Vertical Greenery Systems (VGS) for energy saving in buildings: A review

This review paper organizes and summarizes the literature on Vertical Greenery Systems (VGS) when used as passive tool for energy savings in buildings. First, with the information obtained in the reviewed literature some key aspects to consider when working with VGS are clarified, such as the classification systems, the climate influence, the plant species used and the different operating mechanisms. Then, the main conclusions of this literature, sorted by construction system (Green Walls or Green Facades) and climatic situation, are summarized. In general, it can be concluded that VGS provide great potential in reducing energy consumption in buildings, especially in the cooling periods. However, a lack of data on operation during the heating period as well as during the whole year has been found. On the other hand, results show that the investigations of VGS are not equally distributed around the world, being basically concentrated in Europe and Asia. Moreover, the review concludes that some aspects must be studied in depth, such as which species are the most suitable for each climate, influence on energy savings of the facade orientation, foliage thickness, presence of air layers, and finally, substrate layer composition and thickness in the case of green walls. (C) 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.