i'm designing my first 'healing garden' in a small hospital in new england. the room is south facing and will have floor to ceiling, curved windows (approx. 25' long x 13' high). i had the idea of using Buxus or Ilex crenata (for 'grounding', dark green structure) and some kind of bamboo (for movement and rustling sound). from what i've heard, the humidity level in hospitals has to be kept quite low. i'm afraid that spider mites may take over. i've thought about placing them on beach rocks set in water and maybe a mister? has anyone out there had experience with this? i'd greatly appreciate input.
If you use a humidifier, you can dfinetly increase the humidity. After that your basicaly restricted only by the hight of the room.
Most hospitals have a local plant service that takes care of the plants within the building. I would first consult with them regarding what is currently avialable within your area with regards to specific plant species. Obviously, your design has to fall within the plant service's ability to take care of the environment. Water features design has to be considered, as well. Moisture in contact with a lot of organic material, in an enclosed space, is a set up for soil-borne fungi, mold, mildew, etc. Not good for sick people. Our hospital ended up making an artificial stream bed made of large chunks of glass and lit from underneath. It serves it's purpose, and it is cool to look at, but it just didn't fit with the theme of the healing garden, in my opinion. That said, there are many plants that tolerate dry air. It just depends upon what kind of air circulation, lighting conditions, temperatures (as well as any night-day variances), and also whether or not you want flower pollen in that environment. You have to think about people with allergies and reactive airways diseases. Watering is any easy variable and can be managed by your plant service. If one is concerned about pests like mites, then consider plants with tough, fleshy foliage such as Sansevierias, Agaves, some Euphorbias, Beaucarneas and Haworthias. However, these plants also need plenty of light. Your plant service will take care of any pests by either removing the plant from the environment and replacing it, or by treating the plant on site. Healing gardens within the hospital is a quite a bit more complicated than one would think. There may be load restrictions, if there are floors underneath. Building operations must be involved with the air circulation/conditioning design. Handicap and wheelchair accessibility design. Of course, as mentioned above, there may be restrictions with regards to the type of plants....fungi (molds, mildews), pollen, and even abrupt changes in humidity can be a serious health risk to some people in the hospital. Personally, I like arid-climate/desert plants...but that is just me. There is a reason why so many people with allergies move to Arizona.
