Before we dive into the tips and tricks to creating a Zen garden, it is important to understand what it entails. Most people associate Zen with having peace of mind, a relaxing place to retreat to. However, it refers to a specific type of garden: a Japanese rock garden to be precise. The goal of this type of garden is to mimic a traditional landscape that consists of rocks, water, and plants. Of course, garden plants are now used to create this type of environment, accompanied by smaller rock types that mimic mountains.

Principles of creating a Zen garden

To start with, a Zen garden normally is walled. For some people this might come naturally: if you have a terraced house, your garden is typically walled already. However, for others, it requires to set-up a special wall that creates this atmosphere. If you want to do this properly, you should aim for setting it up according to the Japanese architectural standards.

Sand and gravel

Next to the addition of rocks and garden plants are sand and gravel. When looking at old examples of Zen gardens, they all come with gravel and sand as centerpieces. Within the sand and gravel, you can find beautiful rock formations that are accompanied by grass and moss. The addition of moss is relatively new, as it was not present in Zen gardens in the past. It became normal after gardens were left not tended for periods, and slowly became part of the Zen culture.

Origins can be found in Zen Buddhism

In the fourteenth century, Buddhism arrived in Japan through mainland China. This form of Buddhism did not only bring religion but also art and painting. More specifically, the Buddhists brought knowledge on the Chinese painting styles on paper scrolls. These landscape paintings soon transformed the gardens that were present in homes of the Japanese elite. They started to mimic these landscapes and leverage different materials, resulting in the Zen gardens we know today.

Creating the right balance

In essence, the goal of the garden is to create the right balance between the natural elements. Similar to nature, this balance should be reflected in the garden. Of course, you can also go deeper into the matter. For example, the original style of Zen Buddhism comes from Kyoto and these gardens have a particular style. You can also look into the history of these gardens and select a style that suits yours. Mimicking a particular type of Zen garden is often the best way to get started.

Maintenance and expectations

Do note that the expected maintenance is dependent on the type of Zen garden you select. For example, a garden with lots of garden plants requires more maintenance than one that includes primarily rocks, sand, and gravel. You can take your decision based on the expected maintenance to make sure you can keep it nice and tidy.

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Growing crops by hydroponic farming, or on water, has been practiced since the ancient Babylonians planted their legendary Hanging Gardens of Babylon. These were the world’s first vertical farms concept.

Hydroponic water gardens also include roof top gardens in Middle East cities like Beirut and Cairo as soon today/

In fact, the practice of hydroponic, water based farming for smart city farms is becoming so popular, that people living in urban environments can benefit from internet databases to obtain “how-to” information for turning their balconies, back yard terraces; and even spare rooms into flourishing hydroponic agricultural  wonders with the right equipment, nutrients and lighting.

Even a small terrace can produce good growth yields if there is adequate light and the proper nutrients.

Depending on how much you want to invest in your hydroponic water farm project and what type of plant or vegetable to grow there, you can start a hydroponic garden with a few pieces of plastic piping; or for those wishing to plant “secret gardens” requiring indoor lighting (for cannabis or similar plants) the equipment and work involved can be considerably more.

The actual growing process will need to formulate the right combination of water, lighting, oxygen and nutrients to enable proper plant growth and yields. There are plenty of guides on what is required; including a site called High Times (you figure out the meaning).

According to High Times, it’s important to use the best quality water. Using tap water that has a lot of impurities will “lock up” nutrients, creating deficient plants that yield poorly and are susceptible to diseases and pests. The chlorine in tapwater also kills off the beneficial microbial life that helps plant roots. This is also true for growing in soil as well.

Water used for hydroponic water farming can be purified successfully by using filtering systems like reverse osmosis  which involves a special membrane to filter out impurities. This is essentially the same reverse osmosis process that is used in desalination to create clean, fresh drinking water from seawater.

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An Istanbul-based design firm has teamed up with one of the fathers of vertical gardens to liven up a bespoke restaurant in the city. Autoban and Patrick Blanc from France lined an wall with lush greenery, giving the space something of a jungle aesthetic that stands in direct contrast with some of the cold hard materials inside.

