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CONTINUING EDUCATION
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE: GREAT OUTDOOR SPACES BY DESIGN EDUCATIONAL-ADVERTISEMENTContinues at ce.architecturalrecord.comElena M. Pascarella, RLA, ASLA is a practicing
landscape architect, continuing education presenter,
and consultant engaged in a private practice based
in Rhode Island. The firm’s portfolio can be viewed
at http://www.landscapeelementsllc.com.CLAY PAVERS: AN ENVIRONMENTALLY
FRIENDLY MATERIAL TO MEET
SUSTAINABILITY CRITERIA
Clay pavers provide the landscape architect with
both quality material performance and design
f lexibility. Clay is an environmentally friendly
raw material that has been used to fabricate
bricks and clay pavers for hundreds of years.
Clay pavers are fired at temperatures exceed-
ing 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This process of
firing provides designers with pavers that are
non-fading and resilient to wear and staining.
Because of this high-heat firing process, the pav-
ers never need sealing to retain their color. And
because there are no dyes used in the fabrication
process, the cost of clay pavers is less than pavers
comprised of other materials, such as concrete.Design Flexibility: Variety in Color,
Texture, Style, and Pattern
Clay pavers come in a variety of sizes and
types, including permeable pavers, relieved
edge lugged pavers, pool coping pavers, Dan-
ish hand-molded pavers, bullnose threads
for stairs, and ADA handicapped detectible
warning pavers. Clay pavers are used in both
pedestrian and vehicular applications, includ-
ing patios, pool decks and pool copings, large
outdoor plazas, walkways, and driveways.
The relatively small size of clay pavers cre-
ates a pavement surface with a human scale.The small size also allows for the nuances of
different colors, textures and patterns to be
clearly seen when standing from one vantage
point within a pavement field.
Clay pavers are available in a wider range of
colors. Due to the natural color of clay, the most
common colors are the reds and browns of earth
tones, but clay pavers are also available in buff,
black, and gray. The color is typically consistent
through the body of the paver, as it is fired in
through the entire paver. Clay pavers are also
highly resistant to weathering and fading due
to their vitrified composition. As clay pavers
are made from natural materials, there may be
inherent color variations in pavers due to dif-
ferent production runs. For designers, the color
variations from the different production runs
can be mitigated in the field pattern. Using dif-
ferent colors helps to break down the scale of the
very large pavement areas. Borders can be laid
in a different color from the field, thus adding
interest to the design. Patterns that f low, repeat,
and intertwine can also be added.Photo courtesy of Endicott Clay
process is very detailed and computer controlled
to ensure the exact same result is achieved every
single time the wood is processed through the
testing chamber
Only select northern hardwoods from
North American and European forests, re-
nowned for their well-documented sustainable
forestry practices, are used to produce thermal-
ly modified woods. This fact normally satisfies
the customer’s desire for an eco-friendly prod-
uct, and FSC certification becomes unneces-
sary. However, FSC certification is available on
a special-order basis, depending on the product
needed, the size of the order and whether the
FSC material is available. FSC certification re-
quires a 25 percent price premium and an extra
12–14 week lead time to source the raw material
especially for the order.
Some softwoods used in the thermal modi-
fication process are certified by the Program for
the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC),
a European-based certification system that is
not widely known in the U.S. market. These
softwoods are sourced from Scandinavian for-
ests, which are closely managed and extremely
sustainable but not FSC certified.Using Wood for Its Design Flexibility
and Aesthetics
Thermally modified wood provides a material
with extensive f lexibility for designers. White
ash thermally modified wood was used by
designer Thomas Tampold of Yorkville Design
Centre to create outdoor decking and raised
planters at this residence in Toronto.
Scots pine decking was used by JJW Land-
scape Architects and Keinicke & Overgaared
Architects in the design of this geometrically
configured outdoor deck and planters for a
project in Copenhagen, Denmark.
In each of these cases, the wood is installed
quickly and easily using a custom-developed
clip strip that the installer presses down on and
the boards click into place. The wood boards are
pre-grooved with tracks for the clips so align-
ment is automatic. There is no need for drill bits
or screws, thus creating a clean look with no
hazards to bare feet.
The residential deck in Toronto and the plaza
in Copenhagen illustrate applications and uses
of thermally modified wood in ground-level set-
tings. The durability characteristics and instal-
lation procedures for ground-level settings are
the same as for rooftop locations. As thermally
modified wood is responsibly harvested, it is a
product that meets LEED and SITES criteria for
sustainable practices in materials.Multiple colors and patterns can help to humanize the pavement scale, as shown at this plaza in
San Clemente, California.