High-tech greening systems like the 'living green wall' you may have seen in airports or new shopping centres are becoming an alternative to classic facade greening. They are increasingly used in modern architecture, especially for expensive, high quality, and representative facades in southern Europe and Asia (e.g. Singapore).
Companies in the green sector in particular, or those that want to demonstrate their commitment to the environment to the outside world, are opting for this greening concept. A pioneer in this style is the Frenchman Patrick Blanc with his "vertical gardens." The greenery there does not grow upwards from the ground or from pots, but sits on the facade in the form of planted modules. It is fully present immediately or a few weeks after installation.
Such façade gardens are usually very expensive. In the lower segment, prices start at 300 euros per square metre of greenery (as of 2020), in the middle segment at around 700 euros, and there is no upper limit. At the same time, the greenery requires intensive care; in our latitudes, the plants are sometimes removed and/or replaced every winter.
The most modern greening systems, a "vertical garden" by Patrick Blanc at the former department store 'Galeries Lafayette,' Berlin 2022
The modular green wall or 'vertical garden,' was conceived from two main inspirations: 1) some plants are able to grow on stone with very little topsoil. This phenomenon is then applied to facades and fronts of houses. 2) suspended plant pots/baskets, as often seen in the streets of southern Europe; using a 'hanging plant' model but hanging the plants tightly next to and on top of each other, green zones can be created that are not punctual but entirely covered with greenery-- creating specific and also broad-areal effects. These two concepts were the basis for the development of the modern 'living wall.'
Plants grow in special pots, trays, plant pockets, or substrate panels. Irrigation equipment, together with pumping and measuring instruments, are usually attached there. They are commonly hydroponic systems watered by a drip-irrigation method. Also an automatic supply of fertilisers is often integrated.
Low-cost alternatives include: 'metre-long hedges' (a 'hedge wall'), or hanging systems with pots and plant pockets, which are watered manually and removed in winter. Another possibility is the use of self-climbers in wall areas demarcated by recesses or protrusions-- naturally occurring niches -- resulting in defined surface-area growth and a lower-maintenance wall garden.
The construction project, consisting of two residential towers measuring 60 and 45 metres in height respectively and a large ‘city villa’, was completed in 2022. The developer is QUARTERBACK Immobilien AG, while the design was created by Worschech Architekten in Erfurt. The design was inspired by the Bosco Verticale (Vertical Forest) in Milan.
Vertical greenery was therefore planned from the outset, covering an impressive 2,000 square metres. This makes the WIR quarter one of the largest projects in Germany to feature living walls! The building complex contains flats of all sizes and layouts, a daycare centre and several commercial units on the ground floor. Everyone in the building should have access to a bit of greenery somewhere, which is why the green areas are divided into small sections. The Dutch ‘SemperGreenwall Outdoor’ system was used, in which the plants are placed in textile cassettes and watered from behind.
Fassadengrün is a commercial supplier of stainless steel wire rope systems in Germany, Europe and overseas. Information about: Which plants are suitable, are climbing aids necessary, should they be made of wood or metal? Here at FassadenGrün you will find all the information you need from a single source.
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