Blog : Gardening Ideas

Tanatap Wall Garden: A Restaurant-cum-Café and Bar among Lush Trees and Immaculate White Walls
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Tanatap Wall Garden: A Restaurant-cum-Café and Bar among Lush Trees and Immaculate White Walls

/ Central Java, Indonesia /

/ Story: Kangsadan K. / English version: Bob Pitakwong /

/ Photographs: Mario Wibowo /

Central Java, Indonesia – Neat and clean walls rise above a reflecting pool and lush lawns brightened up by shimmering lights. They are made attractive by warm-toned whites and smooth curved lines twirling lightly around like poetry in motion. Shaped into alternate ridges and grooves, the concrete surfaces in zingy warm hues slant up to the skyline reminiscent of a graceful dance. It’s an amazing innovation thoughtfully devised to sync with rhythms in the urban landscape that gives it aesthetic appeal.

A welcoming reception area lies adjacent to the reflecting pool designed to blend with the rounded contour at the very top of a white wall separating the restaurant’s interior from the exterior.

The clean, well-lighted trio of restaurant, café and bar is located in Central Java, an Indonesian province that’s home to the famous Borobudur Temple, one of the greatest Buddhist monuments in the world. Named “Tanatap Wall Garden”, it’s a delightful business space in a class of itself, one that advocates for form and function being joined in a way that requires less energy to operate.

The restaurant-cum-café and bar, together with its land that forms a verdant oasis, affords 2,500 square meters of commercial space nestled among beautiful cityscapes. It’s an all-encompassing design that combines commercial real estate with elements of nature in close physical association to the advantage of both.

A charcoal sketch shows the positioning of functional spaces in relation to existing big trees, a relationship to the advantage of both. / Courtesy of RAD+ar
A side elevation view in perspective illustrates the positioning of restaurant, café and bar spaces under lush tree cover. / Courtesy of RAD+ar

The concept delineated above is the brainchild of a high performing team at RAD+ar, an architectural practice based in Jakarta, Indonesia. The team of architects was tasked with transforming what used to be a parking garage into a calm, secluded garden in which to wine and dine; meanwhile preserving the existing natural environment and the property’s significance as part of a central business district.

The result is a piece of architecture showcasing perfectly clean, white walls rising among very big lush trees, a beautiful sight unlike anything out there. Viewed from above, the floor plan consists of three straight lines on the ground moving centrifugally from the center. Along these lines, concrete walls rise to different heights forming gently curved lines at the very top as they traverse among stands of homogeneous trees.

Viewed from above, the restaurant-cum-café and bar merges into beautiful and cool landscapes so that they become an indivisible whole.

Apart from bringing shade and regulating temperatures, the trees growing wild in every direction give the business premises charm, good looks that please the senses and the mind.

It’s design that comes from understanding the warm, humid climate prevailing in Central Java, and the company’s principles advocating for simple and sustainable lifestyles. Together they are the key attributes that make Tanatap Wall Garden one of the most agreeable places to be.

For a good first impression, the welcoming entryway is adorned with green spaces that create positive moments in people’s lives. It’s connected to a pathway system leading to cool and restful places amid the beautiful backyard landscape.

Old trees and new walls become inextricable parts of the design advocating for sustainability.

On the way, an 800-square-meter reflecting pool provides a focal point in the scenery, bringing joy, pleasure and contentment in nature’s peaceful embrace. Interestingly enough, tiers of seats similar to a sports arena are added to the mix in a way that’s proper in the circumstances.

A reflecting pool under tree cover provides a focal point in the landscape. It works in tandem with other passive design strategies creating thermal comfort for both indoors and outdoors.
A lounge area offers wide seating space and flexibility seamlessly integrated into the building’s architectural styles.

In addition to being a rendezvous for good food and drinks, Tanatap Wall Garden offers an enormous richness of nature-inspired outdoor rooms for those who love spending time indulging in music and live stage performances.

Keeping to its original concept, an amphitheater is put in for customers who appreciate dramatic works as a genre of literature and expression of ideas encouraging participation in the discourses of society. All of these features are neatly integrated in one cohesive design aesthetic.

Tiers of seats similar to a sports area lie under a pedestrian bridge connecting different parts of the building. By design, it’s a work of art that keeps creative energy flowing.

In short, it’s a metamorphosis of purpose that results in neat and clean white walls transforming into a stunning commercial space, in this particular case, a trio of restaurant, café and bar set amidst a verdant oasis.

From inside looking out, a part of the white wall with ridges and grooves in it is visible through the doorway at the furthest end.
The restaurant has a lovely garden under tree cover for those who prefer to wine and dine alfresco.

Drop by Tanatap Wall Garden for a drink or two next time you sojourn in Central Java. It’s an opportunity to experience the beauty of architecture and nature coming together in one indivisible design.

Architect: RAD+ar

Principal Architect: Antonius Richard

Sculpture Artist: Wisnu Ajitama

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Gardening with Water Science
livingasean

Gardening with Water Science

Besides nurturing plants, water has many garden uses:  fresh, exciting ornamentation, for one.

/// Thailand ///
Story: Panchat Changchan /// Photography: Baanlaesuan

– The sound of water –

If a garden includes naturally flowing water or an old pond or spring, the water can be used to drive a fountain or water wheel, or dammed up to control the flow near a garden entrance or a relaxation spot.

Or, original garden fixtures such as walls or other architectural elements can be used with pumping systems to create dimensional motion in the form of a waterfall wall, or an artificial waterfall. Here, choose rough-surfaced materials and/or steep surfaces so water running across them produces a strong, clear sound. This can be enhanced by controlling water pump pressure.

