Perennials to refresh the roundabout

The roundabout at Prokešovo Square will be newly planted with perennials and bulbous plants in the colours of the City coat-of-arms. As of this weekend, the roundabout will be completely new. The implementation of this public contract is carried out by the firm Ivánek-Zeman under the supervision of the designers Adam and Ivana Baroš from the Perennial Studio.

The heraldic horse made of annuals, which was best seen only from the observation of the New Town Hall, will be replaced by the extensive planting of perennials and bulbous plants. This is an interesting method from Germany, which creates an aesthetic flower bed requiring relatively little maintenance. The main use of these extensive plantings is especially in urban greenery, whether they are smaller or larger areas along roads and pavements, roundabouts, transport islands, etc. In most of these cases, the site is dry, often extremely dry, and in direct sunlight for a considerable part of the day.

“The proposed plant composition, which comes from the studio of outstanding garden architects, will symbolically be based on the colours of the Ostrava coat-of-arms. It will be based on a combination of blue and white, with a red and yellow accent. Planted perennials and bulbous plants will thus decorate the roundabout almost all year round with minimal care,” said Deputy Mayor Kateřina Šebestová, responsible for the environment.

Last week the terrain was remodelled, when the tilt of the flower bed on the roundabout towards the building of the New Town Hall was undone. The entire area of the flower bed was modelled smoothly to the centre so that no edges or unevenness of the terrain was created. A low to medium perennial mixture (up to 80 cm high) was designed in the modified area to provide sufficient traffic visibility.

Classical perennial beds are very often maintenance-intensive and this difficulty often limits their use in urban greenery to a minimum. Plants in the flower bed support each other and prevent the growth of weeds. The specialty of this flower bed is mineral mulch that prevents the soil from drying, keeps more moisture in the soil and also acts as a weed barrier. Plants combine to form a community that is minimally dependent on human care and look attractive all year round.

The first results of the work can be admired at the turn of spring and summer when the plants first bloom. The flower bed is dynamic and will constantly change. Some species may retreat significantly from the flower bed and others may grow significantly. The design emphasizes not only the impressive composition during the main summer season, but also the significant spring aspect of the early blooming bulbous plants, the impressive colouring and the variety of autumn foliage.