Cultural landscapes can range from thousands of acres of ruraltracts of land to a small homestead with a front yard of lessthan one acre. Like historic buildings and districts, these specialplaces reveal aspects of our country's origins and developmentthrough their form and features and the ways they were used. Culturallandscapes also reveal much about our evolving relationship withthe natural world.

A cultural landscape is defined as "a geographic area,including both cultural and natural resources and the wildlifeor domestic animals therein, associated with a historic event,activity, or person or exhibiting other cultural or aestheticvalues." There are four general types of cultural landscapes,not mutually exclusive: historic sites, historic designed landscapes,historicvernacular landscapes, and ethnographic landscapes. Theseare defined on the Table on page 2.1

Historic landscapes include residential gardensand community parks, scenic highways, rural communities, institutionalgrounds, cemeteries, battlefields and zoological gardens. Theyare composed of a number of character defining features whichindividually or collectively contribute to the landscape's physicalappearance as they have evolved over time. In addition to vegetationand topography, cultural landscapes may include water featuressuch as ponds, streams, and fountains; circulation features suchas roads, paths, steps, and walls; buildings; and furnishings,including fences, benches, lights and sculptural objects.

Most historic properties have a cultural landscape component thatis integral to the significance of the resource. Imagine a residentialdistrict without sidewalks, lawns and trees or a plantation withbuildings but no adjacent lands. A historic property consistsof all its cultural resources - landscapes, buildings, archeologicalsites and collections. In some cultural landscapes, there maybe a total absence of buildings.

This Preservation Brief provides preservation professionals, culturalresource managers, and historic property owners a step-by-stepprocess for preserving historic designed and vernacular landscapes,two types of cultural landscapes. While this process is ideallyapplied to an entire landscape, it can address a single featuresuch as a perennial garden, family burial plot, or a sentineloak in an open meadow. This Brief provides a framework and guidancefor 9 undertaking projects to ensure a successful balance betweenhistoric preservation and change.

Historic Designed Landscape - a landscape that wasconsciously designed or laid out by a landscape architect, mastergardener, architect, or horticulturist according to design principles,or an amateur gardener working in a recognized style or tradition.The landscape may be associated with a significant person(s),trend, or event in landscape architecture; or illustrate an importantdevelopment in the theory and practice of landscape architecture.Aesthetic values play a significant role in designed landscapes.Examples include parks, campuses, and estates.

Historic Vernacular Landscape - a landscape thatevolved through use by the people whose activities or occupancyshaped that landscape. Through social or cultural attitudes ofan individual, family or a community, the landscape reflects thephysical, biological, and cultural character of those everydaylives. Function plays a significant role in vernacular landscapes.They can be a single property such as a farm or a collection ofproperties such as a district of historic farms along a rivervalley. Examples include rural villages, industrial complexes,and agricultural landscapes.

Historic Site - a landscape significant for itsassociation with a historic event, activity, or person. Examplesinclude battlefields and president's house properties.

Ethnographic Landscape - a landscape containinga variety of natural and cultural resources that associated peopledefine as heritage resources. Examples are contemporary settlements,religious sacred sites and massive geological structures. Smallplant communities, animals, subsistence and ceremonial groundsare often components.

Nearly all designed and vernacular landscapes evolve from, orare often dependent on, natural resources. It is these interconnectedsystems of land, air and water, vegetation and wildlife whichhave dynamic qualities that differentiate cultural landscapesfrom other cultural resources, such as historic structures. Thus, their documentation,treatment, and ongoing management require a comprehensive, multi-disciplinaryapproach.

Today, those involved in preservation planning and managementfor cultural landscapes represent a broad array of academic backgrounds,training, and related project experience. Professionals may haveexpertise in landscape architecture, history, landscape archeology,forestry, agriculture, horticulture, pomology, pollen analysis,planning, architecture, engineering (civil, structural, mechanical,traffic), cultural geography, wildlife, ecology, ethnography,interpretation, material and object conservation, landscape maintenanceand management. Historians and historic preservation professionalscan bring expertise in the history of the landscape, architecture,art, industry, agriculture, society and other subjects. Landscapepreservation teams, including on-site management teams and independentconsultants, are often directed by a landscape architect withspecific expertise in landscape preservation. It is highly recommendedthat disciplines relevant to the landscapes' inherent featuresbe represented as well.

Additional guidance may be obtained from State Historic PreservationOffices, local preservation commissions, the National Park Service,local and state park agencies, national and state chapters ofthe American Society of Landscape Architects, the Alliance forHistoric Landscape Preservation, the National Association of OlmstedParks, and the Catalog of Landscape Records in the United Statesat Wave Hill among others.2

A range of issues may need to be addressed when considering howa particular cultural landscape should be treated. This may includethe in-kind replacement of declining vegetation, reproductionof furnishings, rehabilitation of structures, accessibility provisionsfor people with disabilities, or the treatment of industrial propertiesthat are rehabilitated for new uses.