Green walls or vertical gardens have a variety of benefits, aside from just creating a healthy, warm and calming environment.

Not only do they improve air quality in a given space, but they also provide some insulation and even cooling benefits.

In the case of Nopa in Istanbul, the wraparound wall of plants also helps to take the edge off some of the ‘bespoke’ materials used to give the restaurant an air of luxury, including stone floors and shiny black marble on the walls and the bar.

Related: Living Elm’s Living Green Wall is a First in Kuwait

To be really honest, apart from the fabulous green wall, there’s not much that’s environmentally sane about this project at all – and that includes the retractable glass roof.

But it is interesting that this one aspect of improving urban design – incorporating vegetation to improve microclimates and establish some semblance of nature in cities that are overrun with concrete, cars, buildings and so riddled with pollution that people don’t spend much time outdoors.

There are other designers in the region who are taking their green ambitions further – but we don’t mind celebrating the baby steps as well.

:: Autoban

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Green walls and rooftop gardens are great, but keeping them healthy in the Middle East and North Africa can be challenging. Green Studios, whose work in Lebanon we’ve featured once before, has an answer with their patented technology that ensures plants can flourish despite the extraordinary heat in our region.

“We wanted to develop something that is applicable to super-hot [climates],” says Jamil Corbani, cofounder and CEO of Green Studios.” And in order to do this, they beefed up standard hydroponic growing techniques (that require no soil, and just a mineral nutrient solution to feed the greens) with smart technology that monitors plant health.

Related: flux makes it easy for businesses to connect to new customers through their smart garden brain

Their green walls are comprised of several layers of ‘skin’, the core of which comprises the irrigation network. Each skin has its own function, that – equipped with a series of sensors and nano-sensors – monitor and respond to the surrounding environment. Data collected by the sensors will be sent to an electrical board, and if the temperature and humidity skyrocket and the plants need some love, that board will signal pumps to go off.

The custom-built sensors monitor humidity, temperature, acidity, and electro conductivity of plants.

Founded by a small group, which consists of an architect, a landscape architect, landscape engineer and an economist, Green Studios now has 13 employees and have been commissioned to do no fewer than 30 patent-protected installations – in the Middle East and elsewhere.

According to Executive Magazine, the group is gearing up to install the largest green wall in the region – for Raouche 1090 – a massive residential development in Beirut.

So why do we care about green walls? For a lot of reasons. Decorative green walls can help improve air quality by absorbing carbon dioxide emissions and then expel oxygen that humans require to breathe. They also provide a heat sink, which is particularly important in the Middle East where ambient temperatures are really high.

But if Green Studios decides to start implementing food crops in their green walls, then we’re really talking business – since productive vertical gardens in urban environments could help to offset growing food insecurity.

The company is heading to the United States later this year in order to expand their horizons.

“We are going to look at other players, what are they doing, get a feel of the market, and exhibit as well, who we are, what do we do, what is our philosophy, what is our product, and our patent,” Corbani told the magazine.

Hopefully they won’t stray too far from the Middle East. We need them here!

:: Executive Magazine

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Israelis are renowned not only for their clean tech innovation, but also smart, savvy and water-efficient agriculture. This genius will be on display at the 2015 Milan Expo with a living pavilion designed by Knafo Klimor Architects.

The 40,000 or so Jews who flocked to Palestine in the early 20th century to escape European pogroms and establish the “Land of Israel” found themselves with very little water and a lot of desert, but that didn’t deter them from pursuing their long held dream.

Instead, these hard working families were among the first Israelis to turn an immense natural challenge into an innovation opportunity, something for which the nation, despite all its political controversies and troubles, has since received great recognition.

Related: This wavy Expo pavilion will eat greenhouse gases in 2015

Contemporary agricultural developments, which are shared ubiquitously through academic programs and small startups to help developing countries and other modern nations meet their own resource challenges, will be on display at the 2015 Milan Expo with a fabulous living pavilion called Fields of Tomorrow.

