Architecture

Blooming beautiful: The world's best greenery-covered buildings

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Bosco Verticale, by Stefano Boeri Architetti, is one of our picks for the best greenery-covered buildings in the world
Dimitar Harizanov
Eden was designed by Heatherwick Studio and is located in Singapore
Hufton + Crow
Eden rises to a total height of 104.5 m (342 ft) and is covered in thousands of trees, shrubs, and plants
Hufton + Crow
Eden's 20 floors host just 20 apartments, with each one boasting its own greenery-covered balcony
Hufton + Crow
Maggie's Leeds, by Heatherwick Studio is located on a cramped plot in the grounds of St. James's University Hospital in England. The greenery-covered building supports people living with cancer and their families
Hufton + Crow
Maggie's Leeds measures 462 sq m (4,972 sq ft) and features a rooftop garden that visitors are welcome to tend
Hufton + Crow
Maggie's Leeds is partly made from prefabricated glued laminated timber (glulam)
Hufton + Crow
Kampung Admiralty, by WOHA, was named the winner of the World Building of the Year back in 2018 and is located in Singapore
World Architecture Festival
Kampung Admiralty includes lots of green open spaces for residents to exercise
World Architecture Festival
Kampung Admiralty's extensive greenery is irrigated with rainwater that is captured in underwater tanks
World Architecture Festival
WOHA sought to reduce Kampung Admiralty's energy use with a focus on passive ventilation, natural light, and shading
World Architecture Festival
Stefano Boeri Architetti's Bosco Verticale comprises two greenery-clad residential towers rising to a height of 382 ft (116 m) and 279 ft (85 m), respectively. The building is photographed here before its greenery had a chance to grow
Boeri Studio/Kirsten Bucher
Bosco Verticale, by Stefano Boeri Architetti, is one of our picks for the best greenery-covered buildings in the world
Dimitar Harizanov
Bosco Verticale's thousands of trees and shrubs must be maintained manually
Laura Cionci
Though it missed its original expected completion date of September, 2017, a few years ago now, Vincent Callebaut's Agora Garden Tower is still underway in Taipei, Taiwan
Vincent Callebaut Architectures
Vincent Callebaut's Agora Garden Tower will be covered in a total of 23,000 trees once complete
Vincent Callebaut Architectures
Vincent Callebaut's Agora Garden Tower twists 4.5 degrees at each floor, to a total of 90 degrees
Vincent Callebaut Architectures
A render depicting Vincent Callebaut's Agora Garden Tower covered in trees
Vincent Callebaut Architectures
Citicape House, by Sheppard Robson, will be Europe's largest green wall once completed and will feature thousands of plants on its facade
Sheppard Robson
The Oasia Hotel Downtown in Singapore, by WOHA, was declared the Best Tall Building Worldwide in 2018 by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat and is covered in plants
WOHA
WOHA's Oasis Terraces in Singapore is topped by a heavily-landscaped roof that features planting beds for urban farming
Hufton + Crow
Oasis Terraces, by WOHA, serves as a greenery-filled community center for locals  
Hufton + Crow
One Beverly Hills is an ambitious US$2 billion development by Foster + Partners that will turn a sizable area of Beverly Hills green
DBOX
One Beverly Hills will be located on a 17.5 acre (roughly 7 hectare) site currently home to the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills and Beverly Hilton hotels
DBOX
One Beverly Hills will be 100 percent irrigated by greywater
DBOX
Kö-Bogen II is located in Düsseldorf, Germany, and was designed by Ingenhoven Architects
Ingenhoven Architects / HGEsch
Kö-Bogen II measures 42,000 sq m (roughly 452,000 sq ft) and reaches a maximum height of 27 m (88.5 ft)
Ingenhoven Architects / HGEsch
Kö-Bogen II is Europe's largest green facade and features an incredible 30,000 hedges on its exterior
Ingenhoven Architects / HGEsch
Melbourne's Southbank by Beulah project is designed by UNStudio and Cox Architecture. It's centered around two skyscrapers: one will reach a height of 365 m (1,197 ft), making it Australia's tallest tower, and the other will top out at 252.2 m (827 ft). Both will feature extensive greenery on their exterior once complete
UNStudio/Cox Architecture
The two towers that make up Southbank by Beulah will be defined by a "spine" of greenery that features thousands of plants and trees
UNStudio/Cox Architecture
Jewel Changi Airport, by Safdie Architects, is located in Singapore and fills the airport with a lush forest that's watered by an indoor waterfall
Jewel Changi Airport
Jewel Changi Airport includes a forest valley with walking trails and an area with one of the world's largest net walks, which is suspended 25 m (82 ft) above the ground
Jewel Changi Airport
The Sloped Villa, by Dutch architectural firm Studio Okami, is built into the sloping hillside of Mont-de-l'Enclus in Belgium
Filip Dujardin
The Sloped Villa took two years to complete and is described as an "invisible house." Its expansive interior includes spacious light-filled living areas and an internal garden
Filip Dujardin
CopenHill, by BIG, combines a waste-to-energy power plant with a dry ski slope in Copenhagen, Denmark
Rasmus Hjortshoj
CopenHill includes 7,000 bushes, 300 pine and willow trees, plus other trees and various plants
Laurian Ghinitoiu
Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet, by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), is a new museum and workshop for Swiss luxury watchmaker Atelier Audemars Piguet
Iwan Baan
Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet, by BIG, is defined by an attractive spiraling design and is topped by a green roof that helps it take its place well amid the rolling Swiss landscape
Iwan Baan
Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet's green roof is supported by its curved glazing – that is, there are no structural supports or beams inside
Iwan Baan
Binh House, by Vo Trong Nghia Architects, keeps three generations of the same family naturally cool in tropical Ho Chi Minh City using clever passive design
Hiroyuki Oki
Binh House, by Vo Trong Nghia Architects, is filled with garden areas on multiple levels
Hiroyuki Oki
Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen, by MVRDV, is an unusual mirrored art depot that will host a public park on its roof
Arjen Ketting
Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen's trees were recently put into position by crane and the project is due for completion in September, 2021
Arjen Ketting
1000 Trees, by Heatherwick Studio, consists of two Shanghai buildings that are conceived as manmade mountains and are covered in roughly 25,000 individual plants
Qingyan Zhu
1000 Trees has been in the works since 2011 and its first phase is due to open sometime in 2020. The project spans 300,000 sq m (roughly 3.2 million sq ft) and is located on a 15 acre (6 hectare) site near a public park and Shanghai's arts district
Qingyan Zhu
View gallery - 44 images

