A Recent Project: Greening NYC’s Rosé Wine Mansion

Channeling The Other New York 

This summer, Urbanstrong took on the project of greening NYC’s Rosé Wine Mansion. We installed two 7-foot-tall living walls and incorporated other plants into the 2-story, 14-room space.

Rosé Wine Mansion is an interactive museum where rosé wine lovers can sample the drink from all around the world, learn about its history, and even dip their toes into the science behind how it’s made. All this happens while wandering throughout impeccably designed, often whimsical rooms featuring opportunities for interactive photo ops (for insta, of course).  

Tyler Balliet, co-creator of the Mansion, told us he wanted to bring the, “‘other New York, the lush and green part of the State, into the City.” So Urbanstrong’s challenge was clear: create an urban oasis that calms the mind and restores the senses. We worked on two project areas in the space: a pair of living walls upstairs and greening the entranceway and bar area by way of a lush, towering canopy of trees. 

The Technology

The budget for this project was limited, and the installation was temporary, given the museum’s limited run. This meant that installation should ideally not require plumbing nor electrical work and that the walls should only require a minimal amount of maintenance. Of the several living wall technologies that we work with, ultimately we went with one built on passive irrigation.   The plant roots use a wicking mat to passively draw moisture up from gutter reservoirs – no pumps or timers necessary.  Maintenance is quick and easy as it only takes a few minutes to top up the water reservoirs every every 3-4 weeks.

Plant layout during species selection and arrangement.

The Process

There were a few factors to be considered during the design and installation processes. The client required that work be done quite quickly in time for their grand opening. Therefore, there was virtually no time to pre-grow the plants. We wanted the walls to look as full as possible from day one.  We used sheet moss to cover the exposed wall areas between rows of plants.  Eventually the young plants grew to complete the coverage. We also positioned and balanced the auxiliary lighting to ensure each area of the wall received just the right amount of light energy for proper plant growth.

The fact that the mansion was once a retail space made our job easier. We were able to use existing track lighting to help with plant coverage. There was also a framed-in display area, which made the setting perfect for living walls.

Our clients were thrilled with how the living walls turned out.  Their customers love them too, as evidenced by the hundreds of selfies posted to Instagram in front of the walls.  In keeping with the rosé branding and the space’s color palette, we included some plants flecked with millennial pink, including a couple types of ferns, Rattlesnake Calathea, Triostars, Peacock, and Prayer plants. 

Entrance and Bar Area

For the downstairs entrance, our goal was to take visitors from the hot, gray, humid New York city to green, pristine gardens of Miami. Our client wanted the transition to be palpable.

We built four-foot-tall planters that housed palm, fig trees, as well as birds of paradise. The balmy trees stretch up to 14 feet tall, forming a vibrant towering canopy.  This makes for a surprising welcome for visitors as they step in from Fifth Avenue and begin their journey through pink, tropical mansion.

Rosé Mansion entranceway.

In Conclusion

Urbanstrong had a great time greening this event space, and we had a very happy client. If you’re interested in having us green your event, please don’t hesitate to reach out.