Bassett Farms Conservancy
Kosse, Texas
Spring 2020 Design Excellence Nominee
Kosse, Texas
Spring 2020 Design Excellence Nominee
"A site of healing in a scarred landscape..."
This design proposal transforms Bassett Farms Conservancy — a Civil War-era cotton plantation managed by Preservation Texas — into a regional front porch and model carbon farm that trades extractive economic models for a community-focused, community-led example of equitable agriculture that re-centers the historic narrative to focus on the underrepresented stories of African-Americans in the region.
The project envisions Bassett Farms as a site of healing within a scarred landscape through the introduction of four key elements designed to respond directly to the social, economic, and ecological exploitation that has taken place on the site over history. These measures include: the creation of a planted Living Memorial to honor the history of the Hopewell Freedom Colony, a community formed by formerly enslaved African-Americans; steam channel restoration through the use of phytoremediation bands to stabilize streambeds and Chrysopogon zizanioides, Pteris, and Salix species to agromine onsite contaminants (arsenic and TPH); the introduction of a soil-supporting pecan (Carya illinoinensis) silvopasture cattle-management system; and the creation of a public-facing community farm and market.
Spring 2020
Landscape Architecture Design Studio II: Module 03
Instructor: Phoebe Lickwar
Landscape Architecture Design Studio II: Module 03
Instructor: Phoebe Lickwar