Knafo Klimor Architects worked with an Italian firm PRR Architetti to design the 995 square meter pavilion. In addition to showcasing the agricultural history described above, it boasts a living wall planted with Israeli cereals and produce.

This unique vertical garden is comprised of a series of modular tiles planted with various crops that are then fixed to a slanted steel frame. In order to irrigate the plants, the team have integrated a computer-controlled drop watering system that demonstrates another Israeli specialty – water conservation.

“The cultivation of rocky land, the growth of vegetables in the desert, the invention of new methods of irrigation, the upgrading of seed quality are part of the inception of modern agriculture marked by creativity, dare and achievements,” the architects told World Architecture News.

Consistent with the 2015 expo’s theme “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life,” the pavilion will showcase other innovations to an estimated two million visitors from the beginning of May to the end of October, next year.

Related: Qatar’s Sahara Forest Project grows its first cucumbers from saltwater

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The Moroccan government is spending a lot of money to bring Casablanca up to the standards of a European city and attract more foreign investors.

A spiffy new tramway system is currently being developed, and Moroccans from a variety of demographics are flocking to the city to find work. As the population grows, it is essential to ensure there is sufficient housing – which is where the Gardens of Anfa come in.

A new mixed-use residential complex planned for construction in 2017, the master plan includes three mid-rise residential towers, one low-rise office tower, and a series of residential blocks that will be connected by lushly vegetated piazzas.

The towers are shaped to have an “organic” aesthetic, in contrast with the sharp angular skyscrapers that have so polluted Arabian Gulf skylines, and trellised facades on each are specifically designed to foster growth of bougainvilleas and jasmine.

Related: Casablanca’s cinema in the hands of one man

As the vertical garden and green roof movement gains speed in the West, and in some parts of the Middle East and North Africa, Maison Edouard François appears to be mindful of bringing in vegetation that will actually flourish in a region that sees a great deal of sunshine and little rain.

In addition to providing some solar resistance, which would keep the towers cooler in the summertime and thereby reduce the amount of energy required to run air-conditioners, the flowering facades blur the boundary of the garden – and add a brilliant burst of color to a city that is rapidly losing its green space.

That being said, this development is designed for a very specific, wealthier market, a trend that displaces Moroccans who have lived in the city for decades – if not longer. Hopefully government planners will remain loyal to residents who bring immeasurable cultural and traditional value to this magnificent coastal city.

:: Arch Daily

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Cousin to the world’s tallest building, the rounded silhouette of Burj Doha soars over the capital of Qatar’s skyline. Designed by Jean Nouvel, it is the first building in the emirate with a vertical garden, and check out that modern mashrabiya.

The mashrabiya is an ancient Islamic screen that was used to promote natural cooling during hot summer months in desert environments without compromising privacy.

It took a while, but contemporary designers working in the Middle East, including Foster & Partners with Masdar and a beautiful bank in Morroco, and now Jean Nouvel, have learned to incorporate these tested design strategies into modern architecture.

At 761 feet, the Burj Doha is tiny compared to the 2,722′ Burj Khalifa in Dubai (currently the world’s tallest building but soon to be eclipsed by projects in China and Saudi), yet its prominence on the waterfront is in no way diminished by its smaller stature.

In fact, the Burj Doha was recently named the world’s best tall building by Chicago’s Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

Frankly, we don’t lust after the world’s tallest this and that, nor are we wild about materials such as glass and concrete, but we do want to draw closer attention to the tower’s attributes that we can support.

The layered screen that resembles both the mashrabiya and shanasheel screens of old dapples fierce sunlight, creating a mesmerizing interior affect while also taking a lot of pressure off the cooling system.

Nouvel is the first to successfully use dia-grid reinforced concrete in this application, according to Designboom.

Also unique to this tower and indeed to all of Qatar for now is a vertical garden that contributes to an improved microclimate. This combined with plenty of other green space offsets, just a little bit, some of the emissions associated with the mad development that has gripped Doha.

And that’s before the World Cup 2022 construction frenzy starts!

