How to Measure Garden and Landscape Square Footage
Most garden and landscaping spaces consist of shapes that are outside of the usual squares and rectangles. In order to obtain an accurate measuring, certain steps must be taken for these types of situations, to ensure your gardening and landscaping plans to come out how you would like.
- Sketch the basic layout of your garden and landscaping area. The drawing does not have to be precise, as long as you have the basic figures of each space. Measure each line in your actual gardening and landscaping space and write these measurements next to the coordinating spaces.
- Break up each section of your sketch into plain geometric shapes, such as squares, rectangles and triangles. Use the basic formulas to calculate the areas of each geometric shape
- Add all of the square footage measurements between every geometric shape you separated your sketch into. This is the total combined measurement of your gardening and landscaping space. This total is needed and very helpful when obtaining the right amount of supplies and materials to complete your project.
- Measure the area of spaces that are not to be included in the project. For instance, if you have trees in your yard, take the circumference of this space and calculate the area of the circle. If you have a patio or deck that is blocking any space, take the measurements and calculate the area of this as well. Subtract the area of all spaces that are not to be included in your project and this is the resulting figure you will use for your materials.
- Keep a record of your measurements and modification, in the event you need to complete another project anytime in the future.