Treebox Vertical Growers

28/08/2017

Breathing life and fresh air into the city for the last 4 years - This month we celebrate the birthday of The Rubens at the Palace living wall, installed in 2013! 350 sqm of vegetation which continues to grow not only in character but the benefits for the local environment too.

01/08/2017

Three herbs to plant now that will add fragrance and help transition your from summer to autumn with renewed flair and purpose!

Living walls make a fantastic insulating layer, if installed against a buildings facade the heat from within is somewhat absorbed by the soil, meaning a cooler space on hot days and keeping things cosy during winter months.

Depending on location it may also mean a space to plant during cold weather which avoids frozen soil and extremes of temperature- meaning continued plant growth all season through!

1. Rosemary - Great for evening aromas in late summer and even better when paired with roast vegetables as the days turn colder!

2. Sage - if your living wall is graced with low winter sun, there's no doubt this herb should be on your radar. Use it fresh or dry it out and store it to add flavour to dishes throughout the season.

3. Thyme - Be swept away to rural France with these late summer aromas. Although growth will likely slow throughout winter you may be able to keep harvesting if you can limit yourself to small amounts. - granted it's easier said than done especially when teamed with fellow accomplice rosemary!

18/07/2017

A big thanks to everyone who spent some time lounging, relaxing and enjoying a break under our living spheres at this years RHS Urban Garden Show.

A special thanks to Cityscapes for co-creating such an inspiring event - from adding a splash of green to a workspace to cocktails and floral crowns. There wasn't an element of creativity that didn't get the green treatment. It's great to see innovative projects helping individuals add nature to the home in a fun, easy way!

Photo credits: RHS

27/06/2017

This weekend we'll be lifting the curtain on our own little piece of art at Masterpiece London - we've been lucky enough to work with award winning interior designer Maurizio Pellizzoni on his 'Secret Garden' styling for the lecture hall.

In addition to the display we'll be on the panel speaking about how living walls can be used for art installations!

For tickets and event details:
https://www.masterpiecefair.com

A little about the designer:
http://www.mauriziopellizzoni.co.uk

22/06/2017

Masterpiece London is almost underway with art aficionados and antique enthusiasts alike counting down the days until the show opens June 29th - amongst the unique and priceless pieces on offer we'll be delivering natures' treasure to the collection. More details coming soon but for now head over to the Masterpiece website for information on the event and what to expect.

https://www.masterpiecefair.com/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=1

13/06/2017

All the garden shows lately left you feeling inspired? Add an unexpected flair of green to your designs with living walls.

Our next training day is July 19th at Wyevale Nurseries and offers you a practical approach to vertical gardening.

For more details or to reserve your place email [email protected] or call 020 8543 4530.

08/06/2017

RHS Chatsworth is well underway and despite harsh weather conditions, it's going to take more than rain to wash out the abundance of colour, vibrancy, excitement, and surprises that await visitors arriving to one of Capability Brown's landscapes.

We've spent the last couple of weeks working alongside Cityscapes, arranging plants, plotting out designs and testing technology to create something spectacular inside the floral marquee.

The living structure hangs as a centre-piece to the show, a canvas of moss and ferns create a tropical atmosphere (an ode to Joseph Paxton) while mist irrigation maintains humidity and perfect conditions for the tropical plants to grow. In the centre of this hangs a giant 'disco-ball' - 2m in diameter it will reflect grow-lights around the dome!

If you're heading to this weekend take a break from the rain and come check it out!

26/05/2017

We've spent the last couple of weeks working with Impact creative to finalise planting designs to support the Bosch DIY & Garden UK stand at this years Flower Show.

We added a colourful living wall backdrop to all the new power tools that will help you whip your garden into shape this summer! If you like new fangled outdoor gadgets or just want to check out our pop up living wall head over to stand RHW298 this weekend.

02/05/2017

Pantone already hailed Green as colour of the year and with trailing plants and vertical designs set to be one of the top design trends for 2017 - we're anticipating walls laden with colourful foliage at all the garden shows this year.

If you want to get ahead of the curve, shake up your design skills for summer or simply improve your living wall knowledge, why not join us for our Training Course, May 24th!

