VERTICAL GARDEN / GREEN WALL
Living artwork and green lung for the city and interior
“Do plants really need soil? No, they don’t…..The soil is merely nothing more than a mechanic support. Only water and the many minerals dissolved in it are essential to plants, together with light and carbon dioxide to conduct photosynthesis” ( Patrick Blanc ).
The French botanist is the pioneer of vertical gardens whom has realised impressing projects all over the world. His core innovation is to use the root ability to grow not only in a volume ( of soil, water or sand ) but as well on a surface. He developed a very lightweight and pure system: the plants grow on a felt, fixed on a stable and waterproof support which is fitted to the wall in a way that leaves space for the air. Therefore the roots cannot get in contact with the wall and cause damage.
The whole construction, including the plants, weighs less than 30kg/m2 and that is why it can be implemented on nearly every kind of wall.
The plants are chosen regarding the situation, climatic conditions and exposure. The irrigation and fertilisation are run automatically.
The vertical garden makes together with Green Roofs part of the concept of the “Green City” where surfaces which are normally sealed and causing the “Heat Island effect”, are given back to nature.
The evaporation of the plant cover cools down the surrounding. The construction with its vegetation and the air layer between itself and the wall are a very efficient acoustic and thermal isolation and aids in lowering energy consumption, both in winter ( by protecting the building from the cold ) and in summer ( by providing a natural cooling system ).
It is also able to purify the air. The leaves filter the air binding CO2 and toxic gases. Polluting particles deposit on the humid felt and micro-organisms decompose and mineralise them before they are absorbed by the roots as fertilizer.
Interior Vertical gardens clean the air from nicotine, formaldehyde and all sorts of pollution caused by printers, computers or plastics.
Finally it is a valuable shelter for biodiversity in our cities.
In between there are variety of other concepts of vertical gardens on the market, each with different characteristics. Usually they are created on side and the plants take months to cover the whole surface and reaching the final effect. But it is also possible to pre-cultivate modules in a green house and install them in very short time at its final destination where the green wall has its full impact from day one.