Over the past few years the environmental awareness movement has all but taken over the architectural (and design) community. If you are not green, are not studying new methods to be green, or do not intend to utilize green methods in the near future, your practice will inevitably start failing (unless perhaps you are a STAR-chitect). This means being environmentally conscious in all things, including adding more plants/trees, utilizing natural energy sources, eliminating hazardous chemicals, products, VOCs, etc.
We've always known the basics: position your structure on the lot to utilize space, views, and sunlight efficiently; flat roofs collect water and tend to buckle; build your house on stilts if the area tends to flood--you know, the basics. Nowadays, coupled with these "no-brainers," we are looking for the most cost-effective, most beautiful, and greenest (LEED certification brings home the bucks too!).
Recently I have become more intrigued with the vertical garden as a means of beautifying "boring architecture" or making the most out of small urban spaces like patios and rooftops. For those of you who have not seen this method of gardening, here are some examples:
Unfortunately, I don't possess the green thumb or direct sunlight possible for a vertical patio garden of my own, but they are great inspiration for "greening up."
