Collin Bowie 2016 South Florida Landscape Award Winner

Floral Matrix, an Urban Courtyard Raingarden for South Florida Zones 10-11
FANN’s Real Florida Landscapes Design Competition 2016

This design is focused on creative stormwater management and serves as a compelling example that native plants can be used in an urban setting. This 60′ x 85′ courtyard is a feature of a new office complex being constructed in downtown Miami and is designed for office worker enjoyment and relaxation during break times. Doubling as a rain garden, the courtyard also serves as an effective demonstration of storm water control and filtration through the use of native plants. During a storm event, rain water that falls upon the surrounding rooftops is guttered into the courtyard where it flows through a series of rectangular ponds before exiting the site below ground. Plants that thrive in wet soil conditions have been selected for this project and serve both aesthetic and functional purposes. A hierarchy of space is created through the construction of the various sunken planters and pools and users may enter from any side of the courtyard. A network of linear board walks cuts its way through the site and immerses you in the plants.

A junior in the University of Florida landscape architecture program, Collin, who is from Gorham, Maine, plans to graduate in 2018. His landscape leanings started with his father, who also studied landscape architecture at UF. Collin has friends in the (building) architecture program who have made him aware of the need to manage stormwater. He in turn has made his friends aware of creative plant-based approaches for capturing, storing and filtering runoff in urban and suburban settings.