Project Eden UK
Rating: 8,9/10 (1985 votes)  The building with such an unusual name, translated as"Garden of Eden", is a large, unique botanical garden located in the British county of Cornwall. This garden has a very unusual appearance: several greenhouses are located under gigantic geodesic domes, inside which there are practically all existing plants from all over the world. The total area of all greenhouses is 22,000 m?.
Once on the territory where this unusual garden is now arranged, there was a quarry where kaolin was mined. It is only about 5 kilometers from the largest city in the county of St Austell. The idea for the project came from Tim Smith, and the author was the architect Nicholas Grimshaw, who worked in partnership with Anthony Hunt & Partners. At the beginning, a visit center was opened to visitors (May 2000), and then, on March 17, 2001, the grand opening of the entire facility took place.
The greenhouses are surrounded by winding walking paths from which you can perfectly see the domes, as well as the landscape around them: fields, vegetable gardens, unusual sculptures, etc. Under each dome is a piece of the ecosystem of a specific terrain (biome). The biomes of the equatorial and Mediterranean climatic zones are the richest.
The equatorial forest greenhouse is the largest in the world (1,559 hectares), theoretically it could fit the Tower of London in full growth. Plants grow here that can only be found in the tropics: banana, coffee and rubber trees, large bamboo thickets, etc.
The greenhouse with a Mediterranean biome is much smaller (only 0.654 ha). Olive trees, vines and much more can be found here. There is another biome that does not require placing in a greenhouse. These are open-air plants of a temperate climate such as sunflower, tea, lavender, etc.
The domes of the greenhouses are made using a special technology. They consist of pentagonal and hexagonal pieces of special thermoplastic bonded with a steel frame. Thermoplastic perfectly maintains the desired temperature, but transmits ultraviolet radiation, which is important for plants. It is almost weightless and resistant to dirt.
The Eden Project also leads an active social life. A skating rink, a cafe on the territory of the complex are organized, concerts of musical groups are regularly held, including the Eden Sessions event with the participation of many music stars.We also recommend reading Church of St. Ursula in Germany, resort of Cologne Topic: Project Eden UK. |
