Vertical Garden

Vertical Garden at 6 Battery Road, Singapore by Patrick Blanc

By: Lucas E. Shubert

Brief Description

This vertical garden, title "Rainforest Rhapsody," is the focus of a $92 million renovation at Capitaland Commercial, in Singapore (Capitaland Commercial 2013). It is 2,000 square feet and includes approximately locally grown 120 plant species (Capitaland Commercial 2013). It is a part of a larger project involving several kinds of sustainable practices, like reused materials and LED's (Capitaland Commercial 2013).

Landscape Performance Benefits

· Environmental The environmental benefits of this type of project depend on its size and location. Unlike permeable pavers and rain gardens, interior vertical gardens do not reduce storm water runoff. They do, however, clean the air around them.

· Aesthetic This vertical garden adds a great deal of natural beauty to the lobby, both with the simplicity of native vegetation and the complexity of the design of their placement.

· Functional No signs of leaking water have been reported. Therefore, the garden must be functioning as intended.

· Social The garden creates a wonderful space for social gathering.

· Educational Vertical gardens have the potential for teaching about the plant species found within it.

· Economical Since aesthetic appeal is a large portion of vertical gardens, it's difficult to rate them economically. They can be created for a relatively small amount of money.

However, this one was much more expensive because it involved a world famous designer (Capitaland Commercial 2013).

· Psychological Vertical gardens are intended to have a calming effect.

Project Evaluation

This project is now two years old and is still very beautiful, which means that it must be performing as intended by helping to clean the air of the lobby of 6 Battery Road. It is a very successful project because it completely changed the space it is in for the better. Another reason these vertical gardens are usually a good idea for interior spaces is because they are relatively low maintenance.

References

Vertical Garden Patrick Blanc. 2013. “Capitaland.” Accessed March 1. verticalgardenpatrickblanc.com/realisations/singapore/capitaland-6-battery-road-singapore.

Capitaland Commercial. 2013. "Singapore." Accessed March 1. capitalandcommercial.com/sg6BR.html.

PUT THESE UNDER THE FIGURES

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