Grown-up gardening
possibilities of gardening on the side of a city building and as an aid to comfortable living. They’ve used the space around the balcony structure to allow the landscape to spread freely, allowing for example a Tetrapanax and tree fern fronds to overhang – similar to how mangrove trees hover over the sea.
The plants act as a solar screen in the summer months helping to create a cooler interior. In winter a lot of the foliage is gone which brings in much more light during the darker months.
So what thrives on this King’s Cross linear landscape? The planting choices have been selected to work with all seasons. Remarkably there are more than 60 different species, with some colour in all of the seasons.
The skeleton planting comprises of evergreens such as Fatsia japonica, Fatsia polycarpa, mind your own business, hart’s tongue, Mexican daisies, African daisies and Muehlenbeckia. And there are four wonderful tree ferns including Dicksonia antarctica and Cyathea cooperi (which can be hardy in London). Many of the plants have stories attached such as the Fatsia japonica being grown from seed, tiger lilies which were a gift from a friend and yellow flag iris rescued from a meadow being turned into housing.
There’s even a small pond with fish and pond snails, planted with the miniature Nymphaea ‘Pygmaea Helvola’.
Other plants such as foxgloves were selected for spring flowers, which perform while there is light, before the forest canopy of Musa basjoo (bought at Chelsea Flower Show) and Tetrapanax close it out.
The balconies are wrapped in climbing plants such as wisteria, honeysuckle, clematis and nasturtiums that help to provide blasts of colour through the seasons and also help protect the trunks of the tree fern from drying out.
And as if the potential of these spaces wasn’t being explored enough, Mike and Jewlsy also grow food, which includes rhubarb and beans that grow up the balustrading, delighting with both flowers and nutrition. There’s also a herb pot along with a bird box and feeder to help their son connect with nature – and a squirrel visits from time to time.
The balconies are watered daily in summer, less frequently in winter. Neighbours help with this when the family are away and the favour is returned when needed. And when plants outgrow the balconies or reduce the light for others, they are rehoused in the development’s communal courtyard for the benefit of all residents.
There are more than 60 species with colour in all of the seasons