COLLINS STREET
SMALL NATURE IN THE CITY
NATURE: Public Planters
CLIENT: Hines
SCOPE: Planting design, subject matter expertise, public experience and planting
DESIGN PARTNERS: Nature Collective with the City of Melbourne with construction from Vogue Grange.
OVERVIEW:
The 600 Collins Nature Activation explores how planting can bring nature, biodiversity and seasonal change into the heart of the city.
Located opposite one of Melbourne’s busiest tram stops and diagonally across from Southern Cross Station, the project transforms a highly urban, high-traffic setting into an opportunity for connection with the living world. From planted hoardings to streetscape planters, the activation tests innovative ways of integrating plants into the everyday experience of the city.
Inspired by the Australian Naturalistic Movement, Super Bloom developed a diverse planting palette that embraces texture, movement and change. Native and Indigenous species sit alongside carefully selected introduced plants, creating a layered and resilient planting community designed to evolve through the seasons.
Among the hero species is Xerochrysum palustre, the critically endangered Swamp Everlasting and the City of Melbourne’s floral emblem. It is joined by plants including Scaevola calendulacea, Themeda triandra ‘True Blue’ and Ajuga australis, with selections informed by key City of Melbourne planting guides.
CULTIVATED VALUE
EXPERIMENTAL PLANTING DESIGN
Four distinct planting communities were developed to explore how diverse plant combinations perform within the challenging conditions of the Melbourne CBD. Each community brings together texture, seasonality, resilience and biodiversity, creating an opportunity for observation and learning through time.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
Super Bloom worked collaboratively with the City of Melbourne and the broader project team to align the planting with local biodiversity priorities, public-realm objectives and emerging approaches to urban greening, building shared value across public and private interests.
URBAN DEMONSTRATION
The project creates a high-profile demonstration of innovative urban planting in one of Melbourne’s busiest locations. Collaboration with the City of Melbourne strengthens the project’s horticultural and civic relevance while positioning the activation within a broader conversation about the future of urban nature.
SUPPORTING PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
Super Bloom supported the developer in delivering a meaningful investment in the public realm during the project’s development phase. Rather than treating temporary infrastructure as purely functional, the activation creates an engaging, living contribution to the streetscape for the wider community.
PLANTING NARRATIVE AND CONTENT
Super Bloom developed the narrative surrounding the planting, translating horticultural thinking into engaging public-facing content. Plant stories, biodiversity information and opportunities for citizen science invite people to look more closely and build a deeper connection with nature in the city.
The project also provides an opportunity to trial a new wicking system for public planters, designed by the City of Melbourne, and to explore how urban planting can be supported through considered water management.
With the Yarra River nearby, the planting has been designed to support urban biodiversity and invite insects into the city, including native bees and butterflies. The activation encourages the public to look more closely, observe what arrives and consider the role even small pockets of planting can play within a broader urban ecosystem.
THE MAKING OF A GREEN ROOF
A VIABLE SOLUTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE
Green Roofs are often considered expensive and challenging to install on a larger scale, particularly on existing structures.
Green The Rooftop demonstrates the possibilities of retrofitting existing (and even historic buildings) in an affordable, viable and scalable way, acting as the blue print for future projects aimed at combatting the effects of climate change.
EXTERNAL LINK HERE
At 600 Collins, the landscape is an experiment in what happens when nature is given greater presence in the daily life of the city, creating habitat, sparking curiosity and bringing a living, changing landscape to one of Melbourne’s busiest urban thresholds.
