The garden was established out of necessity – the inner courtyard was no longer able to ensure drainage, so it was time to take it apart and solve the issue.
The residents decided to create a majestic garden in the heart of the building instead of recreating the former concrete look, as plants have the ability to drain water as well, but in a more natural, aesthetically pleasing and healthy way.
The garden was partly financed by the residential community, partly by a tender through MOL’s Green Belt Programme. According to the tender, the project had to be carried out voluntarily by the community, especially as the inner courtyard couldn’t be accessed by large machinery.
The old casing was removed and the new one was established by a contractor, who rearranged the drainage as well. The next step was acquiring the greenery and planting it.
One of the residents, Rita Muhari, was already an experienced gardener, creating miniature bottled gardens for years – naturally, she was in charge of planning out the project, as well as acquiring the plants and handling the duties associated with the tender.
She recently shared some pictures on Facebook capturing their amazing results, as well as the different phases that lead to the finished garden.
Courtyard plants
“It was important to choose plants which can thrive
in half-shade, as the inner courtyard doesn’t
get much direct sunlight. Since the soil here is sandy, the rhododendrons and
azaleas, which like acidic soil, died off after a year or two, despite the soil
change. Unfortunately, the beautiful Japanese maple and another maple seedling
suffered the same fate,” says Rita.
They had more success with other plants though, such as grape creepers, different types of common ivy to cover the ground, bugleherb, periwinkle, cotoneaster, lungwort and spindle tree.
For shrubs, they planted cherry laurel, red-tip photinia and arrowwood. The courtyard provides ideal conditions for growing ferns, plantain lilies, Japanese honeysuckle and bergenias.
Their annual plant choices include begonias, busy Lizzies and canna lilies, but the most treasured plant in the garden is the southern magnolia, an evergreen native to Florida.
Home gardens
“It was about two metres tall when we
planted it, now it’s over six metres. This kind of tree comes from tropical and
subtropical areas, but since the courtyard is enclosed on all sides and because
of the heated flats, it actually thrives here, even in the colder months. We
also have two ginkgos growing in two large pots, getting taller by the day.
This tree tolerates urban conditions exceptionally well and is able to grow when
potted. This shows that even such a small garden can be filled with wonderful
plants and colours,” adds Rita.
The sandpit set up in the courtyard for children has also proved to be a great success, although the pandemic and the lockdown have made it more difficult to take advantage of.
“We often chat over some coffee at the tables in the garden. The plants have grown a lot in these five years, and the grape creepers now reach up to the windows, providing a nice cooling effect, which is lovely in the summer,” concludes Rita.
