Recreational Measures

Video: Active type of Recreational Parks around the world

Recreational measures and landscaping

1.      Write the necessity of recreational facilities in a town. (May 2015 5m, Dec 2013 5m)

Ans. It must be noted that no town planning scheme is complete without the provision of recreational facilities, following are the necessities of recreational facilities,

·         It brings enjoyment of living, encourages relaxation, helps to utilize the leisure time with the family.

·         It contributes to the general health and welfare of the community.

·         The parks, playgrounds and other recreational amenities play a major role in development of youngsters.

·         It creates love for good health, body building, team spirit, sportsmanship among the people, therefore, it is essential for city life.

2.      List the types of recreation and briefly explain any two of them. (Nov 2011 5m)

-          Explain briefly passive and active type of recreational system. (May 2013 5m)

-          List and explain the types of open spaces in the form of recreation, on the basis of sources rendered by them. (Nov 2009 5m)

Ans. There are two types of recreation systems, they are:

a.       Passive type, such as parks and gardens, etc.

b.      Active type, such as playground, stadium, cycling and swimming clubs, etc.

1)      Parks: (Passive type)

-          Parks are necessary to meet the needs of open spaces, to get fresh air and relaxation.

-          They should be made more attractive by planning all types of flowers, trees, bushes in the pleasing layouts with fountains.

2)      Playgrounds: (Active type)

-          Playgrounds help to provide physical growth of the body.

-          The demand for playgrounds in recent times has greatly increased due to the rapid growth of organized athletic games.

-          This is effective on civic, cultural, social and physical aspects of town life. 

3.      List the major classification of parks. (May 2009 5m, Dec 2013 5m)

-          Give the brief explanation of classification of parks. (Dec 2014 5m)

-          Write classification of park according to size and state their space standards. (May 2013 5m, Nov 2010 5m)

-          How parks are classified? Explain briefly. (May 2010 5m)

Ans. The parks can be classified in to the following three ways:

·         According to Character

·         According to purpose

·         According to size

Ø  According to Character

a)      Natural parks: In natural parks, original features of the parks are maintained, and only necessary arrangements are made to put them for public use.

b)      Artificial parks: These parks are prepared artificially with great care by experts in the park layout. They are plated with grass, shrubs and trees. The water may be introduced in the form of fountains and pools.

Ø  According to purpose

a)      Botanical parks: These parks are primarily meant for the study of plant specimens. Their atmosphere is pleasant and appealing by the presence of beautiful trees, flowers and lawns.

b)      Zoological parks: These parks provide all specimens of animal life, thus it is called zoo. People like to visit zoo with their kids, therefore zoos should be laid out on pleasant surroundings.

Ø  According to size

a)      Small size parks: These are generally in the form of squares enclosed by public buildings. The area of these parks varies from 1 hectares to 4 hectares.

b)     Medium size parks: These are generally found in residential area. The community centre can also be located in this park, the size of these parks should not be less than 12 hectares.

c)      Large size parks: These parks provides facilities like swimming, boating, cycling and also separate section for jogging and walking. In such parks restaurant facilities are also made available for public. The size of such parks should not be less than 10 to 12 hectares, or in case of availability of land it should be between 25 to 30 hectares.

d)      Reservations: These parks are generally located outside the city limits. These parks include extensive areas of natural sceneries. The size of such parks should not be less than 400 hectares.

e)      National parks: These are large in area, and these area are usually consists of rivers, forests, waterfalls and mountains, wildlife, places of historical importance. The area of national parks may run into thousands or lakhs of hectares.

4.      What are the points to be considered while selecting site for parks and playgrounds? (May 2009 5m)

Ans. The following are points to be considered while selecting site for parks and playgrounds:

a)      Easily accessible for public.

b)      Cheaply available land to serve are park and playground.

c)      The lands which are not suitable for streets and buildings.

d)     The lands which are not suitable for other developments, such land should be converted to parks and gardens.

e)      The land should be acquired well in advance before the value of land increases.

5.      Explain combined belt and wedge system of park system with neat sketch. (May 2013 5m)

Ans. The parks should serve the large number of people, therefore it should have such kind of arrangements to connect the open spaces. Following are the important types of park systems:

·         Belt or ring system: In this case parks are generally provided on the periphery of the town in the form of belt of ring.

·         Wedge or radial system: In this case wedge shape strips of open spaces radiate through the town centre to the rural area. It brings fresh air from rural area into the town.

·         Combination of belt and wedge system: It is an ideal park system as it combines both belt and wedge system. It is possible to link up major open spaces of the town and allows easy drive way with greenery on both the sides by providing boulevards.

Fig: Combined belt and wedge system.

6.      Define Boulevards. What are its significance? (May 2013 5m)

Ans. Boulevards are connections between the large and medium sized parks and act as a green avenue in the town. They enable the busy people who have no time to visit parks to drive through the parks and enjoy the natural surroundings. Following are the significance of Boulevards:

·         It forms an important part of an urban park system.

·         Its presence gives an added attractiveness to the town.

