DAY 3: Fukuoko Step Garden Building

The 'Step Garden' is a terraced rooftop garden on the south side of the ACROS Fukuoka building which was designed by the Argentine-American architect Emilio Ambasz

The Step Garden consists of 13 tiers, six meters deep and between 120 to 98 meters wide. The garden looks like a natural mountain, for it contains 37,000 plants of 76 species, including trees such as the Japanese plum and maple, and hanging plants such as Shore Juniper. So far the garden has been blessed with sufficient rainfall, so the attached sprinkler system hasn't been used yet.

A study showed that tree planting on the step-shaped rooftop has helped alleviate the urban heat island effect. The daytime temperature of concrete surfaces exceeded 50 degrees Celsius, while plant surfaces were 15 degrees lower, at 38 degrees. Plants also helped cool the surrounding air by transpiration.

Thanks to the terraced shape of the Step Garden, downdrafts blew along the slope even during the night when the wind is usually moderate elsewhere. After nightfall, the temperature of the plant-covered surfaces decline sharply due to radiative cooling, which produces the cold air blowing down the stepped garden. The garden is expected to help ease sweltering summer nights, when the temperature often stays above 25 degrees in urban areas.

I had to let the others run up the many stairs, but they got their just desserts....mosquitos.......many of them........Lucia came running out and straight to the fountain where she put her legs in the cool wter nad scratched and scratched and scratched. I was of course mosquito free.