How does your garden grow?

PHOTOS Dook PRODUCTION Annemarie Meintjes WORDS Michelle Coburn

Vertical gardens have transformed concrete buildings into tropical wonders the world over. A magnificent vertical garden has quietly transformed a well-known Johannesburg street corner into a green extravaganza.

City residents who remember visiting Rivonia Produce and Hardware for their miscellaneous home and gardening needs may be surprised to discover the Hotel on Boulevard – a living work of art – in its place. The five storeys and 600 square-metres of the hotel facade were turned into a vertical garden by Brendon Edwards Landscapes. More than 30 plant varieties, including aloes, were chosen to flower at different times of the year and to suit all weather conditions, from extreme heat to frost. They have been made at home in a soil-free system of wooden frames and waterproof membranes, and are watered with a micro-drip irrigation system to create a colourful urban tapestry. The garden is now maintained by London-trained landscaper Liam Viljoen.

Hotel on Boulevard, 11th Avenue and Rivonia Road, Rivonia, Johannesburg, 011 234 0050

Brendan Edwards Landscapes 074 103 9886

Liam Viljoen 072 658 3571