# Botanical Plant Building: A Modern and Sophisticated Space

- Link: https://greenlivingguy.com/2012/06/botanical-plant-building-a-modern-and-sophisticated-space/
- Published: 2012-06-04T18:10:53-04:00
- Author: greenlivingguy

![St. Louis hotel goes green art botanical plant building ](https://i0.wp.com/greenlivingguy.
com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/image-e1571966531905.jpg?resize=148%2C111&quality
=52&ssl=1 "St. Louis hotel goes green art. botanical plant building ")

## Locust Building

Let’s talk a botanical plant building. For they Locust Building is a modern 12-story,
[270,000-square-foot](https://www.facebook.com/TheLocustBuilding/) structure. It’s
at 1015 Locust Street. That’s a block away from the Washington Avenue Loft District
in St. Louis, Missouri.

Building tenants include Level 3 Communications, which is the leading international
provider of fiber-based communications services. Especially, non-profit companies,
legal and accounting firms. When Sue Slocomb became property manager at the Locust
Building, she was determined. Especially to update and [modernize](https://greenlivingguy.com/2014/05/nimbus-tissue-paper-strong-soft-and-eco-friendly/)
the look and feel of the lobby. That’s to complement the architectural beauty of
the botanical plant building.

### CHALLENGE:

“When I took over the management of this prestigious building, I wanted to update
the lobby to reflect the [modern and sophisticated](https://greenlivingguy.com/2020/01/embassy-suites-chicago-rolls-out-giant-green-wall/)
nature of our tenants,” said Sue Slocomb, property manager, CBRE.

“Our lobby had a tired jungle look that was outdated and uninteresting. After making
a number of physical cosmetic improvements to the lobby including the addition of
café tables in the lobby, new artwork, fresh paint and wood working, we sought to
modernize our plantscaping.”

Additionally, the plant beds were shallow and also leaked. It was leaking directly
into the parking garage below. In some cases the plant beds were backed only by 
drywall. That’s clearly and certainly not ideal for live plantings. They also determined
that to correctly prepare the beds they had to accommodate for live botanical plants.
So clearly, it’s building was not going to be cost-effective. Also, there was a 
risk to the tenant vehicles parked below potential water damage.

### SOLUTION:

A new trend taking root across workplaces are permanent botanicals which are botanically
accurate replica plants. Those made with authentic, dried stems and flowers. All
from natural plant materials or with silk and plastics. Permanent botanicals do 
not attract insects, don’t require pesticides and also create an allergy-free environment.

Their approach was to develop a pattern of carefully placed permanent botanicals
of Zen grass balls and Australian Dracaena heads in the beds. Because using these
simple elements in an impressive scale allowed them to achieve. Essentially, display
what complimented the space without overwhelming the vision intended by the architect.

So the use of replica plants eliminated the need for water which solved the problem
of water leaking into the parking garage. All said Slocomb or Storner.

#### RESULTS of a Botanical Plant Building

“The outcome was a striking yet understated landscape that evoked a sense of calm
for our building tenants and visitors,” said Slocomb.

Botanical Plants are installed in buildings because they look beautiful and help
to provide a tranquil environment in which to work or relax. “Tenants and visitors
reach out to touch the permanent botanicals all the time and are amazed at how real
and alive they feel,” said Slocomb.

“Everyone has been very positive about how much more modern and sophisticated the
lobby’s greenscaping is now. In fact, the work has been so positive that we just
contracted Ambius to make the outside of our building pop with creativity and verve.”
“
I believe that a world without plants would be a bleak and austere world as nature
possesses its own joyful power which we are able to harness and cultivate,” adds
Storner. “Permanent botanical plantings are living art which can touch the soul,
lift the spirit and improve the quality of life.”

#### Ambius

Slocomb turned to Charlee Storner, botanical stylist for Ambius, [http://www.ambius.com](http://www.ambius.com).
For they offer a complete range of design and plant services for interior business
environments. Clearly that’s to freshen and enliven the lobby. “There were a mixture
of artificial trees and live overgrown plants with an overall tired look,” says 
Storner. “The plants were not cohesive with the expensive high design elements that
had been used in the remodel.”

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 greenlivingguy

 The Green Living Guy, Seth Leitman is an independent power producer, a green living
expert, and Editor of the McGraw-Hill, TAB Green Guru Guides. Seth is also an Author,
Radio Host, Reporter, Writer and an Environmental Consultant on green living. The
Green Living Guy writes about green living, green lighting, the green guru guides
and more. Seth's books range from: # Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Bob Brant
and Seth Leitman (2nd and 3rd editions) # Build Your Own Plug-in Hybrid Electric
Vehicle by Seth Leitman # Build Your Own Electric Motorcycle by Carl Vogel # Green
Lighting by Seth Leitman, Brian Clark Howard and Bill Brinsky # Solar Power For 
Your Home by David Findley # Renewable Energies For Your Home by Russel Gehrke #
Do-it-Yourself Home Energy Audits by David Findley # Build Your Own Small Wind Power
System by Brian Clark Howard and Kevin Shea # and more green living books to follow.

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