Located in the North Dock of London’s Docklands, between the HSBC tower at Canary Wharf and the residential neighbourhood of Poplar, this garden sits on top of a new Crossrail station (not yet open) and the development above it. The client wanted the garden to create an accessible new shared and open space that would work to unite Poplar and Canary Wharf.The designers based their design on the idea of biophilia (love of natural things) providing a rare space where visitors can interact with nature at high level. The designers overcame the challenges of the depth and weight of soil and the overhead roof structure, turning them into a strength with a design that draws inspiration from the site’s historic use as a place for intrepid explorers in the late 18th Century to unload their exotic plant cargos. A series of reservoirs and staggered terraces at ground level recreate the flood capacity that had been displaced by the building.
