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Hotel Ush?aia is located in Playa d’En Bossa, Ibiza, Spain. Read Urbanarbolismo’s May 30, 2011 blog post about the project (in Spanish) here. For additional information on the Low-Tech Vertical Garden in Ibiza (Hotel Ush?aia Jard?n Vertical Low-Tech en Ibiza), or about Urbanarbolismo’s new eco.bin greenwall system, please contact: Jordi Serramia Ruiz of Urbanarbolismo at C/Abad N?jera n?6 C.P.03002, Alicante. Espa?a; Tel. 0034 665 493 172; or jordi@urbanarbolismo.es. Also visit: Alijard?n at http://www.alijardin.es/ and Alicante forestal at http://www.alicanteforestal.es/.

The latest vertical garden from Urbanarbolismo was completed on May 20, 2011, in collaboration with Alijard?n and Alicante forestal. Situated in the Hotel Ush?aia de Ibiza, the four panel eco.bin greenwall acts as a sound barrier between the open air disco located in the hotel’s central courtyard and the neighboring guest rooms.

The garden wall consists of rows of ceramic terracotta containers whose circular openings are individually filled with growing medium and planted. Each interconnected planted ceramic, with its own substrate and vegetation, works together to create this sound-absorbent garden space.

The ceramic elements are laid out with a slight interior inclination for better water absorption from the irrigation lines; water can be stored on the bottom as each hole is sealed from the back. Irrigation is achieved with a combination of drip and hand irrigation since the various orientations require different watering schedules. The porosity of the ceramic containers permit the interchange of humidity between all spaces. This is the first such type of greenwall garden system in the world.

The main vertical garden surrounds the terraces of one of the hotel restaurants, providing accoustic insulation for this intimate location as well as making the area more comfortable.

Keeping in account the climatic characteristics of the Mediterranean island of Ibiza, the designers have selected a variety of crassula, euphorbia, echeveria, aeonium, kalanchoe, sedum and sedeveria which can adapt to these conditions. Many of these species thrive in ecosystems where natural vertical walls are found with little substrate; and as you can see, they provide a multitude of colors during the year.

The concept of this vertical garden is distinctly different from complex automated vertical gardening systems. The vegetation type (succulents) requires minimal water and maintenance and the type of system allows for the owners to substitute plants without an advanced knowledge of gardening, which makes it practical for residential applications. By all means, this type of system requires a more personalized maintenance regime, yet the low-tech typology offers a greater possibility of having a vertical garden available for those who might want to have one in their own garden.

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