Landscape design in Manotick and the rural edge

Once you are past the Greenbelt the rules change as much as the lots do. Properties in Manotick, Greely, North Gower and Osgoode are frequently half a hectare to several hectares, on private well and septic, and the design constraints come from the septic system and the tree cover rather than from a setback.

The septic field is the first thing a designer should locate. Nothing structural goes on it, no driveway crosses it, no deep-rooted tree goes near it, and no grading change may send water onto it. That single constraint usually determines where the patio and the parking go, and it is more restrictive than anything in a suburban by-law.

Tree rules are also different out here. The City's tree protection thresholds vary between the urban area, larger lots and the rural area, and on properties over one hectare the diameter at which a permit is needed is lower than on a small urban lot. On a treed rural property, removals for a driveway, a pond or a building envelope need checking against the by-law before the chainsaw arrives, not after.

The practical upside is scale and machine access. A rural lot will take a full-size excavator to the back of the property, which makes earthworks, ponds, armour stone and long driveways proportionally cheaper than the same work on a narrow city lot. The offset is travel time, material haul distance and the fact that the nearest three-phase power for lighting may be a long way away.