Terrace Gardening Part 1

This is the first part in a series of articles on Terrace Gardening.

With the ever increasing population and the decreasing living space in urban areas, greenery and gardening is a heavy casualty. Amidst the growing concrete jungles of the cities, terrace gardening is an attempt to make a city better by creating a balance between the green and grey areas of the city.

Why Terrace Gardens?

With the excessive exploitation of the urban land the concept of garden landscaping on terraces has evolved. Not only do these gardens provide the much needed greenery, they also improve the architecture of a building.

Rooftops and terraces of building provide a valuable source of outdoor space for the inhabitants of the building.

In cities around the world, terrace gardens are commonly created at 3 different levels:

1. On the rooftop of a building
2. Porches, window boxes, portico balconies and such other outward projection of building and towers
3. At the podium level, around the base or on roof of large basements

Created at any level in the building a terrace garden brings a pleasant natural environment to the building.

Kshitij Swapanlok at Napean Sea Road in Mumbai. 15 luxirious terraced houses with landscaped gardens, designed by I.M. Kadri. Image via kalpataru.com

Historical Background

Ancient Persians started the concept of gardening on a raised platform. They called such gardens as “Paradise”. The Babylonians used this Persian landscape style and built terrace upon terrace of gardens. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon is a classic example of this.

Persian landscape incorporates three very important elements:

1. Use of water
2. Trees and plant materials
3. Paved Areas

Water is used mainly for cooling effect. The rippling sound of water also adds to the aural aesthetics. In Persians landscape, there were no extensive lawns, except for small patches of grass. Vegetation included various fruit and flowering plants. The trees are generally in the center and are surround by shrubs and other small plant.

To be continued in part 2.

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