Thursday, 28 May 2009 00:00

Patrick Blanc's green walls in London

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 Patrick Blanc's living wall at the Musée du quai Branly in Paris
Patrick Blanc's living wall at the Musée du quai Branly in Paris

The Guardian talks to French botanist Patrick Blanc
about the vertical green walls he's designed in London.

 


His latest work is at the Atenaeum hotel in Picadilly. Construct Ireland previously mentioned some of Blanc's work here.

Journalist Stuart Jeffries explains how the walls are constructed:
[Blanc] attaches a metal frame supporting a PVC plate to a wall, then staples on layers of polyamide felt that support plant roots. His magical living walls thus have no need for soil. Watering and fertilisation are done automatically through pipe networks working on a closed circuit. He chooses plants according to available light and their ability to grow in particular conditions. He creates vertical gardens both outdoors and indoors (often using artificial lighting for the latter).
Last modified on Tuesday, 02 June 2009 23:17
Lenny Antonelli

Lenny Antonelli is deputy editor of Passive House Plus. He also writes regularly for the Irish Times, and has contributed to a variety of other publications including the Sunday Times, the CS Monitor, Village, the Sunday Tribune amd the Dubliner. He is currently working on a radio documentary on Ireland's oceans. 

lennyantonelli.ie/