Careful planning prior to undertaking work can help prevent irrevocabledamage to a cultural landscape. Professional techniques for identifying,documenting, evaluating and preserving cultural landscapes haveadvanced during the past 25 years and are continually being refined.Preservation planning generally involves the following steps:historical research; inventory and documentation of existing conditions;site analysis and evaluation of integrity and significance; developmentof a cultural landscape preservation approach and treatment plan;development of a cultural landscape management plan and managementphilosophy; the development of a strategy for ongoing maintenance;and preparation of a record of treatment and future research recommendations.

The steps in this process are not independent of each other, norare they always sequential. In fact, information gathered in onestep may lead to a re-examination or refinement of previous steps.For example, field inventory and historical research are likelyto occur simultaneously, and may reveal unnoticed cultural resourcesthat should be protected.

The treatment and management of cultural landscape should alsobe considered in concert with the management of an entire historicproperty. As a result, many other studies may be relevant. Theyinclude management plans, interpretive plans, exhibit design,historic structures reports, and other.

These steps can result in several products including a CulturalLandscape Report (also known as a Historic Landscape Report),statements for management, interpretive guide, maintenance guideand maintenance records.

A Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) is the primary report that documentsthe history, significance and treatment of a cultural landscape.A CLR evaluates the history and integrity of the landscape includingany changes to its geographical context, features, materials,and use.

CLWs are often prepared when a change (e.g. a new visitor's centeror parking area to a landscape) is proposed. In such instances,a CLR can be a useful tool to protect the landscape's character-definingfeatures from undue wear, alteration or loss. A CLR can providemanagers, curators and others with information needed to makemanagement decisions.

A CLR will often yield new information about a landscape's historicsignificance and integrity, even for those already listed on theNational Register. Where appropriate, National Register filesshould be amended to reflect the new findings.

Research is essential before undertaking any treatment. Findingswill help identify a landscape's historic period(s) of ownership,occupancy and development, and bring greater understanding ofthe associations and characteristics that make the landscape orhistory significant. Research findings provide a foundation tomake educated decisions for work, and can also facilitate ongoingmaintenance and management operations, interpretation and eventualcompliance requirements.

A variety of primary and secondary sources may be consulted. Primaryarchival sources can include historic plans, surveys, plats, taxmaps, atlases, U. S. Geological Survey maps, soil profiles, aerialphotographs, photographs, stereoscopic views, glass lantern slides,postcards, engravings, paintings, newspapers, journals, constructiondrawings, specifications, plant lists, nursery catalogs, householdrecords, account books and personal correspondence. Secondarysources include monographs, published histories, theses, NationalRegister forms, survey data, local preservation plans, state contextsand scholarly articles. (See Figures 5-7, page 4.)

Contemporary documentary resources should also be consulted. Thismay include recent studies, plans, surveys, aerial and infraredphotographs, Soil Conservation Service soil maps, inventories,investigations and interviews. Oral histories of residents, managers,and maintenance personnel with a long tenure or historical associationcan be valuable sources of information about changes to a landscapeover many years. (Figures 8-9, page 4) For properties listed inthe National Register, nomination forms should be consulted.

In the case of designed landscapes, even though a historic designplan exists, it does not necessarily mean that it was realizedfully, or even in part. Based on a review of the archival resourcesoutlined above, and the extant landscape today, an as-builtperiod plan may be delineated. For all successive tenures of ownership, occupancyand landscape change, period pl us should be generated(see Figure 13, page 6). Period plans can document to the greatestextent possible the historic appearance during a particular periodof ownership, occupancy, or development. Period plans should bebased on primary archival sources and should avoid conjecture.Features that are based on secondary or less accurate sourcesshould be graphically differentiated. Ideally, all referencedarchival sources should be annotated and footnoted directly onperiod plans.

Where historical data is missing, period plans should reflectany gaps in the CLR narrative text and these limitations consideredin future treatment decisions (See Treatments for Cultural Landscapeson page 13.)

Both physical evidence in the landscape and historic documentationguide the historic preservation plan and treatments. To documentexisting conditions, intensive field investigation and reconnaissanceshould be conducted at the same time that documentary researchis being gathered. Information should be exchanged among preservationprofessionals, historians, technicians, local residents, managersand visitors.

To assist in the survey process, National Register Bulletins havebeen published by the National Park Service to aid in identifying,nominating and evaluating designed and rural historic landscapes.Additionally, Bulletins are available for specific landscape typessuch as battlefields, mining sites, and cemeteries.6

Although there are several ways to inventory and document a landscape,the goal is to create a baseline from a detailed record of thelandscape and its features as they exist at the present (consideringseasonal variations).7 Each landscape inventory should addressissues of boundary delineation, documentation methodologies and techniques, the limitationsof the inventory, and the scope of inventory efforts. These aremost often influenced by the timetable, budget, project scope,and the purpose of the inventory and, depending on the physicalqualities of the property, its scale, detail, and the interrelationshipbetween natural and cultural resources. For example, inventoryobjectives to develop a treatment plan may differ considerablycompared to those needed to develop an ongoing maintenance plan.Once the criteria for a landscape inventory are developed andtested, the methodology should be explained.

