Offering a magical new lookout in London, a 29,000 square-foot rooftop garden by James Corner of Field Operations is now complete. Situated alongside the iconic Battersea Power Station, the project is one of London's largest residential roof gardens and features more than 23,000 plants and 55 trees.
The gardens are situated on the sixteenth floor of Foster + Partners' Battersea Roof Garden Building, a mixed-use development comprising 436 homes, a 164-room hotel, and a 200,000-square-foot office building. The rooftop amenity is for the use of the building's residents, who can enjoy the parkland environment for exercising, socializing, or relaxing.
The landscape is a scenographic sequence of impressive city views and garden experiences. An intimate series of spaces for seating is nestled inside the planting. At the same time, wooden loungers offer a playful opportunity to relax in the sun, and the community dining table provides an extroverted place for neighbourhood socializing. Residents can continue using the roof space at night thanks to a soft ambient lighting scheme integrated into the landscaping.
Set against a background of green and gold grasses, including Deschampsia, Helicotrichon, and Sesleria, a feature perennial planting scheme offers dynamic changes through the seasons. Green and yellow Euphorbia contrast against tall, violet-blue spires of Perovskia. In the spring and early summer, dark purple Alliums come to the fore, followed by groups of sea holly and mauve Verbena.
The completion of these roof gardens follows the opening of the highly anticipated redevelopment of the Grade II* Battersea Power Station and Electric Boulevard in October 2022, a project overseen by WikinsonEyre.
