A 39 m² REGENERATIVE GARDEN IN LISBON
Garden designed by Isabel Marcos & Laurent Bourhis
Article by Isabel Marcos
© Photography: Isabel Marcos
This 39 m² garden, complemented by a 9 m² terrace, is the result of a transformative project developed by Isabel Marcos and Laurent Bourhis. Initially planned to be entirely covered with tiles, the space was instead reimagined as a living garden: a small urban ecosystem capable of supporting biodiversity while improving the environmental and thermal conditions of the home. The project explores how regenerative design can operate at a very small scale. Rather than treating the garden as a decorative addition to the house, it considers soil, vegetation, water, climate, animals and human inhabitants as parts of an interconnected living system.
PLANTING FOR ECOLOGICAL BALANCE
Instead of a traditional lawn, poorly adapted to Lisbon’s hot and dry summers, the garden combines ground-cover species with different layers of vegetation. The aim is to reduce water evaporation, protect and enrich the soil, create shade and provide different habitats for urban biodiversity. The garden is not based on a single ornamental composition but on the coexistence of species with complementary ecological functions.
STRUCTURAL AND PROTECTIVE VEGETATION
Ivy (Hedera helix) forms a dense green wall, providing shelter for pollinators and urban birds while protecting the built surfaces from direct solar exposure.
Fan Palm (Chamaerops humilis), a Mediterranean species well adapted to dry conditions, contributes to the spatial structure of the garden and creates areas of shade.
Cycas (Cycas revoluta) introduces another layer of persistent vegetation and is particularly resistant to periods of low water availability.
Candelabra Cactus (Euphorbia ingens) provides a sculptural vertical element while requiring relatively little water.
Succulents and other drought-tolerant plants, both in the ground and in pots, complement these structural species and increase the diversity of forms, textures and ecological niches.
GROUND COVER AND LIVING SOIL
At ground level, several species replace the conventional lawn and contribute to maintaining a living soil.
White Clover (Trifolium repens) contributes to nitrogen fixation and helps maintain vegetal cover during dry periods.
Wild Oregano (Origanum vulgare) creates an aromatic, flowering ground layer attractive to pollinators.
Lippia (Phyla nodiflora, syn. Lippia nodiflora) provides a resilient, low-water ground cover capable of tolerating some foot traffic.
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) contributes to spontaneous ecological diversity and provides resources for pollinating insects.
Meadow Sage (Salvia pratensis) adds another flowering layer attractive to butterflies and other insects.
Mosses, spontaneous ferns and other plants are allowed to develop in shaded and humid areas rather than being systematically removed. Their presence contributes to soil protection, moisture retention and the formation of differentiated microhabitats.
The objective is not simply to select plants capable of surviving heat and drought. It is to establish relationships between species, soil, shade, humidity and seasonal change so that the garden can progressively develop its own ecological dynamics.
A REFUGE FOR URBAN BIODIVERSITY
Over time, the garden has become inhabited by a variety of species. Pollinating insects use its flowering plants. Birds find food and shelter among the vegetation. Mediterranean lizards and geckos have established themselves in the garden and around the house, feeding on insects. Spiders, beetles and other small organisms participate in the ecological regulation of the space. Rather than eliminating these forms of life, the project creates the conditions for their coexistence. The garden consequently becomes more than a planted surface. It functions as a small urban ecosystem in which human habitation and other forms of life occupy the same territory.
WATER, SOIL AND CLIMATE
The regenerative approach also concerns the management of natural resources. The soil is maintained without synthetic chemicals, using compost and organic amendments. Plant species are selected and combined according to their capacity to withstand periods of drought and to reduce unnecessary irrigation. Vegetation also plays a climatic role. By shading walls and soil, intercepting solar radiation and maintaining areas of humidity, the garden helps limit heat accumulation around the house. The result is a small but perceptible modification of the local microclimate.
AN ALTERNATIVE TO CONCRETE AND TILES
The decision not to mineralise the 39 m² garden was fundamental. Had the entire surface been covered with tiles, the ground would have lost much of its capacity to absorb water and sustain biological life, while exposed mineral surfaces would have accumulated solar heat. Keeping the soil alive made another trajectory possible: vegetation could develop, water could infiltrate, animals could establish habitats, and the garden could participate in regulating the immediate microclimate. The project thus raises a broader question for contemporary cities: what becomes possible when even very small areas of urban soil are allowed to remain alive?
39 m² AS A REGENERATIVE TERRITORY
Thirty-nine square metres may appear insignificant at the scale of a city. Yet ecological transformation does not depend exclusively on large interventions. A small garden can become a refuge, a permeable surface, a climatic buffer and a habitat. Connected to other gardens, terraces, courtyards, trees and fragments of spontaneous vegetation, it can also participate in a wider urban ecological network. This Lisbon garden is therefore conceived as a small regenerative territory: a place where design does not simply organise forms but creates conditions through which living systems can develop, interact and transform the space over time. Can 39 m² change a city? Perhaps not alone. But 39 m² can change the ecological conditions of a place — and multiplied across a city, these small living territories can begin to change its dynamics.
Isabel Marcos
Founder & President, Significant Design
Research Centre · Art · Science · Regenerative Design
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