We just recieved images of a recent installation at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel & Conference Center St. Louis. It really illustrates how sprucing up an existing property with new pots & planters can give a place a “pop”. The facility offers 223 rooms and 37 meeting/banquet rooms. The hotel is actually located in Chesterfield, MO, the largest city in west Saint Louis County with a population of just under 50,000.
Don Hellstern of Farthingale Ornamental & Architectural Stone in Kansas City is a local distributor of Tournesol Siteworks products, and was kind enough to send along these images. Don worked closely with Fred Kovar of the Harrick Group in Chicago, a respected firm specializing in the design of hotel projects nationally. Fred called out an unusual custom color for the Urban Tall pots (see this post for more Urban Tall), “Parrot Orange”. We received a sample, and were able to match the color.
"Parrot Orange" certainly pops against the background
While we don’t get involved in many residential projects, it’s nice to see one that comes together as nicely as this. We certainly can’t take much credit. Our pots are lovely on this project, but the real star of the project is Belli Fiori landscaping of Redwood City, CA.
A spectacular residential landscape, with pots as accents
[UPDATE 5/18] The entire wall is up, and the Wilshire Box and VertiGreen 3D trellis is up next to it! Looking good, and getting ready to host a seminar about it next month for Boston-area landscapers and designers…
Installation of a Tournesol VGM living wall at BISCO Irrigation, Dedham, MA
One of the advantages of working with irrigation distributors is that they really know how to set up an irrigation system. Tournesol Siteworks partner BISCO Irrigation (with locations throughout New England) installed several living wall systems at their Dedham, MA branch. We took advantage of their work to document in this post how they set it up.
Dedham is located inland of Boston, and is a Zone 6B in the USDA Plant Hardiness Map. They have selected the VGM-10 modules, with a full 8″ soil profile. They are also putting in several other Tournesol green wall options, including a Wilshire Box hanging planter and VertiGreen 3D trellis panel (you can see them to the right in the image above), and a VertiGreen Hybrid trellis panel. The irrigation system uses the Baseline 3200 controller from Baseline Systems, paired with a moisture sensor. Using the Baseline 2-wire system the whole thing can be remotely monitored for water use and soil moisture levels.
Aged Copper Village Collection planters, ready for packaging
While walking across our production floor today, I saw an order going through the final prep and polishing before being packaged up. The pots, our Village Collection VS-2400 in the metal-infused Aged Copper finish, positively glowed. They look great, and will be packaged and shipped shortly.
There’s only one way to get them to look like this. Two of our crew, Anthony and Luis, were putting the finishing touches on the last couple of pots. I took out my cell phone and snapped a few shots of them doing the buffing.
Anthony and Luis, hard at work hand-polishing the finish
In 2008 we fabricated a custom Urban planter for a retail mall project in Florida. The planter was designed to hide bollards, so was designed specifically to be the same size as our 24″ square, but 48″ tall. Once that project was complete, we adapted the tool for our own use – and the Urban Tall planter was born.
The pot is something of a “red-headed stepchild”. It is has different proportions than the rest of the Urban Collection, and so only garners one line in our marketing materials. Nevertheless, it has become one of our more popular planters. Although it doesn’t get much attention, we felt it deserves it’s own post.
The planters in the image above and below were specified & installed by GHA Architecture/Development of Dallas, TX. The Mi Dia From Scratch restaurant, and the neighboring Winewood Restaurant (both located in Grapevine) used the URT-2400 with our CWC-R1850 container irrigation self-watering insert. All the containers were delivered in the T-0 texture in black.
Original concept for the King Abdullah Financial District Conference Center
We’ve done a lot of unusual projects over the years, but the KAFD Conference Center is probably the most exciting one we’ve come across. Located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the structure is covered with over 15,000sf of modular green roof, with nearly 10,000sf of living wall inside.
Tournesol Siteworks was invited to participate on the design team by HM White Site Architects, who are responsible for the breakthrough modular green roof design. The building, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in New York City, is the first major element in the new development slated to be the home of new banking and financial infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. The project will utilize a number of remarkable environmental construction technologies to reach an expected LEED Gold status.
Urban lightweight concrete planters at Park Place Retail in Irvine, CA
We recently provided lightweight GFRC concrete containers for Shops at Park Place in Irvine, CA. This retail project is part of the 3 million square foot Park Place mixed-use project, containing class-A office, residential and retail areas. The design, by LPA, Inc. (also of Irvine), was purchased dircectly by the owner (Madison Marquette) and installed by general contractor JM Stitt.
Note the custom tall planters behind the Urban Collection in front
New Gateway to the Center for Early Education in West Hollywood, CA
Rios Clementi Hale is at it again. They’ve designed a number of great-looking living walls in the Los Angeles area using our VGM Modular living wall system, including the Sunset House and La Plaza. Jennifer Schab at their office was responsible for the upgrade to the CEE, a private elementary school in West Hollywood where they used the VGM to create a new gateway for the school.
The CEE sign is mounted on a rail, extending from the horizontal gap between modules
The gateway is the public face of the school grounds
The planting used a mix of succulents, grasses, and sedums in 34 of the VGM-06 modules. Upon close inspection the coverage is good, and with a season of growth it will erase most of the module lines.
A combination of succulents, grasses and sedums were used
According to an article in the school’s magazine, the gateway installation was just one part of the greening of the elementary school campus. While they didn’t have a lot of space to green, they made the most of it. In addition to the gateway, they used Wooly Pocket felt hanging planters along many of the outdoor staircases along the building. The gateway and planters were outfitted with drip irrigation systems. The school is quickly incorporating the new “green” into the curriculum of the school.
Some areas are still growing in, but will be full after the growing season
It’s a strong statement for a school in an urban setting. We’ll look forward to seeing how it continues to grow in. Below, a short video by our regional sales representative, Jon Willingham.
The Urban Collection, shown at the Hyatt Gainey Ranch in Scottsdale, AZ
In response to a number of requests from customers last year, we’re implemented a quick ship program for 2012. With the way that we typically work, it’s hard to get a pot order, even a small one, out in less than a week. This year, we decided to put in place a program that will make it possible! Best of all, there will be no additional cost for this service.
The quick ship program features two of our most popular FRP (fiberglass) planter collections, the Urban and Metro. Limited quantities of most rounds, squares and rectangles will be available to ship within 5-7 business days, depending upon the final color and finish. Metal infused finishes will typically take slightly longer than base or MMP finishes. Confirmed ship dates will depend upon order size and current inventory levels.
This existence of this program in no way guarantees a specific delivery window to any customer. Check with your Tournesol salesperson for product availability and specific details.
A Metro Collection square, as seen at the Crocker Galleria in San Francisco
When Tremco Incorporated, a leader in sustainable construction and part of the RPM Building Solutions Group, renovated its corporate headquarters in Beachwood, OH, they featured a 9000 sf vegetative roof from the Tremco Roofing and Building Maintenance Division. Vegetative roof expert Rana Creek, based not too far from us in Northern California, did the design for them. Rana Creek recommended the use of Tournesol Siteworks FRP planters and our VertiGreen 3D Trellis system to cover several large structures on the roof, as well as screen an equipment area. A full documentation of the project can be seen at www.tremcogreenhq.com.
