Switzerland is an interesting case study for green facades because it has many harsh, mountainous locations. Plants from our ‘Frost Collection’ have already proven successful there in the past. Overall, grapevines (Vitis vinifera), espalier fruit trees such as apricots, and Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) have dominated.
Having been spared the ravages of war, Switzerland is fortunate to possess intact collections of images in its archives. Consequently, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of images created using historical techniques (pen-and-ink drawings, lithographs, etc.) depicting houses and villages from the early period, dating from around 1800. There are illustrations of houses with greenery, but also many depictions of houses without it. Ivy appeared now and then, for example on castles and palaces. Overall, however, it is striking that prior to 1850 only grapevines were actually used; contrary to expectations, there were no espalier fruit trees, neither low candelabra forms such as those on the walls of the Palace of Versailles in France, nor large trees trained on wooden trellises. The latter actually only appear in photographs from around 1900 onwards. It seems that with them, façade greening also spread to higher altitudes in Switzerland, where previously there were only flowerpots on window sills.
Around 1900, there is then a sudden proliferation of greenery featuring Virginia creeper (presumably always Parthenocissus quinquefolia, possibly also Parthenocissus inserta or ‘Engelmannii’), likely as a replacement for old vine trellises or as pioneering greenery in previously unplanted high-altitude areas. Occasionally, other plants such as wisteria and roses can be identified.
It is also noteworthy that almost all the images show greenery in rural areas or smaller towns, whilst hardly any examples can be found for large cities, i.e. for dense, ‘urban spaces’. This was apparently different in Germany; see the examples for Leipzig.
Wooden trellises of the classic design were mostly used, with other forms being rare. Occasionally, vines were also cultivated on walls using horizontal wires, as was more common in France.
The following visual material comes from our own collections and from the aforementioned Swiss archives. It has been organised by canton. Where possible, the oldest images are always shown first in the image galleries.
Here in Schwellbrunn, at an altitude of around 970 metres above sea level, lies the highest-altitude municipality in the canton; even there, some building facades had been greened.
There are many records of green facades in the canton of Bern. Of particular note is Jakob Samuel Weibel’s “Collection of All Rural Parishes in the Canton of Bern” from around 1825, from which only a few images are shown here. The collection contains a further 40 or so images of green parsonages; the plants are often identifiable as “vines”. The “Kurhaus Rosenlaui” probably boasted the highest-altitude green walls in Switzerland, at over 1,300 metres.
In this canton, trees have been planted at an altitude of around 1,000 metres above sea level (ASL), for example apricot trees (Prunus).
In the canton of Jura, too, there were espalier fruit trees at an altitude of 1,000 metres above sea level! It is surprising that apricots were also grown there, just as they were in Glarus. Perhaps for making their own apricot schnapps?
In Ticino, there is evidence of many historic examples of grapevines used to green building facades, and this practice is still common today. It is impressive to note that even citrus fruits such as oranges were once grown on facades here.
Unlike in Basel or Schaffhausen, there are quite a few images of historical green facades in Zurich.
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.
© 2000–2026 Fassadengruen.de