·         It provides sufficient width to provide separate tracks for pedestrians, cyclists, vehicles, etc.

·         It allows the busy people enjoy the greenery while on drive itself.

7.      Write a short note on park design with a neat sketch. (May 2009 5m)

Ans. The design of parks requires efforts from many fields. It requires teamwork of the architect, hydraulic engineer, horticulturist, and landscape architect. While designing the park, the designer has to collect the necessary data such as;

·         Characteristics of the site

·         Footfalls to the park

·         Purpose of the park, etc.

By considering the above mentioned data, it helps to decide the kind of grass, shrubs, and trees to be planted in the park. After selecting the type of plant and trees, a proper layout of the park has to be prepared. The park has to be divided into three distinct divisions as shown in the mentioned below,

·         Area for passive recreation

·         Area for active recreation

·         Sanitary block

·         Fountains, etc.

Other details which add to the decorative effect of the parks such as statues, bird rests, summer houses for kids, etc. should be provided depending upon the importance of the park.

8.      Write a short note on theme park. (May 2011 5m)

Ans. Theme parks are nothing but the amusement parks, it provide the visitors with wholesome entertainment, especially with kids, and such parks are themed with certain attractions. Theme parks amuse the visitors with beautiful design and convey them into another world. The pioneer in the field of theme parks was Walt Disney. He established Walt Disney Productions and first theme park in the form of “Disney Land”, in California, USA. The biggest reason for the popularity of theme parks is the pure fantasy which is offered by such parks. The fantastic characters, spectacular rides, live entertainment programmes, etc. are the main features of a theme park. These parks are clean and wholesome enough to appeal to the entire family.

9.      Write a short note on Landscape Architecture. (Nov 2011 5m, Nov 2009 5m)

Ans. Landscape architecture means the arrangement of plant materials, inter-materials, and water for efficient, healthy and pleasant use by the society. Landscape architecture is more environmental in character, and the job of landscape architect is to make use of open spaces. The competent landscape architect is trained in various fields such as geology, ecology, forestry, topography, and colour effects, etc. Landscaping is not limited to design of gardens and parks but it takes into account the entire area of city and its physical features.

Ø  If the location is along the hillside, it should be planned in the layout as a rock garden.

Ø  If the location is on the bank of river, care must be taken to lay out the walk paths, boulevards, open spaces, etc.

Ø  If in case there is no proper natural location, the landscape architect can create pleasant location artificially by providing a flowering trees and beautiful lawns.

10.  Write the objects of Landscaping architecture. (May 2015 5m, Dec 2013 5m, May 2013 5m, May 2013 5m)

-          Define landscaping. What are its objects? (Dec 2014 5m)

-          What are the purposes of landscape architecture? (Dec 2011 5m, Nov 2011 5m)

Ans. Landscaping means the arrangement of plant materials, inter-materials, and water for efficient, healthy and pleasant use by the society. The objects or purposes of landscape architecture can be briefly mentioned as follows:

a)      The landscape architecture decorates the town with gardens, parks, recreational open spaces, etc.

b)      The proper landscaping imparts beauty and it results into a good appearance of the town.

c)      The provision of trees in the town results into many advantages. It relieves eye strain, lower the temperature, absorbs carbon dioxide and give out oxygen, and provide shade during summer, etc.

d)     The urban landscaping is intended for developing an agreeable, cheerful, pleasant and attractive environment.

11.  Write the elements of landscaping. (May 2015 5m)

Ans. Following are the elements of landscaping;

a)      Create different levels by providing steps for better view in the places such as parks.

b)      Seats to rest and enjoy the scenery.

c)      Fence and walls for protection and make spaces for different functions.

d)     Lights to enjoy the beauty of landscape even during late hours.

e)      Bird house for better enjoyment and to create a different environment.

f)       Gates for identification of certain places.

g)      Play equipment to keep people of different age groups busy for a larger time.

h)      Rock garden for enjoyment and increasing the landscape beauty.

i)        Water for pools and fountains for better environment.

j)        Plant material: trees, shrubs, hedges, flower plants, climbers or creepers.

12.  Draw landscaping sketch of residential buildings. (May 2013 5m)

Ans. Landscape plan for residential building;

13.  Explain colour and convention of landscaped drawings. (May 2013 5m)

Ans. Colour is the most rewarding element to work with in the landscape. Colour can be utilized in the garden for the following effects:

Ø  To bring life and excitement to the landscape.

Ø  Blend the exterior environment with structural colours to tie the overall design.

Ø  Complement the colours of other plants.

Ø  Attract animals and insects, such as birds and butterflies.

Ø  Create a calm mood.

Ø  Provide variety and interest through the seasons.

14.  Draw neat sketch showing different parts of a typical park layout. (Dec 2011 5m)

Ans. 

Reference:

·         Town Planning by Rangwala. Published by Charotar, 24^th edition; 2011.

·         Town Planning text book by H.S. Vishwanath, Published by Sapna book house, 2^nd revised and enlarged edition; 2014.