The children’s book “Green Machines and Other Amazing Eco-Inventions,” written by Michelle Meadows, illustrated by Aristides Ruiz, and published by Penguin Random House, features a section dedicated to the Bosco Verticale in Milan, a project by Boeri Studio.
The book, with Lorax from Dr. Seuss as the protagonist, aims to introduce children to eco-inventions that inspire them to learn about the environment. One of the highlighted “Eco-Inventions” is the Bosco Verticale, a prototype building representing a new architecture of biodiversity. It shifts the focus from just humans to the relationship between humans and other living species, hosting on its facades 800 trees (480 large and medium-sized trees, 300 smaller trees, 15,000 perennial and/or ground-covering plants, and 5,000 shrubs). The vegetation is equivalent to that of a 30,000 square meters forest concentrated on a 3,000 square meters urban surface.
The concept of the Bosco Verticale, being a “home for trees that also hosts humans and birds,” not only defines its urbanistic and technological features but also its architectural language and expressive qualities. Formally, the towers are characterized by large, staggered balconies with significant overhangs (approximately three meters). These balconies serve the function of accommodating large perimeter planters for vegetation and allowing unobstructed growth of larger trees, even spanning three floors of the building.
For more information: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/704535/green-machines-and-other-amazing-eco-inventions-by-michelle-meadows-illustrated-by-aristides-ruiz/