Living
walls for healthy homes
Paul Garlick of Mobilane explains the aesthetic, wellbeing and
environmental benefits living wall systems can bring to your home
electronic management, but also in the very fabric used to build houses. As a result, those who design and build their own homes now have a vast palette of materials and technolo- gies from which to choose. The only limitation seems to be the imagination of the designer or the homeowner. An unexpected result of all this technological progress is that we are seeing a growing appetite for more organic design, whereby homeowners embarking on self-build projects are stipulating designs that have at their heart the wellbeing of the occupants and the environ- ment. Natural ventilation and lighting, low energy use and renewable energy systems, sus- tainability as a foundation of design, rainwater
harvesting...these are all seeing continued pop- ularity as self-builders appreciate the value of responsible design as being as important, if not more important, than aesthetics. In light of this trend living walls systems are
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becoming increasingly common in the domestic environment. However, like all good ideas they are not new. We need only to think of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon or the ivy-covered walls of Oxford University’s Trinity College to realise that the idea of plants growing up the outside of buildings is anything but modern.
echnology has transformed the modern home, and not only in the obvious way of incorporating communications and
Living wall systems are now a familiar sight
in the commercial and industrial environment. From hospitals to office blocks, railway stations and libraries, schools and factories, living walls – or green walls as they are sometimes known – have enjoyed a period of growth in recent years. It would be easy to assume these systems are there for aesthetic purposes only, but that would be to misunderstand the raft of benefits they bring. In the urban environment, where open green
space is an increasingly rare commodity, living walls attached to the outside of buildings deliver the very important benefits of cleaning the air of particulates and pollutants, lowering ambient temperature, and providing support for birds and insects that are crucial to keeping
the nation’s gardens healthy. When used in a commercial environment they also make strong statements that the organisation that owns or occupies the building takes its sustainability responsibilities seriously. These proven benefits have seen living walls
move indoors. It is not uncommon to find them in hotel receptions, shopping centres, and office foyers. Research has suggested that living walls and other interior plant systems offer additional benefits of improved productivity and atten- dance in the workplace. While no such research has yet been conducted on their effects in the home environment, it’s hard to find a rea- son against them. The growth in modern living walls has not always been easy. During the 1990s they
selfbuilder & homemaker
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