Can Vertical Meadows Bring Green Back to our Cities? | WILD HOPE
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- Опубликовано: 29 окт 2023
- As urban expansion quickly replaces natural habitats, façade engineer Alistair Law has discovered a new way to restore native ecosystems for pollinators and create natural spaces for us all within cities - by turning the walls of buildings into meadows.
Alistair has developed his “Vertical Meadows” as a way to combat biodiversity loss in the heart of cities like London. To do it, he’s targeting the vertical surfaces of buildings and installing seasonal living walls of plants that are native to the region, grown directly on-site. The engineering builds on existing systems so the plants thrive year-round with limited need for water, and installation remains simple and cheap. He gets his seeds from Donald Macintyre, who grows a wild array of native plants with the help of his daughter (and some Shire horses). Together, they hand-harvest each flower to provide a biodiverse mix of 50 different native species.
Alistair is joined by Scarlett Weston of BugLife at a vertical meadow in full bloom in downtown London. She’s monitoring bees visiting the meadow, and hopes more pollinators will use these sites as stepping stones across the city, helping to bridge gaps along larger corridors she’s establishing across the UK.
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This is something all cities should implement. It’s not a perfect win-win for habitat restoration, but it’s a beautiful compromise to the alternative.
Bit more difficult for cities that have more winter than UK. Around half a year all meadow vegetation is dead, brown and/or frozen
I love the idea of the cities being infested with the vermin that will inhabit these vertical gardens.
@@skateparkrealityYou say that as if cities aren't already infested with vermin
@@skateparkreality Vermin's dont like sun.They dig up and go for dark places. The only animals would be there bugs and birds. Rats and cockroaches wont come up there probably as long as you dont throw trash there. The most problematic one would be ants so you gotta need lots of pigeons and other type of birds to keep them in check.
Another positive benefit is a reduction of the heat island effect which makes cities hotter.
And the heat island effect is decreased by the greens.
We have some in my city in the Netherlands. The walls of one of our bus stations are covered with this, as well as a parking garage and a small bridge over a busy street. So it can be used for much more than just buildings. Absolutely gorgeous, especially the bridge, where the plants hang from the bottom. We also have an initiative where people are allowed to remove one or two rows of rocks from the pavement in front of their house (the pavement is owned by the city), and replace them with flowers. Thousands of people have done it and now there's green on every street, and you can really see biodiversity increase. I hope they implement both of these projects on every street in every city!
May I ask which city it is? I live close by in germany and been visiting the Netherlands in the past, always wanted to go again. I am intrigued about the project and was hoping to see it fir myself when driving through!
its so ironic that the point of cities was density and having everything you need to live nearby, which meant you could have green space around the density, but people started building less dense in previously green spaces, not only destroying local biodiversity, but defeating the point of city living
This is wonderful. I hope this project takes hold and continues.
The idea of urban rewilding is so exciting to me! Rewilding does not need to be "happening out there", but actually could be sort of seeping into the most human of environments, rewilding not only nature, but us.
You see more and more rooftop vegetation these days in Sweden, but nothing as diverse as this. I hope this catch on for sure! I would love to see more boring grey facades of buildings bursting with flowers. ^>^
Would be interesting to consider pollinator nesting needs as well! Providing various nesting options for different bees would help to complete the vertical habitat! 💓
'Plant plants, eat plants= save planet' Simple! 😊❤
So beautiful wow❤❤❤❤🎉🎉🎉
I would love to use the roof top of my apartment, both for native wild life and good for extra food production.
This is exciting-all the flora and fauna. Thanks for the video.
Beautiful!! ❤️💖❤️💖
I think the most problematic thing in this would be soil erosion since the leaves and other stuff cant fall into the soil, swept under the road plus the water will wash away the nutrients so soil will get less quality as the time goes. You need to change the soil in this or find a way to add mulch to the top regularly. once or twice a year.
I believe this is an aeroponic or hydroponic solution therefore it is soil-less.
I love that these are "bee wildlife corridors" like we are building for large mammals who need to migrate from protected area to protected area through human-dominated places. We need to share space with other animals.
OMG I love this!!! In my garden i also plan on having a wildlife field, and to see what can be possible without a garden in an urban area is GREAT!! I hope this gets into all cities, so people can enjoy everything I enjoy in my own garden :)
This gives me hope for the future!❤
That herd of Clydes is magnificent! I love heavy horses.
And those horses have the best horse-.job on the planet...they´re doing exactly what horses are made for; hanging out in a decent size herd, eating fat grass, being stunning.