Inventory and documentation may be recorded in plans, sections,photographs, aerial photographs, axonometric perspectives, narratives,video-or any combination of techniques. Existing conditions shouldgenerally be documented to scale, drawn by hand or generated bycomputer. The scale of the drawings is often determined by thesize and complexity of the landscape. Some landscapes may requiredocumentation at more than one scale. For example, a large estatemay be documented at a small scale to depict its spatialand visual relationships, while the discrete area around an estate mansionmay require a larger scale to illustrate individual plant materials,pavement patterns and other details. The same may apply to anentire rural historic district and a fenced vegetable garden containedwithin. (See Figures 14-15, page 8).

When landscapes are documented in photographs, registrationpoints can be set to indicate the precise location and orientationof features. Registration points should correspond to significantforms, features and spatial relationships within the landscapeand its surrounds (see Figure 22, page 1 1 for an example.) The points may also correspondto historic views to illustrate the change in the landscape todate. These locations may also be used as a management tool todocument the landscape's evolution, and to ensure that its character-definingfeatures are preserved over time through informed maintenanceoperations and later treatment and management decisions.

All features that contribute to the landscape's historic charactershould be recorded. These include the physical features describedon page 1 (e.g. topography, circulation), and the visual and spatialrelationships that are character defining. The identificationof existing plants, should be specific, including genus, species,common name, age (if known) and size. The woody, and if appropriate,herbaceous plant material should be accurately located on theexisting conditions map. To ensure full representation of successionalherbaceous plants, care should be taken to document the landscapein different seasons, if possible.

Treating living plant materials as a curatorial collection hasalso been undertaken at some cultural landscapes. This process,either done manually or by computer, can track the condition andmaintenance operations on individual plants. Some sites, suchas the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, in Brookline,Massachusetts have developed a field investigation numbering systemto track all woody plants. (See Table, page 9) Due to concernfor the preservation of genetic diversity and the need to replacesignificant plant materials, a number of properties are beginningto propagate historically important rare plants that are no longercommercially available, unique, or possess significant historicassociations. Such herbarium collections become a part of a site'snatural history collection.

Once the research and the documentation of existing conditionshave been completed, a foundation is in place to analyze the landscape'scontinuity and change, determine its significance, assess itsintegrity, and place it within the historic context of similarlandscapes.

A noted geographer stated, "The attempt to derive meaningfrom landscapes possesses overwhelming virtue. It keeps us constantlyalert to the world around us, demanding that we pay attentionnot just to some of the things around us but to all of them-thewhole visible world in all of its rich, glorious, messy, confusing,ugly, and beautiful complexity."4

Landscapes can be read on many levels-landscape as nature, habitat,artifact, system, problem, wealth, ideology, history, place andaesthetic.5 When developing a strategy to document a culturallandscape, it is important to attempt to read the landscape inits context of place and time. (See Figures 16-17, page 8)

Reading the landscape, like engaging in archival research, requiresa knowledge of the resource and subject area as well as a willingnessto be skeptical. As with archival research, it may involve serendipitousdiscoveries. Evidence gained from reading the landscape may confirmor contradict other findings and may encourage the observer andthe historian to revisit both primary and secondary sources with a fresh outlook.Landscape investigation may also stimulate other forms of researchand survey, such as oral histories or archeological investigations,to supplement what appeared on-site.

There are many ways to read a landscape-whatever approach is takenshould provide a broad overview. This may be achieved by combiningon-the-ground observations with a bird's-eye perspective. To beginthis process, aerial photographs should be reviewed to gain anorientation to the landscape and its setting. Aerial photographscome in different sizes and scales, and can thus portray differentlevels of detail in the landscape. Aerial photographs taken ata high altitude, for example, may help to reveal remnant fieldpatterns or traces of an abandoned circulation system; or, portionsof axial relationships that were part of the original design,since obscured by encroaching woodland areas. Low altitude aerialphotographs can point out individual features such as the arrangementof shrub and herbaceous borders, and the exact locations of furnishings,lighting, and fence alignments. This knowledge can prove beneficialbefore an on-site visit.

Aerial photographs provide clues that can help orient the viewerto the landscape. The next step may be to view the landscape froma high point such as a knoll or an upper floor window. Such avantage point may provide an excellent transition before physicallyentering the cultural landscape.

On ground, evidence should then be studied, including character-definingfeatures, visual and spatial relationships. By reviewing supportingmaterials from historic research, individual features can be understoodin a systematic fashion that show the continuum that exists onthe ground today. By classifying these features and relationships,the landscape can be understood as an artifact, possessing evidenceof evolving natural systems and human interventions over time.

For example, the on-site investigation of an abandoned turn-of-the-centuryfarm complex reveals the remnant of a native oak and pine forestwhich was cut and burned in the mid-nineteenth century. This previoususe is confirmed by a small stand of mature oaks and the presenceof these plants in the emerging secondary woodland growth thatis overtaking this farm complex in decline. A ring count of thetrees can establish a more accurate age. By reading othercharacter-defining features-such as the traces of old roads, remnanthedgerows, ornamental trees along boundary roads, foundation plantings,the terracing of grades and remnant fences -the visual, spatialand contextual relationships of the property as it existed a centuryago may be understood and its present condition and integrityevaluated.

