Landscaping story of the uncanny rail park of New York
How the High Line project turned an unused railroad into a park in the sky.
Robert Hammond was just an enthusiast interested in the rustic marvel of the High Line — one of New York’s oldest and eventually defunct public transport systems. However, when the future of the railway line was at stake, he decided to participate in one of the most romantic landscaping preservation projects.
The High Line was abandoned in the 80’s with the last train that ran on the route delivering frozen turkeys for Thanksgiving.
In the following decades, invasive plant species had overtaken the park, reclaiming the land with wild overgrowth. Hammond was impressed by the patch of nature in sharp contrast against the city.
In 1999, Hammond co-created ‘Friends of the High Line’ , a non-profit charitable organization with the sole mission of preserving the heritage of high line. The organization was critical to the transition of the old abandoned railroad into a beautiful, contemporary landscape.
“High Line park is an ode to the busy commute that defines New York.”
Landscaping design of the High Line
As an end result of the concerted efforts of Friends of High Line, the city of New York eventually agreed to preserve the High Line and turn it into a park with unique landscaping design. The design competition held to reimagine this space had a clear winner — James Corner Field Operations
The 23 city-block long design delivered by Field Operations was characterized by ‘intimate choreography of movement’.
Landscaping plants of High Line
The most intricate part of any city landscaping project are the plants and trees that add character to it, and the High Line chose celebrated Dutch designer — Pete Oudolf to get this right. Oudolf is a highly acclaimed garden designer, renowned for his passion for perennials. He has also authored several books on the subject, including ‘Dream Plants for Natural Gardens’. As a native plants thought leader, Oudolf was the perfect designer to take on High Line project, and prioritized natural cycle of plants as a key theme.
The High Line park today features an astonishing 100,000 plants, trees and shrubs, with their unique features. Due to the seasonality of plants, the park morphs and evolves in each season, making it an uncanny microcosm of native trees, right in the heart of the maximum city!
High line park website is an amazing resource to find out all about the plants used, and they even feature the best ones for every seasons. Here are some of the varieties featured on their website.
As it stands and moves today, the High Line park is a beautiful confluence of industrial era structures and plants. The creators, and activists who made this happen have gone on to win many awards, certainly well-deserved. If you love gardens and cities, the High Line definitely has to be on your travel list.
Want to read about other award-winning landscapes?
You will love this post on other award-winning landscaping designs.
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