Borst Landscape & Design Joins Good Housekeeping Magazine in Creating First Leed Certified "Green" Home in Harlem

Firm’s Pro Bono Efforts Help the Community and the Environment

ALLENDALE, N.J., Dec. 29, 2008 – Borst Landscape & Design of Allendale, N.J., recently partnered with Good Housekeeping magazine on one of the national publication’s most ambitious environmental projects: creating the most environmentally-friendly private residence in Manhattan. The home, located on West 122nd Street, was featured in a special section of the magazine’s November issue.

Good Housekeeping set out with the goal of turning a run-down brownstone into the first LEED-(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified “green” home in New York’s up-and-coming Harlem neighborhood. Borst, an award-winning firm which has built a reputation as a leader in environmentally sensitive landscaping, volunteered its time to design the outdoor spaces of this four-story home in a way that minimizes water usage and utilizes locally-grown plantings.

“We faced several challenges in creating the design,” explained Mark Borst, president of Borst Landscape & Design. “The outside space was very limited. The front area is 20 x 11-feet, and the back area is 20 x 32-feet. In addition, the 1910 brownstone property was quite a mess when the project began.”

The major objectives were to limit the use of conventional, water-hungry grass turf; to use local, drought-tolerant plants; to create some degree of shade so as to minimize water evaporation; and to recycle materials whenever possible.

For the front area, to the left of the steps leading to the main entrance, Borst designed a small courtyard surrounded by plantings and accented with two small benches.

“Our plan called for the use of dry-laid bluestone for the courtyard floor. The spacing between the stone allows rain water to seep into the ground, rather than running off into the street and the sewers. That way, the water continues to circulate on the property, reducing the need for watering,” explained Terry McMahon, Borst landscape designer.
 

“For part of the hardscape, we took the wrought iron fence that was originally on the property and recycled it to create trellises,” she added.

Based on the Borst plan, a trellis covered with climbing roses acts as a center-piece at the rear of the courtyard, facing the entrance. It is flanked by planters, which add seasonal color. Pyracantha, English ivy and other espalier plantings (plants trained to grow on trellises) line the walls, and boxwoods stand on either side of the courtyard entrance in the design.

The rear yard presented its own unique design challenge. It can be reached from the ground-floor apartment, and also from a parlor-floor balcony. Borst suggested two discreet areas – one under the parlor-floor overhang, and one at the foot of the parlor-floor staircase. Large container plantings set off the two spaces.

Once again, dry-laid bluestone was used for the surface area. Drought-tolerant plants such as junipers, spirea, oak-leaf hydrangea and certain ornamental grasses were recommended for installation at ground level and in containers along the white cedar panel fence. The design included a pondless water feature, in which the water is continuously recycled and a large shade tree at the back of the property.

The rear yard design also allows plenty of room for a table and chairs in one section, as well as an informal seating area in the other.

“Everything was planted at ground level to give the sense of open space,” McMahon explained. “We wanted to give a free-flowing feel throughout the property.”

“We were very pleased to have been given the opportunity to participate in this historic project and to add to the body of knowledge with regard to eco-friendly landscape design,” said Borst. “Backyards, patios and courtyards are extensions of the home and their design is just as important as the interior landscape and décor. This is especially true in an urban setting where every inch of space, both indoor and outdoor, is prized and every bit of energy, land, water and other natural resources must be cherished and preserved.”

Borst, one of the largest landscape design firms in Bergen County, is a member of the Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program, a voluntary group run by the EPA. The firm takes great pride in its emphasis on organic gardening and lawn care, and last year launched its own private-label line of organic landscape products.