This house in Belgium features a vertical garden and a logistical mowing challenge.

How often do you paint your house or agonize over what color to make it so that the neighbors don’t hate you? If you lived in this vegetation-rich dwelling, you would be freed of that intense decision-making. An added bonus? It’s green all over.

The “vertical garden” helps keep the six-bedroom family house (it’s the home and studio of a cinematographer) cool in summer, while acting as insulation in colder weather. It also provides privacy from the neighbors on three sides; the fourth wall, overlooking the (horizontal) garden, is glass. A simple white curtain provides shade during hot months.

Low-maintenance lush gardens are maintained with rain and a built-in irrigation system. We love the way it blends into the garden, almost as if it’s not really there at all.

This private home took eight years to construct. The original plans called for ivy, but as the idea of a green façade grew, the ivy was ditched for a selection of exotic plants by botanist Patrick Blanc. Architecture firm Samyn and Partners in Belgium created the design and project and refer to it as an “envelope.”

The post Places & Spaces: The Vertical Garden House, Belgium appeared first on EcoSalon.