West 8 and Houston Botanic Garden are delighted to announce the latest developments from our world-class botanic garden in the bayou city.
Opened on the 8th of April, visitors are now able to visit the Culinary Garden, featuring edible and medicinal plants and trees from all over the world. Reflecting the truly diverse community of Houston, this newly completed garden provides visitors with the opportunity to learn about the rich historic and botanic heritage of food grown all around the world.
Inside the garden, three tiled water walls wrap around a long harvest table to create an inner courtyard. The Culinary Garden will be the host for events and educational cooking programs that showcase the universal nature of agriculture, cultivation, wellness, and cuisine.
The three waterwalls are made out of 3,591 custom jade tiles and provide visitors with a respite from the natural climate through the freshness of running water. These bespoke, hand-painted ceramic tiles were meticulously chosen by the design team, who assessed color combinations, created 3-D printed models, and debated color samples to ensure the fountain would be a timeless and pleasing backdrop to the garden foliage. Not only arranged in a stunning pattern, but they also play with 3-D relief to catch both the ripples of water as they fall and give a glimpse of the garden behind.
The Culinary Garden marks the last piece of the first phase of the Houston Botanic Garden masterplan, a multi-phased plan to transform a former 132-acre golf course into an island of discovery.
For more information, and our full list of credits please see: link
Client: Houston Botanic Garden
Culinary Garden Design and Construction team:
• West 8: Prime Consultant, Masterplan Vision & Landscape Architect.
• Greenscape Pump Services Inc. – Role: Water Feature Engineering
• Walter P. Moore Engineers – Role: Civil and Structural Engineering
• Clark Condon Associates Inc. – Role: Landscape Architects, Planting & Soil Design
• Olsson and Associates – Role: Soil Design Consultation
• I.A. Naman + Associates Inc. – Role: Electrical Engineering MEP Engineering
• Sweeney & Associates Inc. – Role: Irrigation Design
• SiteWorks Specification Preparation
• Harvey-Cleary Builders – General Contractor
• Landscape Art Inc. – Landscape Sub-Contractor
• B&D Contractors Inc. – Landscape Sub-Contractor
• Koninklijke Tichelaar – Ceramic fabricator
