More and more homeowners are waking up to the fact that adding a conservatory to their property is a smart and effective way of making their house more environmentally friendly. There are some great benefits to doing this and if you want to see them in action maybe you should go the biggest conservatory on the planet.
The Place
The Eden Project in Cornwall has been described as the biggest of all the conservatories on Earth and is sure to be much bigger than the one you choose from the likes of Anglianhome.co.uk for your home. However, we can still learn a lot by going here and seeing it for ourselves. It took two and a half years to build it and between the Tropical Dome and Mediterranean Dome there are more than 2 hectares of covered land included in this project. It has proved to be a huge success as a visitor attraction and a must see for many of the visitors who spend time in this part of the UK.
Photo © Robin Denton via Flickr
The Plants
There are more than one million plants on display here and it is sure to provide an educational experience for anyone who wants to know more about our reliance upon plants to sustain our planet in a healthy way. Of course, not many of us can fit more than a dozen or so plants into our home conservatory but we can still use the same principle of choosing them well, looking after them and helping the planet in our own little way. An interesting feature of the Eden Project is that the medicinal plants are labelled, so if this is something which interests you then you know where to go to in order to find out more and start your collection at home.
The Water Usage
Can you imagine how much water is needed to keep one million plants healthy and looking good all year round? This could have been a problem for the owners of the Eden Project and it might also be something you worry about at home too. In the case of the Cornwall centre, a clever rainwater storage system collects all of the rainwater which pours down here and uses it for watering the plants and also for the place’s toilet system. You might find that you can do something similar at home although obviously on a much smaller scale. The use of an ecologically friendly rainwater collection barrel is something which is becoming more popular in many households and you can use this water to keep your plants well watered and also to do other things like wash your car. As you sit down and enjoy another warm, sunny afternoon in your new conservatory you can now do so safe in the knowledge that you are doing your bit for the planet as well.