It's a fun way to learn new skills and meet other people in your network - you'll receive one to one advice, tips and tricks from our experienced team as well as the practical skills needed to get you creating, designing and installing your own living walls.

More details on the website:

http://www.treebox.co.uk/event_0.html

24/04/2017

If your daily wanderings weave you through the numerous construction sites continually popping up around the city you may have noticed some are cloaked in greenery.

Our living hoarding and ivy screens are becoming more and more popular as efficient and environmentally friendly methods of disguising building sites.

Not only do they look more appealing they also help reduce pollution, minimise noise & provide secure barriers, for designs that grow with nature!

13/04/2017

If you're not one for constant Facebook scrolling or twitter refreshing but don't want to miss out on our projects, thoughts, tips, photos and events - fear not, just sign up for our free seasonal newsletter on our homepage, where we'll bundle up the months adventures and deliver a little piece of green straight to your inbox in one manageable sitting.

If you missed the last newsletter you can catch up on features on our news page and don't forget to check out events where you'll be able to see our living wall training courses and where you can catch one of our living walls on display this summer!

http://www.treebox.co.uk

Treebox are suppliers & installers of green walls, living walls, edible walls and green hoarding to clients throughout the UK.

08/03/2017

Shake up your garden designs this spring and join us for our training course.
For more details visit http://www.treebox.co.uk/event/training-course-13.html
Email [email protected] to reserve your place!

Treebox are suppliers & installers of green walls, living walls, edible walls and green hoarding to clients throughout the UK.

04/03/2017

Come and say hi if you're heading to Urban Village Fete this weekend - we'll have products to peruse, plants to admire and our green guru's on hand to answer all your vertical gardening questions!

23/01/2017

We're Hiring!

We're seeking out a Business Development Manager to help us expand our green insfrastructure ideas and products globally. If you have experience in business development and a horticultural background we would love to hear from you!

More details: http://www.treebox.co.uk/news/were-hiring-business-development-manager.html

31/12/2016

This year we installed over 960 sqm of living walls and 130 sqm of ivy screen!

That's around 5 tennis courts of vertical urban greening and with this we created habitat for wildlife, clean air for us to breathe, a place for us to relax, contemplate and think, a natural rainwater storage system, a place to grow organic food and the nourishment for cities to build from more sustainable roots.

Thank you to all the amazing people we've worked with this year and the incredible projects, events and exhibits you've involved us in.

Here's to 2017 and another 1000 sqm of green!

30/12/2016

Here to bring our Top 5 to a close is a project which although not permanent was one of our favourite's to be involved with. As designer's it's not often you get chance to incorporate all your ideas in a single project, but this summer we were given centerstage and free reigns by the RHS to display all the urban greenery our team could wrangle up to Tatton Park.

We brought you living walls in every form we could muster. From the intelligent air purifying walls, to the sustainable rain water garden, to the roll your sleeves up and get stuck in vertical farm.

Our goal was to enable visitors to take a walk through a compact world of green design. The diverse planting design provided an exploration of the senses as individuals became lost in designs and technology that could be the future of our cities.

In addition to getting to exhibit our products, one of our favourite aspects of this project was engaging, exciting and inspiring the public!

Despite our exhibit only going on for a few days we met some incredible people and from it, the ideas and motivation we gained still fuels us to do what we do best - transform the concrete jungle. Whether in passing, at the office, in the home, peering from above, glancing from below - wherever you find your slice of nature in the city!

28/12/2016

As well as taking on some large projects in 2016 we also had blast creating the smaller guys, here to show you size doesn't matter is a residential design we did earlier in the year - and with it spreading it's vibrant leafy stems into our Top 5 of 2016!

This backyard retreat was transformed with clusters of the same plant grouped together for maximum impact. The Heuchera 'plum pudding' provides a fantastic ruffled edge which combined with it's deep purple colour adds intensity and volume to the leafy greens of surrounding fern fronds.

Only in it's first year this wall appears fully established and creates the perfect backdrop to entertaining in long summer evenings or crisp winter mornings gazing outside - the mixture of evergreen with flares of seasonal interest ensures there's a changing scene year round.

21/12/2016

Carrying on with our Top 5 Living Wall designs of the year we bring you

The Ritterman Building at Middlesex University. The living wall, contained around 3,500 plants and provides a visual representation of what the building stands for - exhibiting how technology can combine with nature to achieve smart sustainable design.