What a fantastic idea, love this !! ❤😊
This gives me hope for cities and the souls that live there~
What a beautiful thing to have in the City🎉.
JO JO IN VT 💞🍁🎃
😍 WOW!... SO AWESOME!!!...👍❤️💚💐
Wow ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
It makes me so happy 😭🫶
❤This is Absolutely amazing! Brilliant minds😊
Love this for my house.
Love this!
Goedemorgen Lieve vrienden Van PBS dank jullie wel .. zo wat .n nuttig en bijzonder weer goed dat dit wordt gedaan Mooi ook je uitleg en opnames Like 337 .. geniet heerlijk van jullie prachtige werk en deze dag vol mooie momentjes en lieve groetjes terug Stien Ven 👍💚🥰💚🙏💚🌾🦋🍁☕️🍰❤️🦋🌾🙏
Wonderful video, wonderful idea!
Good vid.great things in the future..Love your stuff kick on love it 👍 ❤
This is fantastic!
Amazing! ❤❤❤❤❤
Love this
I think we’re finally starting to figure this out. 🌺 🐝
Please come to U.S. to help us do this! Thanks for this information. 🤗
Roof top gardens and green walls are done in the United States. Also look up the high line in New York.
Do non perennial plants have to be replanted?
Because the seeds aren't really going back in the substrate.
Are there mostly perennial species going in there (Poppy probably only lives a year) or will the grasses just take over the wall?
Really curious
Annuals would need to be replanted, because the seeds would drop to the ground instead of in the soil.
Perennials would be ideal.
Wonderful work! I have seen these structures around other places, like Madrid, but I do not think most of them try to emphasise on flowers and pollinators.
In the world of unhinged AI takeover and technology, I love that there are people who still value and cherish nature 🌸
Very curious about the seeds. How well will they disperse through the metal, or will they all fall on the ground?
Super
Now you just need goats on scaffolding to graze the walls 😂
i love this
I love it overall but they didn't address my question. How do the people living inside those building see out their windows? covering brick, etc is fine but what are the people looking out their windows see? root systems?
But can the plants reseed on the vertical meadows? Or will the seed just go down the drain?
Probably. There seems to be crevices and repeating growth on the wall. Also as much being eaten by urban birds and insects.
Oh... don't worry. These seeds will re-seed anywhere. Ever noticed how the cracks in a sidewalk green up? Same thing.. these seeds are very light in weight so they can just drift to the next little damn clump and start the process of making a little baby plant.
The big issue would be weight and water drainage. Possibly even disease. For example.. what happens if there is some water pipe leak?
Makes more sense than vertical forests, with falling branches and fruit.
At some point, human kind is going to have to question the wisdom of corralling ever more people into artificial environments.
If one did a motion study one would probably find that people move slower and stay longer infront of green walls than they do infront of glass or concrete
Pretty nice. Seen some verticals on perimeter/border walls rooftop equipment room walls before but... What was the type of paper used in the Vertical Meadows wrap? Replayed but couldn't understand what she said. Sometimes I have trouble with higher pitch's/tones. Thanks for any replies.
starting at 3:03, the narration is, "... a layer of waterproof backing, recycled clothing, seed paper, and reusable tubes that deliver water." I think the "seed paper" is paper containing embedded seeds that can germinate when supplied with water. Not a normal type of paper, would be easy to miss especially if you're expecting a different sort of adjective.
@@jimrodarmel8512 I understood everything but the word seed. Thank you.
There is a Chrome extension that you can download that will let you adjust the pitch for RUclips videos. The extension is called Transpose. This might help with understanding certain voices.
@@dio8636 Thank you.
Can cool down buildings too
Looks nice, but don't the roots damage the buildings?
Please re-watch.
no they do not
I feel like id rather see more green than walls of grass, at least to break up the huge walls of glass.
In the southeast of the US most of our bees all live in the ground. If we do not have designated spots for bare loose soi,l we won't have the bees.
Belinda Carr I think it was, has already dumped cold water on this idea
👏👏👏👏👏
Beautiful, but does this create habitat for unintended wildlife e.g. mice?
Don't wait for someone to come along. You can plant native species all around your area just by casting seeds in abandoned back lots or growing a few things on your balcony. It might not seem like much of a contribution, but when you have a million people in the city doing it, that adds up very quickly. The greatest hurdle is convincing people that their one tiny contribution will make a difference.
People make seed balls to throw over the fences.
@@jturtle5318 As long as they're educated on the subject and using native seeds.... I'm all for it!
