With the potential to introduce dynamic data into landscape models, digital twins might be the profession's tirst true avatars-as long as the quality of the data matches the ambition.

When David Hill, ASLA, and Emily Knox set out to research the southeastern grasslands, they weren't looking to reproduce a lost idyll. Across five test plots, their team of friends, colleagues, and students pulled weeds, examined roots, planted seeds, burned plants, and then did it again. Through the seasons, they documented each change and discovered not just ecological lessons but the texture that once characterized life in this region.