To celebrate the new design we invited local primary school children to help plant a portion of the wall, creating a learning resource they can nurture and see grow one through the seasons.

The building officially opens February 2017.

19/12/2016

In at Number 4 is a project which was a blast to be a part of - taking an every day and under-used piece of street infrastructure and transforming it into something special.

We teamed up with the street smart innovators over at PUBLIC SPACE JAM and London based artist Andrea Tyrimos to bring a breath of fresh air to a disused phone box in one of London's biggest pollution hotspots. We re-fitted the back with cascading greens whilst Andrea enveloped the remaining sides with leafy murals and a starry sky scene inside.

Thanks for the opportunity to be part of such fun project!

16/12/2016

With the festive season upon us and the year quickly drawing to a close we thought we'd take a little time in between the holiday rush to bring you our Top 5 living wall designs of 2016.

We've taken on such a broad range of projects in the last 12 months in all shapes and sizes - we've had the opportunity to work on innovative new technology as well as fun collaborations. But no matter what the project, we've been adding touches of greenery across the city and nationwide, making living with nature more accessible!

To kick things off at Number 5:

Restaurant Ours Brompton Rd, London

This new dining nook was opened back in summer by Michelin star chef Tom Sellers in London's elegant Kensington district. The addition of our floor to rafters living wall takes green dining to the next level, helped along the way a little by a great assortment of trees and plants. Bon appétit!

10/11/2016

The line-up for this years Urban Garden Show! Kicks off tomorrow with lots of green inspiration, tasty food, cocktails and live entertainment. Followed by two action packed days of workshops, seminars, exhibits and installations. If you're on the search for weekend plans look no further!

09/11/2016

To all you green fingered folk in London this weekend be sure to check out the line-up for this fantastic new Urban Garden Show from Royal Horticultural Society, co-curated by Cityscapes.

With an abundance of indoor planting inspiration in the form of workshops, seminars, exhibits and installations it's the perfect event to get your home kitted out for the shorter winter days ahead and extended nights in by the fire.

Treebox will be there turning the urban garden show into a mini green city - hosting talks and installations of our living walls as well as answering any of your vertical green conundrums!

As if all this wasn't enough to tempt you, there will be live entertainment, top-notch food and drink, all kicking off with a special opening evening on Friday 11th November, 6pm - 10pm for those night owls amongst you - Perfect for after-work beverages!

This really is going to be a fantastic event and we can't thank The RHS together with Cityscapes for inviting us along! The urban greening realm needs more events like this.

We hope to see you there!

More info: https://www.rhs.org.uk/shows-events/rhs-london-shows/RHS-London-Urban-Garden-Show

Tickets: http://rhslondon.seetickets.com/content/ticket-options =1.189928235.1457297793.1357640506

08/11/2016

Our living wall plant guide is preparing itself for the cooler days ahead as we look forward to winter. Often a season that is not particularly inspiring in the garden, it doesn't mean that you have to accept the monotony of its associated colour palette. One great species that can help you through the shorter days is Sarcococca ruscifolia.

This compact evergreen shrub is a great option to add year round interest in your living wall. The simple, leathery leaves are offset by delicate, fragrant creamy-white flowers in winter or spring and are subsequently followed by red, purple or black berries often persisting into winter. Incorporating a few of these in your living wall will ensure colourful bursts from January right through December.

04/11/2016

Join us for one of our last workshops of the year! Hosted by the wonderful Provender Nurseries why not welcome winter in with a bundle of new garden design skills and browse the nurseries fantastic plant variety while you're at it!

Reserve your place or find out more: [email protected]

26/10/2016

We're excited to announce we'll be adding a touch of vertical to this years The Royal Horticultural Society's, London Urban Gardening Show!

This new event aims to bring you some of the country’s best plant growers for small gardens, balconies, windowsills and indoor plants - including citrus, olives, chillies and exotic ornamental plants.

With seminars, tours, workshops and Q&A's this isn't one to miss!

https://www.rhs.org.uk/shows-events/rhs-london-shows/RHS-London-Urban-Garden-Show

Find out about the RHS London Urban Garden Show, new for 2016, featuring tropical houseplants, quality advice and design tips.