From supertall skyscrapers to private homes, we've reported on an increasing number of architecture projects that incorporate trees and plants on their facades lately. With this in mind, let's take a look at some of our favorite greenery-covered buildings from around the world.

We've gathered our picks of the most interesting and notable greenery-covered buildings and houses we've seen in recent years, both completed and under-construction, into a gorgeous gallery. But we've selected a few outstanding projects to whet your appetite below.

Though obviously not the first architect to hit upon the idea of enlivening his buildings with greenery by any means, Stefano Boeri Architetti's Bosco Verticale (pictured above) did help popularize the modern trend of covering buildings in green.

Bosco Verticale's thousands of trees and shrubs must be maintained manually
Laura Cionci

Located in Milan, Italy, Bosco Verticale consists of two residential towers which rise to a height of 382 ft (116 m) and 279 ft (85 m). Their facades are covered in hundreds of trees and several thousand shrubs and plants, all of which are housed in concrete planters. The project has won a lot of awards and has resulted in Stefano Boeri Architetti being commissioned to design a number of similar buildings for cities around the world, including Albania, Switzerland, and Italy.

Much of Heatherwick Studio's recent output has incorporated greenery, with its Eden in Singapore being a notable example. The 104.5 m (342 ft) residential high-rise building contains 20 luxury apartments – just one for each floor.

Eden rises to a total height of 104.5 m (342 ft) and is covered in thousands of trees, shrubs, and plants
Hufton + Crow

During the design process, Heatherwick Studio drew inspiration from Singapore's natural landscape and the building's curved balconies are overflowing with greenery, providing shade and helping to enliven the concrete structure for residents and those nearby. Other greenery-covered projects by the firm that aren't just for the ultra-rich include England's Maggie's Leeds cancer support center and the New York City park, Little Island.

BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) combines a waste-to-energy power plant and ski slope in Copenhagen, Denmark with its CopenHill project.

CopenHill includes 7,000 bushes, 300 pine and willow trees, plus other trees and various plants
Laurian Ghinitoiu

In addition to the ski slope and power plant, the unusual building includes the world's tallest climbing wall and extensive tree-lined hiking and running trails. This area consists of 7,000 bushes, 300 pine and willow trees, plus other trees and various plants, creating a wild landscape in the heart of Copenhagen's industrial area.

Kampung Admiralty, by WOHA, was named the winner of the prestigious World Building of the Year competition back in 2018. The superb project is conceived as a retirement village and hosts a massive amount of greenery on its upper levels to create a pleasant environment for elderly residents in Singapore.

WOHA sought to reduce Kampung Admiralty's energy use with a focus on passive ventilation, natural light, and shading
World Architecture Festival

WOHA sought to reduce the building's energy use with a focus on passive ventilation, natural light, and shading. Rainwater is also collected and used to irrigate the massive amount of greenery in the park, green roofs, and green walls. WOHA has lots of prior experience integrating greenery into its projects, such as Taiwan's Sky Green and the Oasia Hotel Downtown in Singapore.

Ingenhoven Architects turned an area of inner-city Düsseldorf, Germany, from gray to green with Kö-Bogen II. The mixed-use project is centered around a large building that hosts an incredible 8 km (5 miles) of hedges on its exterior, making it Europe's largest green facade.

Kö-Bogen II is Europe's largest green facade and features an incredible 30,000 hedges on its exterior
Ingenhoven Architects / HGEsch

The main building measures 42,000 sq m (roughly 452,000 sq ft) and reaches a maximum height of 27 m (88.5 ft). Over 30,000 hedges are planted on its exterior, which were first grown in a nursery so that they could be delivered with fully-developed roots. The greenery is irrigated with captured rainwater and a sensor-aided water supply ensures the hedges stay healthy.

View gallery - 44 images
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2 comments
Signguy
No figures on how much cost involved in upkeep/trimming all these plants...
Nelson Hyde Chick
Signguy
And giving people jobs while automation makes many other jobs obsolete is a problem how? And the vegetation making better air while lowering heat island effect is bad too?