Cjhelsea Flower Show 2013 Design Pack

RBC Blue Water Garden Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Nigel Dunnett with

The RBC New Wild Garden - Chelsea Flower Show 2011

Nigel Dunnett with

The RBC Blue Water Garden - Chelsea Flower Show 2012

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Introduction The Royal Bank of Canada garden for 2013 is an urban rooftop woodland and wetland garden, integrating recreational space for building occupants, with innovative biodiversity and habitat features. The garden explores the potential of ‘skyrise greening’ to bring multiple benefits to urban dwellers, and marks a return for the design team to the themes, style and approach of their ‘RBC New Wild Garden’ for Chelsea Flower Show 2011.

The garden features a central wetland that captures rainwater runoff from the garden pavilion, and which also cleans and filters grey water from the building (water from basins and showers). This water can then be recycled in the building for toilet flushing. Because the level of the water in the wetland will fluctuate according to the weather: filling up after heavy rain, and reducing in dr yer periods, the water in the garden will ebb and flow to a slow rhythm to demonstrate this process. This ‘ beating heart ’ symbolises the central role of water as the life-giving force in the garden. Water is circulated and aerated in the garden ‘ Spring’, a large raised, shallow bowl of water which supports a single bonsai weeping willow.

The garden illustrates the importance and value of trees in an era of changing climate – for creating shade and a comfortable microclimate; for soaking up excess stormwater following heavy rainfall; for introducing habitat opportunities for birds and insects. The garden shows how rooftops can be used to create mini urban woodlands in even the highest density areas. The bonsai willow in the Spring is a simple small-scale statement of the link between trees, water and climate.

The trees are planted on mounds on the roof. Indeed, the garden has a strong and dramatic topography of hills and valleys. But what appears to be deep soil (and therefore impossibly heavy for a roof) is actually an underlying topographic structure of ver y lightweight polystyrene blocks with a soil layer over the top.

The planting is dynamic, textural and naturalistic, fitted to the different ecological conditions on the rooftop, and incorporates some of the latest thinking and techniques related to the design of green roofs for biodiversity. Wildlife and biodiversity are important considerations, and the ‘creature towers’ placed around the garden are sculptural, multi-storey habitat towers, built and designed by the same team responsible for the dramatic habitat walls in 2011’s ‘New Wild Garden’ The garden integrates art and ecology; biodiversity with human recreation. The garden is intended to be used informally by the occupants of the building. The roof is situated on a commercial building and is accessible to workers, but could equally be on an apartment block or private residence. As well as seating and gathering space around the garden pavilion, two circular seating decks are placed with the planting at the wetland ’s edge. As the water in the wetland ebbs and flows, the seating areas will become surrounded by water. An informal path moves through the planted areas, linking the two seating decks, while a main boardwalk takes users over the wetland to the garden pavilion.

The pavilion itself will be created by the same team behind the converted shipping container in 2011’s New Wild Garden, and will again feature habitat wall panels, and a sloping green roof. The roof will support shade-tolerant species, and is a green roof on a green roof. It is possible that the garden will be relocated to the roof of Selfridges, London, after the show.

Nigel Dunnett with

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Concept

ROOF GARDEN

ARTISTIC HABITAT STRUCTURES

SPACE FOR SITTING AND MEETING INTERACTIVE FEATURES - SPRING FOOTPUMP

VARIED LANDFORM AND TOPOGRAPHY

RAINWATER COLLECTION AND HARVESTING

RECYCLING GREY WATER AND CLEANING THROUGH A ROOFTOP WETLAND

Nigel Dunnett with

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Plan

Key Trees

Garden Pavilion - Green Roof

01 02

Timer boardwalk

Water/ Wetland

07 08

Cur ved Timber Seating 01

03

Secondar y Paths - reclaimed setts/ steel mesh 05

Roof Garden ‘ balustrade’

04

Features

02

05

01

01

Habitat Towers - Constructed columns

02

Secondar y path network through planting

03

Wetland: shallow water, gravel, stones, planting. Ebb and flow like a heartbeat to the garden

04

Small trees on mounds created with polystyrene build up.

05

Circular seating areas

06 06 04

02

Spring – water source. Large flat shallow raised pool.