18/10/2016

As promised our top plant picks for autumnal living wall creations!
These guys really explode into action when the celebrities of summer begin to die back, from interesting texture to a radiance of colour, you won't be disappointed!

So, in no particular order, welcome to the spotlight your new best fall friends...

10/10/2016

Ever wondered why some years your garden triumphs with autumnal displays and other years seems to lack lustre? Well just like us plants are susceptible to the changing moods the weather brings too.

The science behind it is quite simple...chlorophyll makes leaves green, in summer chlorophyll production is high but as the weather begins to change and days become shorter chlorophyll production slows down and gives other pigments a chance to take centre stage.

The two major players here are:

Carotenoid's - orange, yellow and browns
Anthocyanin's - striking reds

Carotenoids are always present in the leaf but usually take a back seat to the more prominent Chlorophyll, because of this their appearance at the start of autumn comes as no surprise. Things start to get interesting when it comes to Anthocyanin's, however. These resplendent reds are created as a direct response to light, temperature and water supply.

Enough of the science anyway, I know we're all on the edge of our seats wanting to know what concoction leads to the most spectacular autumnal palettes?

Well, according to the Forestry Service, 'A succession of warm sunny days and cool crisp, but not freezing, nights'

So here's to hopefully some mild sunny autumn days ahead and some dazzling displays of red to compliment it!

To celebrate this time of year and gearing up ready for The Royal Horticultural Society 'Shades of Autumn Show' this month, we've complied a specially selected plant list to boost your living wall into the new season with colour and texture so stay tuned!

Photo: Andrew Goldsworthy

30/09/2016

If you're a Holborn local or a regular commuter through the area you may have noticed our Livingbox project going through a few face lifts the last couple of months.

The project was created back in February when we teamed up with savvy urban innovators Public Space Jam and contemporary artist Andrea Tyrimos to transform a disused phone box into a living breathing piece of art.

Sitting on one of London's busiest roads the Livingbox was retrofitted with an active living wall, transforming this pollution hotspot into a purified air oasis.

Unfortunately it wasn't long before attempts were made to destroy this piece of urban greenery, with plants removed and tampered with. After seeing how much support the project had received over social media we couldn't let this be death of the Livingbox - we planted and spruced up the living wall ready for the Monday morning crowds to enjoy yet again.

Sadly we were informed that the vandals had recently been back, this time not only pulling out plants, but also smashing one of the window panes framed by Andrea's colourful leafy mural. So this week we returned to replant the Livingbox for a third time - providing a green escape from the urban jungle and proving you can't keep mother nature down!

12/09/2016

For the last few months we've been working on a special project bringing green design to Middlesex University's new Ritterman Building which was previewed last week.

The building boasts a number of innovations, including a 110 square metre living wall, and opens up 3,300 square meters of additional teaching space for the Faculty of Science and Technology and the Faculty of Arts and Creative Industries, with specialist areas including state-of-the-art science labs and a large dance studio.

Working with BPR Architects, Treebox had the honour of providing the vertical rain garden to the building, with a linear planting design, reflecting the clean and contemporary aesthetic of the project overall. The living wall incorporates leafy evergreens such as Aurea, Polystichym and Sarcococca alongside flowering perennials like Geranium Rozanne, Brunnera and Bowles's Mauve.

The Ritterman Building has an environmentally-friendly, bio-diverse green living roof, solar panels to generate electricity and energy efficient lighting controls. Its living wall has more than 3,500 plants which are in place to save and recycle water!

06/09/2016

Here's a great article which recently got featured in Pro landscaper Magazine about the RHS Austerity Garden we designed along with Jade Goto from Landscape Studio back in 2013.

The design was based around using affordable materials which showcase the rustic and industrial nature of the project. It highlights how extravagant designs don't need to come with extreme price tags, with elements being drawn from Mexican style yards!

About Jade Goto:

Jade Goto is a Brighton based Landscape Architecture practice, which is currently undertaking commissions across the UK and internationally. Recent commissions have ranged from designing private garden spaces to public landscape projects. The practice has a broad and extensive knowledge base which combines Landscape Architecture, Horticulture, Technology, Art and Design.

http://www.jadegoto.com