The findings of on-site reconnaissance, such as materials uncoveredduring archival research, may be considered primary data. Thesefindings make it possible to inventory and evaluate the landscape'sfeatures in the context of the property's current condition. Character-definingfeatures are located in situ, in relationship to each other andthe greater cultural and geographic contexts.

Within cultural landscapes, plants may have historical or botanicalsignificance. A plant may have been associated with a historicfigure or event or be part of a notable landscape design. A plantmay be an uncommon cultivar, exceptional in size, age, rare andcommercially/ unavailable. If such plants are lost, there wouldbe a loss of historic integrity and biological diversity of thecultural landscape. To ensure that significant plants are preserved,an inventory of historic plants is being conducted at the NorthAtlantic Region of the National Park Service.8 Historical landscapearchitects work with landscape managers and historians to gatheroral and documented history on the plant's origin and potentialsignificance. Each plant is then examined in the field by an experthorticulturist who records its name, condition, age, size, distribution,and, any notable botanic characteristics.

Plants that are difficult to identify or are of potential historicalsignificance are further examined in the laboratory by a planttaxonomist who compares leaf, fruit, and flower characteristicswith herbarium specimens for named species, cultivars and varieties.For plants species with many cultivars, such as apples, roses,and grapes, specimens may be sent to specialists for identification.

If a plant cannot be identified, is dying or in decline, and unavailablefrom commercial nurseries, it may be propagated. Propagation ensuresthat when rare and significant plants decline, they can be replacedwith genetically-identical plants. Cuttings are propagated andgrown to replacement size in a North Atlantic Region HistoricPlant Nursery.

• 1. The Arnold Arboretum's preservation technician, lilac specialist,and horticulturist compare lilacs from the Vanderbilt MansionNational Historic Site in Hyde Park, New York with lilac specimensin the Arboretum's living collection. (courtesy Olmsted Center)
• 2. The Arnold Arboretum's horticulturist and preservationtechnician examine an enormous black locust tree at the Home ofF.D. Roosevelt National Historic Site in Hyde Park, NY. (courtesyOlmsted Center)

3. The Arnold Arboretum's horticulturist, landscape historian,and preservation technician examine shrubs at the Longfellow NationalHistoric Site in Cambridge, MA. (courtesy Olmsted Center)

By analyzing the landscape, its change over time can be understood.This may be accomplished by overlaying the various period planswith the existing conditions plan. Based on these findings, individualfeatures may be attributed to the particular period when theywere introduced, and the various periods when they were present.

It is during this step that the historic significance ofthe landscape component of a historic property and its integrityare determined. Historic significance is the recognized importancea property displays when it has been evaluated, including whenit has been found to meet National Register Criteria.9 A landscapemay have several areas of historical significance. An understandingof the landscape as a continuum through history is critical inassessing its cultural and historic value. In order for the landscapeto have integrity, these character-defining features or qualitiesthat contribute to its significance must be present.

While National Register nominations document the significanceand integrity of historic properties, in general, they may notacknowledge the significance of the landscape's design or historicland uses, and may not contain an inventory of landscape featuresor characteristics. Additional research is often necessary toprovide the detailed information about a landscape's evolutionand significance useful in making decision for the treatment andmaintenance of a historic landscape. Existing National Registerforms may be amended to recognize additional areas of significanceand to include more complete descriptions of historic propertiesthat have significant land areas and landscape features.

Integrity is a property's historic identity evidenced bythe survival of physical characteristics from the property's historicor prehistoric period. The seven qualities of integrity are location,setting, feeling, association, design, workmanship and materials.10When evaluating these qualities, care should be taken to considerchange itself. For example, when a second-generation woodlandovertakes an open pasture in a battlefield landscape, or a woodlandedge encloses a scenic vista. For situations such as these, thereversibility and/or compatibility of those features should beconsidered, both individually, and in the context of the overalllandscape. Together, evaluations of significance and integrity,when combined with historic

research, documentation of existing conditions, and analysis findings,influence later treatment and interpretation decisions. (See Figure21-23)

Treatment may be defined as work carried out to achieve a historicpreservation goal-it cannot be considered in a vacuum. There aremany practical and philosophical factors that may influence theselection of a treatment for a landscape. These include the relativehistoric value of the property, the level of historic documentation,existing physical conditions, its historic significance and integrity,historic and proposed use (e.g. educational, interpretive, passive,active public, institutional or private), long- and short-termobjectives, operational and code requirements (e.g. accessibility,fire, security) and costs for anticipated capital improvement,staffing and maintenance. The value of any significant archeologicaland natural resources should also be considered in the decision-making process. Therefore,a cultural landscape's preservation plan and the treatment selectedwill consider a broad array of dynamic and interrelated considerations.It will often take the form of a plan with detailed guidelinesor specifications.

Adopting such a plan, in concert with a preservation maintenanceplan (page 18-19), acknowledges a cultural landscape's ever-changingexistence and the interrelationship of treatment and ongoing maintenance.Performance standards, scheduling and record keeping of maintenanceactivities on a day-to-day or month-to-month basis, may then beplanned for. Treatment, management, and maintenance proposalscan be developed by a broad range of professionals and with expertisein such fields as landscape preservation, horticulture, ecology,and landscape maintenance.

