Reddit mentions of Landscape Graphics: Plan, Section, and Perspective Drawing of Landscape Spaces

My reference at the time

Francis D.K. Ching's books are another reference, though more architecturally inclined.

Basically anything Copic for pens and color markers, Micron has great pens too. There's the ubiquitous Pentel sign pen, as well as Sharpies in a variety of point sizes. Staedtler makes great circle templates and pencil sets and you might want to consider some books such as the venerable Landscape Graphics and Drawing and Designing with Confidence. Oh, and tracing paper, lots of it.

It looks like this picture has made its rounds again. I saw it in /r/interestingasfuck and /r/marijuanaenthusiasts -- and the first thing I always think when it comes up is that it reminds me of a plan graphic tree.

It always reminds me of the Grant Reid Landscape Graphics book.

Interaction Design

• About Face 3 by Alan Cooper
  
• Designing Interactions by Bill Moggridge
  
• Designing Interfaces by Jenifer Tidwell
  
• Designing for the Digital Age by Kim Goodwin
  
• Making Things Talk: (2011) (2007) by Tom Igoe
  
  Interior Design
  
  
• The Decoration of Houses by Edith Wharton and Ogden, Jr. Codman
  
• Domino: The Book of Decorating by Deborah Needleman
  
• Design*Sponge at Home: A Guide to Inspiring Homes by Grace Bonney
  
• The Vintage/Modern Home by Katherine Sorrell
  
• The Fundamentals of Interior Design by Simon Dodsworth
  
  Landscape Architecture
  
  
• Landscape Architectural Graphic Standards by Leonard J. Hopper
  
• Landscape Design: A Cultural and Architectural History by Elizabeth Barlow Rogers
  
• Landscape Graphics by Grant W. Reid
  
• Cities for People by Jan Gehl
  
• Design with Nature by Ian L. McHarg
  
  Lighting Design
  
  
• Stage Lighting Design by Richard Pilbrow
  
• The Architecture of Natural Light by Henry Plummer
  
• Painting With Light by John Alton
  
• Made of Light by Anthony Tischhauser
  
• Color, Environment and Human Response by Frank H. Mahnke & Rudolf H. Mahnke
  
  Product Design
  
  
• Sketching: Drawing Techniques from Product Designers by Koos Eissen
  
• Design for the Real World by Victor Papanek
  
• The Craftsman by Richard Sennett
  
• Mythologies by Roland Barthes
  
• Cradle to Cradle. Remaking the Way We Make Things by William McDonough & Michael Braungart
  
  Product Design
  
  
• In the Bubble: Designing in a Complex World by John Thackara
  
• The Experience Economy by B. Joseph Pine II & James H. Gilmore
  
• Universal Methods of Design by Bruce Hanington & Bella Martin
  
• Cradle to Cradle. Remaking the Way We Make Things by William McDonough & Michael Braungart
  
• Mental Models by Indi Young
  
  Sound Design
  
  
• Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema by David Sonnenschein
  
• Designing Sound by Andy Farnell
  
• Audio-Vision: Sound on Screen by Michel Chion
  
• The Sound Effects Bible by Ric Viers
  
• Sound Theory Sound Practice by Rick Altman
  
  Urban Design
  
  
• The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs
  * Cities for People by Jan Gehl
  
• A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander
  
• The Geography of Nowhere by James Howard Kunstler
  
• The Image of the City by Kevin Lynch
  
  Web Design
  
  
• Don't Make Me Think by Steve Krug
  
• HTML & CSS: Design and Build Web Sites by Jon Duckett
  
• The Principles of Beautiful Web Design by Jason Beaird
  
• Responsive Web Design with HTML5 and CSS by Ben Frain
  
• Hardboiled Web Design by Andy Clarke
  

I would have loved a set of Chartpak markers with a copy of Plan Graphics when i started. These arent completely necessary and her school will have books and materials they recommend/require of course

A nice powerful laptop is a must, but i imagine you have that planned already. There will be a variety of programs that she can get through her school with a discount. Photoshop and autocad are the basics and there will probably be a 3d program that is popular that she might want to get into.

I really think most of it will be up to her. One thing i wish i had planned for and done was a semester of study abroad or at least the "big trip" that most colleges do towards the end of their schooling. I didnt have the money for it, so saving up now might be a good idea.

The last one i can think of is also up to her, but i HIGHLY recommend it if she wants to be artsy at all. Its not necessary to know how to draw by hand, but if she does she will have a big advantage over most of the class. The lessons at drawabox.com (/r/ArtFundamentals) are free (or paid if you want reviews of your work) and they have made me much better at my job.

Definitely not a lost cause, and glad to hear you're interested in an MLA. I'd say ecology is one of the strongest backgrounds from which to enter the LA profession. Seems like a lot of firms are looking to hire people with that type of expertise, as the role of ecology in projects continues to rise.

Portfolio-wise, I'd agree with what /u/tricky_p and /u/PHXgp said so far (express enthusiasm, include anything that might be relevant), and add the following advice:

• Sketch outside, sketch public places, sketch people and plants, buy an LA graphics book and start playing around with the symbols and style of land arch graphics. Even if you don't end up pursuing an MLA, you'll still come out a better sketcher (and who doesn't want that?!).
  
  
• Learning how to graphically present your existing work can go a long way. If you have access to Adobe InDesign, watch a few web tutorials on how to use it. Or if you have to lay out in PowerPoint, just look for tutorials on basic graphic design principles. Even if your work doesn't look the best, you can dress it up in something pretty.
  
  
• For your site planning class this summer, I'd personally focus on producing a couple quality hand graphics rather than trying to go all out and learn 3-d modeling software. Focus on communication - how can you clearly articulate what you've designed / what's going on in your plan.
  
  Overall... I don't know, just be honest about your skill level and where you're coming from. And check out (www.landezine.com) if you haven't already. Best website around for getting inspired about LA.
  

Some architectural drawing books are your best bets then. Like:
http://www.amazon.com/Drawing-Landscape-Chip-Sullivan/dp/0471430358
http://www.amazon.com/Landscape-Graphics-Grant-Reid/dp/0823073335/