pampas Grass; • To achieve informal, relaxed garden layouts use gentle lines, curves, asymmetry etc. which appears appropriate in rural vernacular settings. Formal, symmetrical layouts with long straight lines are seldom appropriate; • Avoid/reduce large areas of mown lawn - they are high maintenance, look ‘artificial’ in many rural locations and require regular application of weedkillers, which harm wildlife. Wild meadows or strimmed grass areas are lower maintenance and are frequently more appropriate; • Create new mixed hedgerows of native/local species to maintain biodiversity and ecological regional diversity. Minimise on large single species hedges; • Devise garden layout and select plant varieties which will attract and support wildlife; • Select plants, or plant varieties, which are resistant to disease and ‘pests’ - to reduce reliance on harmful chemicals, insecticides, slug pellets, etc.; • Limit the use of suburban ‘ornamental’ exotic specimen trees near roads in the countryside. 51 55 51
- 43 Avoid suburban layouts + garden treatment Naturalistic planting links house to location, no visible lawn Garden treatment without lawn between house & road Existing & new trees settle contemporary house on site Absence of lawn + use of backdrop anchors the house to the landscape The rural garden - a haven for wildlife
- 44 57 5856 59 creating new boundaries Part one of the guide has indicated that sites with at least two, or preferably three, boundaries already in place, in the form of existing hedgerows or walls, should be selected when choosing a new site in the countryside. This makes completing the remaining boundaries much easier in terms of linking the house to the landscape. This can become a very difficult task if all, or a substantial amount of, the boundaries are new and are required to be put in place to give the property shelter, enclosure and privacy. Landscaping the boundaries of the house provides two useful functions: firstly, it provides shelter from the prevailing winds and secondly it can soften the visual impact of the development allowing greater integration with the surrounding countryside. However, such is the variation of landscape character across Cork that care is needed when deciding what form new boundaries should take. In rocky uplands or coastal areas, for example, additional landscaping may not be possible or indeed desirable at all. Take your lead from the landscape character assessments in the County Development Plan and if necessary take advice from your local planning office. Otherwise take a look around and see what techniques other properties in the area have used to make appropriate boundaries and create shelter. • Devise and develop an appropriate landscaping layout in parallel with good site layout principles - house entrance location, car area, privacy screening, creating shelter and backdrop are all integral to successful rural house design • Commence a boundary planting programme before or simultaneously with building works • Buffer the house as viewed from the road • Avoid ‘full frontal’ - open to road site layouts Stone walls, or stone and sod walls, as much as hedgerows, are a distinctive feature of parts of the countryside. The conservation of existing stone walls will help to root new buildings more naturally in the landscape. Traditionally Cork rural walls had a substance. All too often these are being replaced by narrow walls with busy detailing. Stone walls, or stone and sod walls, particularly in areas where they are prevalent, are preferred over plaster block work, although in some circumstances harled block work may be suitable. In general decorative brickwork or ranch style timber fencing detracts from the rural landscape and should be avoided.
- 45 45 Hedgerow removed - house & site given suburban treatment Hedgerow maintained with added planting - house buffered from road Rural Roadside Boundaries and Presentation Attractive stone wall Ugly stone wall Traditional attractive wall cappings Narrow wall with mean cappings and ramped lifts Mean, narrow wall,mean cappings with steps Narrow wall with many piers Thick wall follows line of ground Boundary walls and slopes Simple capping Main axis of stones held horziontally ‘Pinnings’ used for support / fill gaps Main axis of stones not horizontal ‘Shiners’ large stone placed upright Large wide mortar joints flush with surface Ugly ‘bitty’ spiked capping with cement fill Hedgerow removed - unattractive stone wall, suburban garden gives full impact of large house Wall Construction Details Tight recessed mortar joints
- 46 trees & shrubs found in cork some examples.......... 67 mixed hedgerow - native & introduced species hawthorn bramble privet (variegated) gorse guelder roseprivet gorse guelder rose beech (winter) fuschia blackthorn 60 61 62 6563 64 66 68
- 47 Elm Hawthorn (in December) Holly and Blackthorn in flower 69 70 71 new planting Hedgerows and shelter belts are the backbone of wildlife habitat and also help support deciduous saplings. Hedgerows are either man made or natural. Manmade hedgerows are usually at the edge of fields that have been cleared for agricultural use or have been intentionally planted for wildlife or aesthetic value. Hedgerows provide food and shelter for a variety of birds, mammals, butterflies and other insects. When planting new boundaries (hedgerows or shelter belts) in rural areas it is a good idea to plant a variety of trees and shrubs. Planting rows of bushes or bushes mixed with a few trees is a common way to start a hedgerow. Try to choose trees and shrubs that blend with the local landscape. This is particularly important with flowering species. A selection of indigenous and naturalised hedging plants should be used. Most of these are inexpensive and easily obtainable through local garden centres. The illustrations in this section, and the annotated schedule of plant species in the Appendix, may help you with your choice. The main factors to consider when establishing a new boundary, in order to achieve maximum benefit from the trees in terms of shelter and energy savings are: Siting: Shelter planting should cut across the path of the wind and should be sited to make use of and improve natural shelter features, such as ridges and rocky outcrops. Planting on ridge tops is not recommended due to high levels of exposure. Height and Length: As a rule the sheltered zone will extend for a distance of 20 times the height of the trees (e.g. if the height of the trees is 1.5m, then the area sheltered will extend for 30m) and will become effective when the length exceeds 12 times the height (e.g.if the height of the trees is 1.5 m, then shelter planting will need to cover a length of 18m to be effective). Profile: A shelter belt should have a hedge or wind tolerant shrubs on the windward side and taller trees in the centre. Permeability: A good shelterbelt or hedge filters the force of the wind without causing damaging turbulence. (adapted from Building Sensitively in Ireland’s Landscape) Trees should be planted from the beginning of November until the end of March when the tree is dormant. Remember that as trees mature they require more space so should be planted, on average, at 60cm intervals. To help establish trees, choose healthy specimens under 1.5m tall.
- 48 making an entrance 72 7674 It is a common requirement of the County Council that the vehicular entrance to new developments provides clear forward visibility. The entrance must usually be recessed 4.5m from the edge of the road and have a minimum width of 3m at the inside piers, increasing to 12 m at the road edge, a minimum setback of 2.4m from the road over 50m is also usually required for visibility. Whilst this can be achieved in a variety of ways, all too often it leads to the loss of stone walls or established hedgerows located along the roadside boundary. Too often they are replaced by unsympathetic fencing, pre-cast decorative concrete blocks or crude, artificial looking stone walls. It is the entrance gateway that presents the house to the street or road and therefore it is an important element in the overall design and layout of the dwelling and its site. Where an existing boundary feature must be removed, it can easily be replaced with an earth or sod and stone boundary, or planting of a new semi-mature hedgerow of indigenous species. Existing stone walls should be relocated behind the line of vision along the site entrance as specified by the County Council. The layout of internal access roads from the public road to the dwelling should be carefully thought out so they can follow the contours of the site, crossing them gently in order to avoid highly visible and unnatural looking straight access roads that may be visible from long distances within the landscape. For surfacing, local gravel and tar are more natural looking and appropriate to a rural setting than tarmacadam. 73 75
Source Cork County Council: Cork Rural Design Guide · Licence the publisher's termsText read from the publisher’s PDF; tables, maps and drawings do not survive as text, and page numbers are the PDF’s (its first page is 1). Check the original before relying on a passage.