Create a vertical garden and make our neighborhood even greener
Space is limited in our fast-growing city, but buildings with facades abound. And that’s a good thing, because with the right climbing plant we can transform bare walls into lively, vertical gardens. To help the city with more green facades, there is now ANMEC’s Amsterdam Climbing Plant Guide. You can pick it up or download it for free.
The benefits of green facades are endless. First of all, they look nice. In the flowering period, but also in the autumn with all those beautiful autumn colours. Green reduces stress and invites you to go outside. You can jointly maintain the plants, which may lead to new contacts in the neighbourhood. What is beautiful, people want to keep beautiful.
Shelter and breeding place for animals
The flowers and berries of the plants attract all kinds of critters, which in turn form a food source for other animals, such as birds and bats. Climbing plants can also be a shelter and breeding place for animals. All this is good for biodiversity in Amsterdam.
Adapt to the climate
In hot summers, the plants act as a sun shade and have a cooling effect. If you remove tiles and place a climbing plant in the open ground, you also create a natural soil that absorbs rainwater. The plant roots search for the groundwater themselves, so that the plant can eventually find its way without watering.
The right climbing plants in the right place
Not all facades are the same. A large facade in an iconic location in the city center requires a different approach than a blank wall of a new building on IJburg. Usually anything is possible. The Climbing Plant Guide will help you with that.
The guide
The guide is packed with tips and ideas to get you started. Plants with a high ecological value for Amsterdam’s urban nature are ivy, wild honeysuckle, hops and wild vine. You can combine them with all kinds of beautiful ornamental climbing plants, such as a grape, rose, winter jasmine or Virginia creeper.
Pick up the Climbing Plant Guide at ANMEC, Plantage Middenlaan 2E, or download it here.