Page 7 - Landscape-Issue141(2)

PROJECT

area and contributed to a harmonious balance between modern
functionality and environmental sustainability.
Soft landscape and planting
On the ground floor, two triangular planters with seating hold
the piazza space. Groupings of Strelitzia juncea, providing height,
bring down the scale of the surrounding building facades and are
grounded in a densely planted, colourful carpet of indigenous
groundcovers, namely Aptenia cordifolia, Crassula spathulata,
Pelargonium fruticosum and Senecio mandraliscae.
On level two, to provide structure in the substantial north facing
edge and balcony planters, indigenous species were selected.
These include Aloe ferox, Agave attenuata, Leucodendron salignum
‘Red Devil’, Osteospermum moniliferumi, Salvia chameleagnea
and Euphorbia tirucalli. Helichrysum petiolare, Plectranthus
madagascariensis, Oscularia deltoides and Coprosma repens were
selected as a groundcover base layer.
Carefully selected succulent species that can grow within the
shallow soil depth (of only 275mm) above the heritage part of the
development building include Delosperma cooperii, Drosanthemum
spp., Lampranthus spp., Oscularia deltoides, Portulacaria afra ‘Prostata’,
Cotyledon orbiculata, Aptenia cordifolia, Plectranthus neochilus, Sedum
angelina and Crassula capitella ‘Campfire’.
On level five, there are wide edge planters around outdoor
living areas, with trees (Celtis sinensis and Syzygium guineense) and
shrubs (Tarchonanthus camphoratus, Buddleja saligna, Buddleja
salvifolia, Coleonema album) to provide protection from the wind.
Ground covers (Watsonia tabularis, Asystasia gangetica, Barleria
obtusa, Trachelospermum jasminoides) provide seasonal colour.
There are pops of Aloe cooperii colour during winter and cascading
Bougainvillea, Pelargonium and Rosmarinus to soften the façade in
summer.

Level 2 mass planting with cascading Bougainvillea to soften the building
edge along Level 5
Installation
This was undertaken by Grant Barrett of Arrow Landscapes,
who says that the most difficult part of the project was access.
Space was also at a premium on the site, with all the contractors
competing for storage space. Bringing in the special soil mix in
1000 lt bags enabled them to load up areas without the soil being
contaminated by other building contractors. “In this way, we were
able to move large amounts of soil onto site without the Cape
Town winds blowing it all around. However, we did have to move
the soil once or twice as the builders had not finished in these
areas. The main contractor was very generous with the crane
when this process had to be done.”

Left: Level 2 raised, cascading edge planters with indigenous species
Right: Level 1 planter with Ficus nitida to soften the timber façade
Hard landscape features
The central courtyard at the heart of the development is one of its
most striking features. Big triangular planters were incorporated to
house feature planting and provide an oasis from the bustling urban
environment of the surrounding streets. The upper-level balconies
all have integral build-up planters, all on slab. Various drainage layers
within these planters were detailed to ensure successful growing
conditions for the selected endemic species. The lightweight
planting medium specification played an important role, not only to
provide a free draining substrate but also to minimise the loading
on the building’s engineered slabs. Void formers were also detailed Cascading planting around the enclosed, protected piazza of the new, mixed-
within some of the deeper planters to reduce the overall soil weight. use development

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