The selection of a primary treatment for the landscape, utilizingthe Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment ofHistoric Properties, establishes an overall historic preservationapproach, as well as a philosophical framework from which to operate.Selecting a treatment is based on many factors. They include managementand interpretation objectives for the property as a whole, theperiod(s) of significance, integrity, and condition of individuallandscape features.

For all treatments, the landscape's existing conditions and itsability to convey historic significance should be carefully considered.For example, the life work, design philosophy and extant legacyof an individual designer should all be understood for a designedlandscape such as an estate, prior to treatment selection. Fora vernacular landscape, such as a battlefield containing a largelyintact mid-nineteenth century family farm, the uniqueness of thatagrarian complex within a local, regional, state, and nationalcontext should be considered in selecting a treatment.

The overall historic preservation approach and treatment approachcan ensure the proper retention, care, and repair of landscapesand their inherent features.11 In short, the Standards act asa preservation and management tool for cultural landscapes. Thefour potential treatments are described in the box opposite.

Landscape treatments can range from simple, inexpensive preservationactions, to complex major restoration or reconstruction projects.The progressive framework is inverse in proportion to the retentionof historic features and materials. Generally, preservation involvesthe least change, and is the most respectful of historic materials.It maintains the form and material of the existing landscape.Rehabilitation usually accommodates contemporary alterations oradditions without altering significant historic features or materials,with successful projects involving minor to major change. Restorationor reconstruction attempts to recapture the appearance of a property,or an individual feature at a particular point in time, as confirmedby detailed historic documentation. These last two treatmentsmost often require the greatest degree of intervention and thus,the highest level of documentation.

In all cases, treatment should be executed at the appropriatelevel reflecting the condition of the landscape, with repair workidentifiable upon close inspection and/or indicated in supplementalinterpretative information. When repairing or replacing a feature,every effort should be made to achieve visual and physical compatibility.Historic materials should be matched in design, scale, color andtexture.

A landscape with a high level of integrity and authenticity maysuggest preservation as the primary treatment. Such a treatmentmay emphasize protection, stabilization, cyclical maintenance,and repair of character-defining landscape features. Changes overtime that are part of the landscape's continuum and are significant in their own right may be retained,while changes that are not significant, yet do not encroach uponor erode character may also be maintained. Preservation entailsthe essential operations to safeguard existing resources. (Figures27-28)

Rehabilitation is often selected in response to a contemporaryuse or need-ideally such an approach is compatible with the landscape'shistoric character and historic use. Rehabilitation may preserveexisting fabric along with introducing some compatible changes,new additions and alterations. Rehabilitation may be desirableat a private residence in a historic district where the homeowner'sgoal is to develop an appropriate landscape treatment for a frontyard, or in a public park where a support area is needed for itsmaintenance operations. (Figures 29-31)

When the most important goal is to portray a landscape and itscharacter-defining features at an exact period of time, restorationis selected as the primary treatment. Unlike preservation andrehabilitation, interpreting the landscape's continuum or evolutionis not the objective. Restoration may include the removal of featuresfrom other periods and/or the construction of missing or lostfeatures and materials from the reconstruction period. In allcases, treatment should be substantiated by the historic researchfindings and existing conditions documentation. Restoration andreconstruction treatment work should avoid the creation of a landscapewhose features did not exist historically. For example, if featuresfrom an earlier period did not co-exist with extant features froma later period that are being retained, their restoration wouldnot be appropriate. (Figures 32-34)

In rare cases, when evidence is sufficient to avoid conjecture,and no other property exists that can adequately explain a certainperiod of history, reconstruction may be utilized to depict avanished landscape. The accuracy of this work is critical. Incases where topography and the subsurface of soil have not beendisturbed, research and existing conditions findings may be confirmedby thorough archeological investigations. Here too, those featuresthat are intact should be repaired as necessary, retaining theoriginal historic features to the greatest extent possible. Thegreatest danger in reconstruction is creating a false pictureof history.

False historicism in every treatment should be avoided. This appliesto individual features as well as the entire landscape. Examplesof inappropriate work include the introduction of historic-lookingbenches that are actually a new design, a fanciful gazebo placedin what was once an open meadow, executing an unrealized historicdesign, or designing a historic-looking landscape for a relocatedhistoric structure within "restoration."

Landscape interpretation is the process of providing the visitorwith tools to experience the landscape as it existed during itsperiod of significance, or as it evolved to its present state.These tools may vary widely, from a focus on existing featuresto the addition of interpretive elements. These could includeexhibits, self-guided brochures, or a new representation of alost feature. The nature of the cultural landscape, especiallyits level of significance, integrity, and the type of visitationanticipated may frame the interpretive approach. Landscape interpretationmay be closely linked to the integrity and condition of the landscape,and therefore, its ability to convey the historic character andcharacter-defining features of the past. If a landscape has highintegrity, the interpretive approach may be to direct visitorsto surviving historic features without introducing obtrusive interpretivedevices such as free-standing signs. For landscapes with a diminishedintegrity, where limited or no fabric remains, the interpretiveemphasis may be on using extant features and visual aids (e.g.markers, photographs, etc.) to help visitors visualize the resourceas it existed in the past. The primary goal in these situationsis to educate the visitor about the landscape's historic themes,associations and lost character-defining features or broader historical,social and physical landscape contexts.