Perhaps powered by foot pump. Over flows into wetland/stream. Weeping Willow Bonsai

07

Pavilion. Green roof on a green roof. Artistic habitat walls

08

Raised entrance to ‘Roof Garden’

08

0m

5m

Nigel Dunnett with

10m

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Design Concept - Mood Images

Garden ‘Spring ’ Pavilion

Habitat Towers Wetland Boardwalks and pathways

Nigel Dunnett with

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Planting Strategy Preliminar y Plant List: The garden contains four main planting zones. The plant mixes in each zone are suited to the soil and microclimatic conditions in each zone.

Irrigation is available for all plantings through the rainwater capture and grey water recycling systems in the garden

• Chr yanthemum segetum hybrids • Dimorphoteca aurantiaca • Atriplex hortensis rubra

Zone 3:

Wetland Marginal. A mass of blue Meconopsis with textural and foliage plants.

Zone 1:

Shade/woodland underplanting. Rich and diverse underplanting, loosely based on the ground flora of woodlands of Eastern North America.

• • • • • • •

Aquilegia canadensis Asarum canadense Dodecatheon meadia Mertensia virginica Phlox divaricatus Tiarella ‘ Spring symphony ’ Tiarella wherr yi

Zone 2:

Deschampsia flexuosa Dr yopteris lepidopoda Hosta ‘Tom Schmid ’ Lychnis flos-cuculi Lychnis flos-cuculi ‘Alba’ Mattheucia struthiopteris Meconopsis ‘Lingholm’ Osmunda regalis Primula x bulleysiana Valeriana officinalis

Zone 4:

Aquatics. Dramatic foliage plants emerging from the water.

Sunny edges/green roof planting. colours and grasses.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

• • • • • • • • • •

Plants for free-draining soils in sun.

Allium schoenoprasum Dianthus carthusianorum Er ysimon ‘Bowles Mauve’ Festuca amythestina Geum triflorum Gypsophila repens ‘Rosea’ Helicotrichon semper virens Hordeum jubatum Melica altissima alba Salvia ‘Maynight ’ Sedum rupestre ‘Blue Spruce’ Sedum rupestre ‘Lemon Ball ’ Sesleria nitida Silene armeria ‘Electra’ Silene uniflora Stachys byzantina Verbascum phoenecium ‘ Violetta’ Centaurea cyanus

Nigel Dunnett with

A mosaic of bright

• • • • • •

Cyperus eragrostis Equisetum japonicum Juncus effusus Phragmites variegatus Scirpus cernuus Thalia dealbata

Trees: • • • •

Betula papyrifera Cornus florida Cornus florida ‘ Cherokee Chief ’ Zelkova serrata

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Planting Strategy

Zone 1:

Shade/woodland underplanting

Zone 3:

Wetland Marginal

Zone 2:

Trees Zone 4:

Nigel Dunnett with

Sunny edges/green roof planting

Aquatics

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Sections

B Green roof pavilion

Garden boundar y including living wall sections

A

Sectional Elevation AA’ Wetland

A’

B’

Habitat Towers

Garden ‘ Spring’

Entrance to roof garden Green roof pavilion

Sectional Elevation BB’ Nigel Dunnett with

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

01

Habitat Towers - constructed columns

02

Secondar y path network through planting

03

Wetland: shallow water, gravel, stones, planting. Ebb and flow like a heartbeat to the garden

04

Small trees on mounds created with polystyrene build up.

05

Circular seating areas

06

07

08

04

Spring – water source. Large flat shallow raised pool.

Perhaps powered by foot pump.

Over flows into wetland/stream.

Weeping Willow Bonsai

07

Pavilion. Green roof on a green roof. Artistic habitat walls

04

Raised entrance to ‘Roof Garden’

01

01

02 03

06

05

05

08

Nigel Dunnett with

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

01

Habitat Towers - constructed columns

02

Secondar y path network through planting

04 03

Wetland: shallow water, gravel, stones, planting. Ebb and flow like a heartbeat to the garden

04

Small trees on mounds created with polystyrene build up.

05

Circular seating areas

06

07

08

07 01

Spring – water source. Large flat shallow raised pool.

Perhaps powered by foot pump.

Over flows into wetland/stream.

Weeping Willow Bonsai Pavilion. Green roof on a green roof. Artistic habitat walls Raised entrance to ‘Roof Garden’

04

05

03

01

05

03 06

02

08

Nigel Dunnett with

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013

Ebb and flow, the hear tbeat of the garden

Maximum extent of water

Nigel Dunnett with

Minimum extent of water

RBC Blue Water Garden RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2013