How to Transform Your Outdoor Urban Space into a Living Oasis
Springtime in New York City injects a certain amount of optimism and liveliness into the air. Sunsets are delayed until after 7 pm, giving us more time to relax and enjoy the daylight after work. While the temperatures are beginning to warm, we may notice that so are our moods.
If you are lucky enough to have access to a private outdoor space, you are living the New York City dream! While the rest of us embrace the Spring bloom at public parks, you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your own home. So how can you make the most out of your little slice of refuge? Whether you have a terrace, courtyard, rooftop, or balcony, there are simple, low-maintenance ways to enhance your space, turning it into a living, breathing garden oasis just in time to combat the Summer heat.
How to prepare your Outdoor Urban Space
First things first, it is essential to understand your environment. How much sunlight does your spot receive? What is the year-round climate like? Is it windy? These questions will help you decide which types of plant species you can host. However, before you get to planting, your site may require some spring cleaning. Debris and leaves will most likely be left behind from the long winter, heavy storms, and the occasional trash discovered after snowmelt. Don’t forget that NYC residents can sign up for free curbside composting, a great way to dispose of all your organic waste. After cleaning and starting with a fresh palette, you can begin planting and decorating.
Bring your Urban Space to Life with Living Plants
There is significant science-backed evidence about the benefits of plants, particularly on human health. Adding plants to your outdoor (or indoor) space is a way to ensure improvements in your health and wellbeing. When selecting which plants to incorporate into your space, consider a few things. It’s always best to use species native to your zone or local ecology. If you are in a place that receives little rainfall, you’ll want to choose from more drought-tolerant plants. You might also want to focus on species that are known for attracting pollinators or repelling certain insects, i.e., mosquitos. Or maybe you are just focused on creating something truly unique and picturesque which may lead you to create a colorful and exotic plant pallet.
Year-Round Outdoor Living Wall Solutions
You may find yourself drawn to designing for a traditional garden that features seasonal blooms or even edibles to impress your guests. However, if you are like many other New Yorkers, ground space could be scarce. In situations like this, we like to “get vertical with it”. Living Walls are a great year-round solution that will turn your outdoor space into a jaw-dropping, show-stopper. Urbanstrong’s outdoor living wall solutions are super flexible and can be cut to any shape/size as well as incorporate automated irrigation. Our system is mostly hydroponic, a soil-less planting core that uses recycled felt as a growing medium. It can host various shrubs, perennials, and seasonal blooms. Urbanstrong’s team will carefully select plants native to our climate zone to ensure success and a low plant replacement rate.
What to do when winter comes? Just be prepared to watch your plants go dormant for those harsh few months. The irrigation system will be winterized to avoid freezing and turned back on in the spring when temperatures start to warm again. If you have a large budget, as us about our most superior exterior system which actually remains functioning even through subzero temperatures. It collects data from built-in moisture sensors and forecasts freezing weather temps to automatically close/winterize the system or open it up on those random 50 degrees December days. No other system on the market does this!
What about Green Roof and Solar options for my Home?
Do you have a rooftop that you want to transform? Not sure if your building can support a green roof? Are you interested in the benefits of solar? Urbanstrong can help you make these informed decisions and determine which solution is best for your roof. Like our living wall solutions, green roofs are a great year-round solution designed to make it through the winter. A green roof takes a bit more planning, but it’ll have long-term benefits for your building.
