u2014 ALE: Philadelphia Residence
ThinkGreen LLC http://www.thinkgreenllc.com
2014 PLNA Awards for Landscape Excellence Winner
Category: Residential $30,000-$60,000
Award Level: Gold
Project Description:
Located in the residential area near the Philadelphia Art Museum, this project was
Philadelphia’s first Platinum LEED rated row home. The available outdoor space in any major
metropolitan area is typically limited. The client was dedicated to increasing the amount of
available outdoor space for entertaining and planting. The sustainable efforts that went into the
interior renovations were continued in the exterior spaces with a series of green roof gardens.
The lower level terrace features two separate spaces it was the largest. Directly out the glass
rear doors of the house is a paved area using local materials that have high albedo. A couple of
stairs down leads to a seating area surrounded by River Birch, ferns, and vines such as Virginia
Creeper and Trumpet Honeysuckle which create a screen from the neighbor’ s yard. The
second level garden is an extensive roof garden with approximately fifteen inches of soils. The
space was planted with a variety of native meadow plants such as Purple Coneflower and
Beardstongue, and Switchgrass. Fruit trees were planted in several corten steel containers. After
a couple of years the client decided he wanted more use of the space so the meadow was
thinned out and a path to the end was installed as well as creeping sedums in between the
steppers. A spiral stair case leads to the upper level garden. When you reach the top of the
stairs in the summer months a vegetable garden full of tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers thrives
in planting boxes. Beyond the garden is another seating area. At the front end of the building a
line of Eastern Red Cedars is planted to create a privacy wall from the neighbors across the
street.
The plant palette is predominately native species that can withstand the tough conditions of the
limited soil depth and the heat of the sun. Plants such as Bee Balm, Prickly Pear, and Wild
Petunia have done exceptionally well on the green roof. When needed they can be irrigated
using the house’s grey water system. In addition the benefits the roof gardens provide for the
heating and cooling systems make this house and it’s landscape intimately linked together.
Photo Credit:
Thinkgreen LLC
2014 PLNA Awards for Landscape Excellence Winner
Category: Residential $30,000-$60,000
Award Level: Gold
Project Description:
Located in the residential area near the Philadelphia Art Museum, this project was
Philadelphia’s first Platinum LEED rated row home. The available outdoor space in any major
metropolitan area is typically limited. The client was dedicated to increasing the amount of
available outdoor space for entertaining and planting. The sustainable efforts that went into the
interior renovations were continued in the exterior spaces with a series of green roof gardens.
The lower level terrace features two separate spaces it was the largest. Directly out the glass
rear doors of the house is a paved area using local materials that have high albedo. A couple of
stairs down leads to a seating area surrounded by River Birch, ferns, and vines such as Virginia
Creeper and Trumpet Honeysuckle which create a screen from the neighbor’ s yard. The
second level garden is an extensive roof garden with approximately fifteen inches of soils. The
space was planted with a variety of native meadow plants such as Purple Coneflower and
Beardstongue, and Switchgrass. Fruit trees were planted in several corten steel containers. After
a couple of years the client decided he wanted more use of the space so the meadow was
thinned out and a path to the end was installed as well as creeping sedums in between the
steppers. A spiral stair case leads to the upper level garden. When you reach the top of the
stairs in the summer months a vegetable garden full of tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers thrives
in planting boxes. Beyond the garden is another seating area. At the front end of the building a
line of Eastern Red Cedars is planted to create a privacy wall from the neighbors across the
street.
The plant palette is predominately native species that can withstand the tough conditions of the
limited soil depth and the heat of the sun. Plants such as Bee Balm, Prickly Pear, and Wild
Petunia have done exceptionally well on the green roof. When needed they can be irrigated
using the house’s grey water system. In addition the benefits the roof gardens provide for the
heating and cooling systems make this house and it’s landscape intimately linked together.
Photo Credit:
Thinkgreen LLC
Country: United States