:: Designboom

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Really, this shouldn’t surprise us. After all, this is the same Emirate that built the towering Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building when it first broke ground, and a ski slope (populated by live penguins, no less) in the middle of the desert.

Miracle Garden has been a huge success so far, according to Arabian Business. Only a few months old, the garden of 45 million flowers has already attracted 400,000 visitors, and the new attractions are expected to increase traffic to the improbable site.

(Bear in mind that Dubai and the other six Emirates have virtually no freshwater resources. All of the nation’s water supply is sucked up from the Arabian/Persian Gulf and then processed in energy-intensive desalination plants.)

In order to complete the next phase, DPG has partnered with Akar Landscaping & Agriculture Company to expand the existing Miracle Garden to include the massive vertical garden, though no specific details have been announced, along with an edible garden, where people will be encouraged to pluck their own fruits and vegetables.

There will also be a breeding station, where 10,000 live butterflies representing 40 different species will be hatched.

When the entire Dubailand project is complete, it will comprise a total area of 107 square miles, 45 “mega projects” and 200 sub projects, according to Wikipedia.

That is double the size of Walt Disney World Resort.

Organized in a series of worlds, namely Attractions and Experience World, Sports and Outdoor World, Eco-Tourism World, Themed Leisure and Vacation World, Retail and Entertainment World, and Downtown, Dubailand’s developers have already attracted $55 billion in private investment funds.

Vertical gardens are important and we look forward to seeing this one, but shouldn’t Dubai be a little more concerned about food security? Or something else a little less bombastic?

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Designed by Green Studios Beirut and Gatserelia, the 96 square meter living wall in one of Lebanon’s most well-known seafood restaurants surpasses the West Elm green wall in Kuwait in both size and scope, making it quite possibly the largest of its kind in the entire Middle East/North Africa region.

Al-Sultan Ibrahim was opened by two brothers in 1968 as a seafood joint that served only the highest quality food available. It has grown since has went through a re-branding transformation in 2005.

There are several branches of the new and improved restaurant, including the one in Maameltein, which is the only one to date to feature a massive vertical garden inside.

Comprised of teak, stone and glass panels that each hold a different species of plant, inclufing Ficus Lyrata and Hypoestes, the vertical garden has several functions.

In addition to looking great, and thereby attracting customers – like bee to pollen – indoor gardens help to promote biodiversity and also improve air quality.

In countries like Lebanon and Kuwait, where recent NASA images horrendous levels of pollution that make breathing an uncomfortable experience, any kind of greenery is welcome and goes a long way to scrubbing harmful pollutants from the atmosphere.

Green Studios has been recognized by the MIT Enterprise Forum of the Pan Arab Region for their work with green walls and rooftop gardens. This one was completed in February, 2012.

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Featuring resilient plants as diverse as Dracaena, White Butterfly, and Ficus Elastica Robusta, the living wall livens up the space while also conveying to clientele the firm’s growing environmental commitment. 

GSky Plant Systems produces three different kinds of green wall systems, including the Versa Wall installed in Kuwait.

Used as a branding element since West Elm received widespread acclaim for its first green wall in Seattle, it is completely self-sufficient, meaning that it requires virtually zero maintenance. And the plants won’t drink up a lot of water, which comes in short supply in Kuwait.

The focal point of the store, the green wall is comprised of a series of 4″ potted plants, which mitigates fears about dripping water or other potential nuisance.

A variety of species have been planted, promoting biodiversity and improving the 16,000 square foot retail store’s air quality.

Plus it is said to complement West Elm’s commitment to selling only certified organic, recycled, non-toxic, rapidly renewable and responsibly produced home decor.

“The positive feedback that we have received from everybody with the green wall is an important factor of why it is part of our new store design concept for West Elm. It is attention grabbing and a major centerpiece for the store where people can stop to interact and admire the living artwork,” Patti Kashima, Director Store Design, Williams-Sonoma, Inc, said in a recent statement.

The uptake of living green walls, which are beautiful and make good business sense, has been slow in the Middle East. We’re hoping this one in Kuwait will catalyze a new trend.

:: PRWeb

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