Prior to undertaking work on a landscape, a treatment planor similar document should be developed. The four primary treatmentsidentified in the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for theTreatment of Historic Properties12, are:

Preservation is defined as the act or process of applyingmeasures necessary to sustain the existing form, integrity, andmaterials of an historic property. Work, including preliminarymeasures to protect and stabilize the property, generally focusesupon the ongoing maintenance and repair of historic materialsand features rather than extensive replacement and new constructionsNew additions are not within the scope of this treatment; however,the limited and sensitive upgrading of mechanical, electricaland plumbing systems and other code-required work to make propertiesfunctional is appropriate within a preservation project.

Rehabilitation is defined as the act or process of makingpossible a compatible use for a property through repair, alterations,and additions while preserving those portions or features whichconvey its historical or cultural values.

Restoration is defined as the act or process of accuratelydepicting the form, features, and character of a property as itappeared at a particular period of time by means of the removalof features from other periods in its history and reconstructionof missing features from the restoration period. The limited andsensitive upgrading of mechanical, electrical and plumbing systemsand other code-required work to make properties functional isappropriate within a restoration project.

Reconstruction is defined as the act or process of depicting,by means of new construction, the form, features, and detailingof a non-surviving site, landscape, building, structure, or objectfor the purpose of replicating its appearance at a specific periodof time and in its historic location.

Throughout the preservation planning process, it is importantto ensure that existing landscape features are retained. Preservationmaintenance is the practice of monitoring and controlling changein the landscape to ensure that its historic integrity is notaltered and features are not lost. This is particularly importantduring the research and long-term treatment planning process.To be effective, the maintenance program must have a guiding philosophy,approach or strategy; an understanding of preservation maintenancetechniques; and a system for documenting changes in the landscape.

The philosophical approach to maintenance should coincide withthe landscape's current stage in the preservation planning process.A Cultural Landscape Report and Treatment Plan can take severalyears to complete, yet during this time managers and propertyowners will likely need to address immediate issues related tothe decline, wear, decay, or damage of landscape features. Therefore,initial maintenance operations may focus on the stabilizationand protection of all landscape features to provide temporary,often emergency measures to prevent deterioration, failure, orloss, without altering the site's existing character.

After a Treatment Plan is implemented, the approach to preservationmaintenance may be modified to reflect the objectives definedby this plan. The detailed specifications prepared in the TreatmentPlan relating to the retention, repair, removal, or replacementof features in the landscape should guide and inform a comprehensivepreservation maintenance program. This would include schedulesfor monitoring and routine maintenance, appropriate preservationmaintenance procedures, as well as ongoing record keeping of workperformed. For vegetation, the preservation maintenance programwould also include thresholds for growth or change in character,appropriate pruning methods, propagation and replacement procedures.

To facilitate operations, a property may be divided into discretemanagement zones (Figure 41). These zones are sometimes definedduring the Cultural Landscape Report process and are typicallybased on historically defined areas. Alternatively, zones createdfor maintenance practices and priorities could be used. Examplesof maintenance zones would include woodlands, lawns, meadow, specimentrees, and hedges.

Training of maintenance staff in preservation maintenance skillsis essential. Preservation maintenance practices differ from standardmaintenance practices because of the focus on perpetuating thehistoric character or use of the landscape rather than beautification.For example, introducing new varieties of turf, roses or treesis likely to be inappropriate. Substantial earth moving (or movementof soil) may be inappropriate where there are potential archeologicalresources. An old hedge or shrub should be rejuvenated, or propagated,rather than removed and replaced. A mature specimen tree may requirecabling and careful monitoring to ensure that it is not a threatto visitor safety. Through training programs and with the assistanceof preservation maintenance specialists, each property could developmaintenance specifications for the care of landscape features.

Because landscapes change through the seasons, specificationsfor ongoing preservation maintenance should be organized in acalendar format. During each season or month, the calendar canbe referenced to determine when, where, and how preservation maintenanceis needed. For example, for some trees structural pruning is bestdone in the late winter while other trees are best pruned in thelate summer. Serious pests are monitored at specific times ofthe year, in certain stages of their life cycle. This detailedcalendar will in turn identify staff needs and work priorities.

Depending on the level of sophistication desired, one approachto documenting maintenance data and recording change over timeis to use a computerized geographical or visual information system.13Such a system would have the capability to include plans and photographsthat would focus on a site's landscape features.

If a computer is not available, a manual or notebook can be developedto organize and store important information. This approach allowsmanagers to start at any level of detail and to begin to collectand organize information about landscape features (see Box oppositeand above). The value of these maintenance records cannot be overstated.These records will be used in the future by historians to understandhow the landscape has evolved with the ongoing care of the maintenancestaff.

