Mdina Ditch

Image by: Lucianne Calleja

Image by: Lucianne Calleja

For the research of the “Landscape Design” unit, I had to select and find about a local landscape design. I chose the Mdina Ditch project since it’s the closest one to my house and overall I like the project a lot. A while ago, when I used to have some spare time during the evenings, I used to go for a walk passing through the ditch enjoying the surroundings. At that point I never noticed or observed the space very well. But now doing the research for this task made observe certain things that normally are taken for granted by users.

To complete this task, I went to visit the ditch several times in order to take images and do some observations. I went there at different times of the day and the evening as to observe well how it’s being used by people.

Mdina Ditch - Before - Source Unkown

During the week in the evenings the ditch is mostly used by people who loves walking or jogging, during the day from morning to evening it is mostly used by tourists and during the weekend it is mostly used by families. During the night, the ditch is closed but could only be appreciated from above, from the Howard gardens.

About the Ditch

The Mdina ditch serves as a buffer zone from Rabat and Mdina, where the bastions start. It is an area where rain water used to be collected in reservoirs during the knights’ era.

Image by: Lucianne Calleja

Created by: Lucianne Calleja

Before the project was done, it was a completely abandoned area from the authorities. It used to serve as a parking area, sports pitch and filled with citrus trees. But around the 2012 they started to come up with ideas to make the space useful and aesthetically pleasing. The concept behind this project was to create a space to be enjoyed by families, so it had to be designed as a safe environment where people would relax and rest their minds while enjoying the beauty of the surroundings. They also wanted to implement an original idea and function when the ditch used to serve as to collect rain water into a reservoir at the Vilhena palace in Mdina. The new project was then finished in 2013.

In order to do this project most citrus trees were relocated in a more organized manner, following the chosen design idea. The trees were replaced following the linear paths created, making room for full visibility to the bastions which should be fully appreciated by visitors, as they are an important feature of Mdina which forms part of the Maltese history.  

The new design of the Mdina is very linear, parallel with the surrounding walls. Overall the area is very quiet as it is situated in a lower level of the surroundings. The surrounding walls and bastions serves to block the noise. On the opposite side of the bastions there is the well-known Howard garden which serves as a buffer zone from the noise of a busy street adjacent to it. The Ditch has various seating areas, situated where there are the most interesting features around.

Image by: Lucianne Calleja

Image by: Lucianne Calleja

During night time, the bastions are brightly lit by large flood-lights, which then the bright light on the bastions, reflects back on darker areas, creating a focal point of admiration on the bastions. The lighting bollards are placed along the paths to give a sense of direction which acts as a guide to pedestrians. Lamps are used for seating areas, which makes it adaptive for seating purposes. Both lighting bollards and lamps has symmetrical distribution. The overall lighting is bright white, however least popular areas have warm yellowish light, creating a sense of relaxation and a contrast from the rest of the space, showing the different zones within the space.

The ditch nowadays is still in good condition, but lacks maintenance especially of lighting. During evening hours the broken lighting fixtures create dark areas, which blocks the user from appreciating certain features of the place during that time of the day. 

References

• Abela Mercieca, N. 2011. Mdina ditch to be turned into public garden. Times of Malta. [online] Available at: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110113/local/mdina-ditch-to-be-turned-into-public-garden.345072 [Accessed 9 March 2017].
• Anon, 2012. €1.2 million Mdina ditch project includes testing of sustainable rainwater use. Malta Today. [online] Available at: http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/21108/1-2-million-mdina-ditch-project-includes-testing-of-sustainable-rainwater-use20120918#.WMro8jsrKUl [Accessed 11 March 2017].
• Anon, 2013. Mdina ditch project completed. Times of Malta. [online] Available at: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20130306/local/mdina-ditch-project-completed.460362#.UYqA3WsYzLg.wordpress [Accessed 9 March 2017].
• Anon, n.d, The Presence of Trees in Malta's Urban Areas. MEPA [online] Available at: https://www.mepa.org.mt/outlook33-article5 [Accessed 11 March 2017].
• Attard Bros, 2013. Mdina ditch Hard Landscaping Malta Project [online] Available at: http://attardbros.com/mdina-ditch-hard-landscapingproject/ [Accessed 10 March 2017].
• Chetcuti, K., 2012. ‘Battle’ scene at Mdina ditch [online] Available at: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120525/local/-Battle-sceneat-Mdina-ditch.421226 [Accessed 10 March 2017].
• Malta Independent, 2012. Mdina Ditch To become fully accessible. [online] Available at: http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2012-0510/news/mdina-ditch-to-become-fully-accessible-309867/ [Accessed 6 March 2017].