– Images reflecting beauty –

The inherent reflective property of water can bring a more spacious garden atmosphere, adding dimension and color as well as changing motion and texture. We see this in world wonders such as the Taj Mahal and Wat Kinkakuji Temple, as well as in “infinity” swimming pools at seaside resorts. Reflection always creates feeling and perspective in the viewer, often simply a function of the width and the stillness of the water. A lake or large pond dug next to a  garden highlight can create a beautiful view for people looking from the opposite bank.

– Lights in the water –

Lights in and around the water create worlds of brightness and shadow above and below the surface. Refraction creates beautiful, entrancing “water ghosts.” Underwater lights should be used in conjunction with well-structured ponds and good treatment systems to ensure easy maintenance, protect against damage, and to get bright, clear underwater lighting. Only specially designed light bulbs adapted for low voltage should be used underwater.

– Mist to create dimension –

Mist or water spray is commonly used in tropical or jungle gardens, mainly with minispray-type sprinklers primarily intended for watering and moisturizing plants, especially large ones such as ferns or orchids, but incidentally also cooling the garden. Nowadays minisprinkler heads are often hidden among plants or in spots among small shrubs and ground cover plants, but they can be also be used with fountain systems to create mist in the middle of ponds, adding a different kind  atmosphere or narrative than usual to sculptures or pond highlights. A good example is in the yard in front of the Place de la Bourse in Bordeaux, France.

– Related sculptures –

Water can itself be used as a sculpture, or in combination with actual garden sculptures, statues, fountains, European-style bird baths, or for fish ponds, as in Thai gardens. Statues using water as ornamentation usually highlight its motion, spouting up or falling. This is common in ordinary fountains, but other water properties can be used in combination, for instance transparency. Water curtains or moving shapes that look like glass can be created. And water plants themselves often have beautiful and unique shapes.

– Creating a good ecosystem –

The most important use of water in the garden is to create life and maintain an ecosystem that faithfully imitates nature so the garden can grow sustainably, not only for plants, but as a home and food source for water creatures and many other living things. If you have a large area for a garden, you could begin by digging a pond about one-fourth its size to hold rainwater, then use that pond for watering plants as well as to grow local water plants and riparian vegetation. Make an artificial waterfall, grow interesting plant species large and small, and even enjoy the delights of raising fish!

Big Gardening Ideas for Small Urban Areas
livingasean

Big Gardening Ideas for Small Urban Areas

The gardening ideas of colorful flowers welcome guests to the garden of Thanawat Suwinai Phreusabenja of Inmindhamlet community on Soi Ari 3. Located inside is the gardening shop Mc&Ami, where people love to look into the glass-partitioned display area at where butterflies are attracted to the scents of flowers. The Living ASEAN team itself became interested and came to investigate.

/// Thailand /// 

Story :Panchat Changchan /// Photos : Chaiyapruk Podang /// Landscape :Thanawat Suwinai Phreusabenja

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The table décor creates a bright, lively party atmosphere.
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The dining table creates an intimate and uniquely festive atmosphere as surrounding garden ornaments and “showroom” shelves serve as a backdrop.

          We arrived at twilight, as Thanawat was setting up the dining table in the garden to welcome us, amid vibrant colors of flowers in the garden and on the table. Asked about the decor, he said,

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Combination flower planters beautify the entrance. Thanawat got the inspiration from seeing flower vases set at different levels, tall leafy plants at the top descending down to small flowers.

“I got the idea from a respected teacher;she gave me a book about Claude Monet’s garden. She expressed her wish that I could find that sort of happiness in the rest of my own life. Thinking about that made me try to set my garden in Monet’s natural and beautiful style, and what you see here comes from that.”

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Thanawat Suwinai Phreusabenja, gardener and distributor of Mc & Ami gardening equipment, also the owner of Inmindhamlet Community Mall.

            After dinner, we walked around the garden, which is overflowing with decorative ideas. Thanawat himself designed the creative little cement doll family of pigs,lion statues using Spanish moss for a mane and ducks carrying egg sacks in their mouths. With unique choices and placement both flowers and decorative plants are mixed in with tropical rainforest varieties. Inclusions exotics and unusual kitchen vegetables which are all in vigorous growth.

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A pair of decorative lion sculptures: one displays an imaginative use of Spanish moss as the lion’s mane.

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“My concept is to just sow seeds and let the plants grow by themselves as best they can. The beauty is in non-native plants trying to make their way and naturally adapt in a strange place, with a different kind of beauty than before, in leaves, branches, and colors. But when planting we do have to consider whether a plant can coexist with the others. Is it shade-tolerant? Can it survive with a vine growing over it?”

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Entryway post with a faucet for watering flowers. Functional and attractive, too.

        Another minor miracle is that all this grows in what used to be a parking lot, which Thanawat covered in topsoil and gradually planted over.

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Small shrubs with flowering plants below. Rising above is a mix of leafy plants, broad and point-formed, creating a filled-out appearance.

            “The fun is in the challenge. We have a hard concrete yard. You would think that we cannot plant. Think again. Just have a concept and a passion, and a garden is created from Shallow root systems, a single level of soil, good for bamboo, ferns, flowering plants, bushes, and kitchen vegetables. We found added benefits from things we can plant and grow slowly, and that will flower for a long time, so we aren’t constantly cutting things back.”

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A gate through the iron fence into the garden, where a white gravel path contrasts nicely with greenery and ornamentation.

            We also have odd blossoming schedules and odd shapes that grow and nourish beauty. Adapt and don’t accept failure because the hard cement doesn’t fight back, but this is still a formula for success.

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Besides flowers, there are kitchen spices like basil and pandanus palm that add color and beauty.
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Small steel planter boxes trap rainwater. Semanggi and star grass add a chic look.

link: https://www.facebook.com/Inmindhamlet-soi-aree-1458360097813741/?fref=ts

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