Our firm has had the privilege of maintaining the outdoor landscape of this prestigious property for seven years. The iconic focal point of the hotel is the exterior living wall system that covers the first 3 stories of the building.

Visitors are greeted by a lush green tapestry as they approach the property. The entire living wall is comprised of over 8000 individual ivy plants that provide a beautiful monochromatic splash of dark green. This signature landscape feature requires careful maintenance and irrigation control throughout the year.

Due to the elevated height of the upper areas of the wall, much of the landscape maintenance program is conducted on an electric lift and bucket truck. Certified lift personnel from our team operate the equipment with harnesses and PPE during all maintenance activities.

In order to abide by our shared value of sustainability with the client, only organic fertilizers and pest control methods are utilized by our firm to keep the wall in perfect condition.

Due to the challenging micro-climates of New York City and the harsh winters that are endured, we have to plan for some annual replacements of the ivy even with our expert horticultural care. Given our familiarity with the living wall system and our knowledge of the property having serviced it for many years, we’re able to anticipate the amount of replacement plant materials that are needed each Spring, which allows us to pre-book the plant material to ensure availability and cost.

The spring cleanup and replacement plantings for the wall are expertly scheduled with our installations team to ensure the most efficient timeline for our client to avoid disruption to the hotel. Special lift equipment is brought to site to reach the elevated parts of the building.

Given the hustle and bustle of the city sidewalks below, we utilize safety barriers to carefully direct pedestrian traffic in and around the areas of work. Dedicated safety personnel on our staff are implemented to supervise the crew on the ground and in the air. Certified lift operators from our team operate the equipment with proper PPE.

This past season, there has been scaffolding installed around the wall to provide safe passage for pedestrians while facade work takes place high above the building.

This has not only presented challenges in regard to accessing parts of the wall, but it’s also created a challenging growing environment for the parts of the living wall system that are located below the scaffolding walkway.

Certain areas of the living wall are situated in the vicinity of building exhaust vents. These vents push out hot air that presents a challenge for any of the ivy plants that are located nearby. Careful irrigation management is key to allowing these areas of the living wall to thrive.

Lush planting areas beneath the scaffolding provide a beautiful backdrop for guests that enjoy the property’s high-class dining.

This multi-story, multisided living wall provides the emblematic cohesion of architecture and nature to tourists and city residents alike.