In the past, there was rarely adequate record-keeping to fullyunderstand the ways a landscape was maintained. This creates gapsin our research findings. Today, we recognize that planning forongoing maintenance and onsite applications should be documented-bothroutinely and comprehensively. An annual work program or calendarrecords the frequency of maintenance work on built or naturallandscape features. It can also monitor the age, health and vigorof vegetation. For example, onsite assessments may document thepresence of weeds, pests, dead leaves, pale color, wilting, soil compactionall of which signal particular maintenance needs. For built elements,the deterioration of paving or drainage systems may be noted andthe need for repair or replacement indicated before hazards develop.An overall maintenance program can assist in routine and cyclicmaintenance of the landscape and can also guide long term treatmentprojects.

To help structure a comprehensive maintenance operation that isresponsive to staff, budget, and maintenance priorities, the NationalPark Service has developed two computer-driven programs for itsown landscape resources. A Maintenance Management Program (MM)is designed to assist maintenance managers in their efforts toplan, organize, and direct the park maintenance system. An Inventoryand Condition Assessment Program (ICAP) is designed to complementMM by providing a system for inventorying, assessing conditions,and for providing corrective work recommendations for all sitefeatures.

Another approach to documenting maintenance and recording changesover time is to develop a manual or computerized graphic informationsystem. Such a system should have the capability to include plansand photographs that would record a site's living collection ofplant materials. (Also see discussion of the use of photographyunder Preparing Existing Conditions Plans, page 5.) This may beachieved using a computer-aided drafting program along with anintegrated database management system.

To guide immediate and ongoing maintenance, a systematic and flexibleapproach has been developed by the Olmsted Center for LandscapePreservation. Working with National Park Service landscape managersand maintenance specialists, staff assemble information and makerecommendations for the care of individual landscape features.

Each landscape feature is inspected in the field to document existingconditions and identify field work needed. Recommendations includemaintenance procedures that are sensitive to the integrity ofthe landscape.

The last and ongoing step in the preservation planning processrecords the treatment work as carried out. It may include a seriesof as-built drawings, supporting photographic materials, specificationsand a summary assessment. New technologies that have been successfullyused should be highlighted. Ideally, this information should beshared with interested national organizations for further disseminationand evaluation.

The need for further research or additional activities shouldalso be documented. This may include site-specific or contextualhistorical research, archeological investigations, pollen analysis,search for rare or unusual plant materials, or, material testingfor future applications.

Finally, in consultation with a conservator or archivist-to maximizethe benefit of project work and to minimize the potentialof data loss-all primary documents should be organized and preservedas archival materials. This may include field notes, maps, drawings,photographs, material samples, oral histories and other relativeinformation.

The planning, treatment, and maintenance of cultural landscapesrequires a multi-disciplinary approach. In landscapes, such asparks and playgrounds, battlefields, cemeteries, village greens,and agricultural land preserves more than any other type of historicresource-communities rightly presume a sense of stewardship. Itis often this grass roots commitment that has been a catalystfor current research and planning initiatives. Individual residentialproperties often do not require the same level of public outreach,yet a systematic planning process will assist in making educatedtreatment, management and maintenance decisions.

Wise stewardship protects the character, and or spirit of a placeby recognizing history as change over time. Often, this also involvesour own respectful changes through treatment. The potential benefitsfrom the preservation of cultural landscapes are enormous. Landscapesprovide scenic, economic, ecological, social, recreational andeducational opportunities that help us understand ourselves asindividuals, communities and as a nation. Their ongoing preservationcan yield an improved quality of life for all, and, above all,a sense of place or identity for future generations.

Birnbaum, Charles A, guest editor. Preservation Forum. "Focuson Landscape Preservation". Washington, D.C.: National Trustfor Historic Preservation, Volume 7, No. 3, May/June 1992.

Buggey Susan, guest editor. APT Bulletin. Special Issue: ConservingHistoric Landscapes. Fredericksburg, VA: Association for PreservationTechnology International, Volume XXIV, No. 3-4, 1992.

Burns, John A, and the Staff of HABS/HAER. Recording HistoricStructures. American Institute of Architects Press, 1989.(Includes chapter on the documentation of Meridian Hill Park,pp. 206-219.)

Diehl, Janet and Thomas S. Barrett, et al. The Conservation EasementHandbook. Managing Land Conservation and Historic PreservationEasement Programs, The Land Trust Exchange

(now Alliance) and the Trust for Public Land, 1988.

International Committee of Historic Gardens and Sites, ICOMOS-IFLA.Jardins et Sites Historiques, Scientific Journal. ICOMOS1993. Compilation of papers on the subject, in both English andFrench.

Kelso, William M., and Rachel Most. Earth Patterns: Essaysin Landscape Archaeology. Charlottesville, VA. UniversityPress of Virginia, 1990.

Stokes, Samuel, N., et al. Saving America's Countryside: A Guideto Rural Conservation.

Baltimore and London: John Hopkins University Press, 1989.

Tishler, William, editor. American Landscape Architecture:Designers and Places. Washington, DC: The Preservation Press,1989.

Several publications available from the National Park Servicedeal directly with the preservation of historic landscapes. Theseinclude:

America's Landscape Legacy, Brochure, Preservation AssistanceDivision, 1992.

Guidelines for the Treatment of Historic Landscapes, PreservationAssistance Division 1992 (Draft).

Case Studies in Landscape Preservation, Preservation AssistanceDivision in cooperation with the Alliance for Landscape Preservation,1995.