I wish the world was more nature centered. We really need to do better :/
Cornflowers are annuals, are they being sown every year by persons?
A lot of the plants they showed in these vertical walls are annuals, such as corn flowers, Flanders poppies, California poppies and cosmos. They probably have to be replanted every year. That isn't difficult and the water lines also need to be maintained regularly.
@@glenncordova4027 Looks difficult to me, considering it's a high wall.
Great idea without the recycled clothes. Most are made of plastic these days, so when they breakdown you will have micro plastics everywhere
Think outside the box? Maybe there is no box. 😉
Uh, wild birds and animals DO live in cities. In St Paul we have deer, foxes, wild turkeys, pheasants, not to mention all the insects.
If you want more of this globally I wonder why you don’t show us how and what to do. Instead of entertaining us we could be cooperating and growing this plan.
This is only an introduction. Feel free to research more & join the movement in a way that is meaningful to you. Perhaps you could be an educator for the project in your area?
It's literally as easy as planting a native species wherever you can. Buy some seed from a place like Prairie Moon Nursery and spread it around the old abandoned lots. Grow it in buckets on your balcony. Every tiny little addition you make is a boon to the world, so don't wait on someone else to get you started. Even something as simple as pulling up an invasive non-native species will benefit the environment because those things are crowding out the natives that evolved in the area and which the native animals rely on.
I AM
😅
Save the meadows or else
I appreciate this, but it’s not a replacement for wild, untouched areas. Nature, land animals, flora and fauna need space to live too.
Sure, but what's the option? With immigration running rampant throughout the Western Nations, folks coming into the land need room for housing, schools, jobs, and everything else. NOBODY is going to fight to stop immigration, so that means you'll see more urbanization, plain and simple. In the Southeast, we're going through what's called Piedmont Sprawl, basically the removal of open fields and forests to make way for housing developments, new roads, schools, business parks, and everything else. We've lost 30% of our green spaces over the last 30 years, and are on track to lose another 30% in the coming decades. Why? Well, when 1/4 of the people in my state are first-generation Americans, it doesn't take much guessing. And that doesn't include folks moving here from other States to get away from high taxes, regulations, job loss, cold winters, etc.
You're right that it's not a replacement for wild, untouched areas, but what's the option? Unless we stop moving people into our area, locally or nationally, the destruction of our wild, untouched areas is a given. And you know that such talk is completely untenable in this current climate. So, you deal with the damage as best you can, understanding that the land will be develped and changed forever since folks just won't deal with the root causes of the problems.
Climbing vines , orchids and other fauna to dress trunks layers kept secret by men
Would having these vertical meadows attract rodents?
97% lost since the 1930s! Surely that explains the death of Bees?
Yes. Be ready for bird droppings and vermin. Great neighbors but need to be ready. Stay safe.
Shut up whiner 4:43
These buildings are run by dodgy management companies, who certainly won't maintain them.
Actually, a lot of buildings for offices are well maintained by their tenants. I can't speak for the UK but facilities managers are often given large budgets to maintain and modernize buildings and companies are looking for green investments to attract young employees and make claims that they are reducing their carbon footprint. I'm a beekeeper and corporations are even approaching Beeks like me to manage beehives on their flat roofs.
actually, not much maintenance is at all needed for natural plants. It's explained in the video which you didn't watch seems like...
Boujee. Don’t think you’ll find many slums putting that up.
Probably not, but wouldn't it be great if some enterprising idealistic youngster in a slum area started a small project and showed the big rich areas what can be done with a little will?
How utterly defeatist of you.
Let’s see how dumb and unrealistic this is….
Insurance on the building would be enormous.
It adds wind load, snow load to the building.
It would degrade the concrete and rust metal in no time.
Stuff is going to fall and gravity always wins.
HOA fees for vertical landscaping won’t be cheap.
Insects crawling through every open crevice.
The list is long.
This idea is stupid.
You’re a negative critic who will always leave a mediocre existence
These vertical meadows never won't be able to replace the natural splendor of natural meadows but it is better than nothing (unfortunatelly it seems that the expansion and cancer of concrete and steel is unstoppable). I think that the idea is good, but unfortunatelly I don't think it is going to thrive too much (I wish I was wrong) because urban people are too much sophisticated, delicated and complainer, they will be bothered and upset by the little wildlife that this meadows will attract (all kinds of insects and perhaps some rodents). If we like nature, we have to accept it as it is, with some little disadvantages, discomforts and nuisances. This is something that urban people aren't ready or willing to accept. They are mediocre in this point.
Don't build the buildings to begin with.