Cultural Landscapes Bibliography: An Annotated Bibliography ofResources in the National Park System, Park Historic ArchitectureDivision, 1992.

Historic Landscape Directory; A Source Book of Agencies,Organizations, and Institutions Providing Information on HistoricLandscape Preservation, Preservation Assistance Division, 1991.

CRM, Cultural Resource Management, Thematic Issues: The Preservationof Cultural Landscapes, Volume 14, No.6, 1991; A RealityCheck for Our Nation's Parks, Volume 16,

No. 4,1993; Historic Transportation Corridors, Volume 16, No.11, 1993; and, The Interpretation of Cultural Landscapes, Volume17, No. 8,1994.

Pioneers of American Landscape Design: An Annotated Bibliography,Preservation Assistance Division, 1993 (ISBN:0-16-041974-3).

Making Educated Decisions: A Landscape Preservation Bibliography,Preservation Assistance Division, 1994 (ISBN:0-16-045145-0)

National Register Bulletin 18: How to Evaluate and NominateDesigned Historic Landscapes; National Register Bulletin 30: Guidelinesfor Evaluating and Documenting Rural Historic

Landscapes; National Register Bulletin 40: Guidelines for Evaluatingand Registering Battlefields; and, National Register Bulletin41: Guidelines for Evaluating and

Registering Cemeteries, Interagency Resources Division.

1 The cultural landscape definitions are contained inNPS-28, Cultural Resource Management Guideline, Release No.4,1994, National Park Service.

2 For an expanded list of offices to contact, see America'sLandscape Legacy brochure. Free from the National Park ServicePreservation Assistance Division.

3 From Kelso, William, A Report on the Archeological Excavationat Monticello, Charlottesville, VA, 1979-1981, Thomas JeffersonMemorial Foundation, 1982.

4 Lewis, Pierce, "Common Landscapes as Historic Documents,"Lubar, Steven and Kingery, W. David (eds.), Essays on MaterialCulture, Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC, 1993,p. 138.

5 Meinig, D.W. "The Beholding Eye: Ten Versions of the SameScene," The Interpretation of Ordinary Landscapes,Oxford University Press, New York, 1979, pp. 33-48.

6 See National Park Service National Register Bulletins underSelected Reading (opposite).

7 The Historic American Buildings Survey, HABS, has generatedstandards for landscape documentation that they now utilize ona number of projects. Specifically, a case study on recordinghistoric landscapes is included in Recording Historic Structures,pp. 206-219. See Selected Reading (opposite).

8 This is being undertaken with technical assistance from theOlmsted Center for Landscape Preservation a partnership betweenthe National Park Service and the Arnold Arboretum of HarvardUniversity that provides cultural landscape technical assistance,technology development and training.

9 See National Register Bulletin 16A: How to Complete the NationalRegister Registration Form. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Departmentof the Interior, National Park Service, Interagency ResourcesDivision, 1991.

10 Ibid.

11 The standards are general principles for the treatment of buildings,structures, sites, objects, districts and landscapes. The treatmentstandards are one set of standards included in the broader groupknown as the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Archaeologyand Historic Preservation.

12 The Secretary of the Interior is responsible for establishingprofessional standards and providing advice on the preservationand protection of all cultural resources listed on or eligiblefor the National Register of Historic Places. For a copy of thebrochure, The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for theTreatment of Historic Properties, 1992 contact the NationalPark Service Preservation Assistance Division (424) Box 37127Washington, DC 20013-7127.

13 A visual information system, a computer-aided mapping programwith a linked database, has been developed for the historic landscapeat the Frederick Olmsted National Historic Site. Data can be accesseddirectly from a digitized map such as information on each plantincluding identification, age, location, size, condition, andmaintenance history.

This publication has been prepared pursuant to the National HistoricPreservation Act of 1966, as amended, which directs the Secretaryof the Interior to develop and make information concerning historicproperties. Comments on the usefulness of this publication maybe directed to H. Ward Jandl, Deputy Chief, Preservation AssistanceDivision, National Park Service, P.O. Box 37127, Washington, D.C.20013-7127. This publication is not copyrighted and can be reproducedwithout penalty. Normal procedures for credit to the author andthe National Park Service are appreciated.

The author, Charles A. Birnbaum, Coordinator, Historic Landscape Initiative, Preservation Assistance Division, National Park Service would like to acknowledge the assistance of H. Ward Jandl and Kay Weeks. The Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation at the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site including Margie Coffin, Lauren Meier, Nora Mitchell, and Charlie Pepper provided invaluable support. In particular, the proposed rewrite on Preservation Maintenance and historic plant materials was written by Margie Coffin. Significant contributions were also made by Patricia M. O'Donnell, Linda McClelland, Ellen Lipsey, Christine Capella Peters, Robert Page, Ian Firth and Robert Melnick. Usefulcomments and technical assistance were provided by regional NPS staff (Mary Hughes, Lucy Lawliss, Jill Cowley, Sherda Williams, Michael Crowe, Robbyn Jackson) and staff at the Preservation Assistance Division (Cheryl Wagner, Michael Auer and Anne Grimmer).

Washington, D.C. September, 1994

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