The Eden Dock
I worked as the planting design consultant for Eden Dock, developing the planting design from the concept to the schematic design for this major waterfront regeneration project in Canary Wharf. My designs were approved by the authorities as part of the planning application for the project.
The project transforms a 19th-century dock into a living, climate-resilient urban landscape where planting and ecology define the character of the place. I developed a palette of plant species resilient to the dock’s brackish water conditions, establishing layered, ecologically informed communities across floating platforms, terraces, and dock edges. The planting supports biodiversity, aquatic life, and a strong seasonal structure while maintaining visual quality throughout the year.
Eden Dock has been shortlisted for the Landscape Institute Awards 2025 in the category Excellence in Biodiversity Conservation & Enhancement.
The project transforms a 19th-century dock into a living, climate-resilient urban landscape where planting and ecology define the character of the place. I developed a palette of plant species resilient to the dock’s brackish water conditions, establishing layered, ecologically informed communities across floating platforms, terraces, and dock edges. The planting supports biodiversity, aquatic life, and a strong seasonal structure while maintaining visual quality throughout the year.
Eden Dock has been shortlisted for the Landscape Institute Awards 2025 in the category Excellence in Biodiversity Conservation & Enhancement.
The Eden Dock Design Research
Most people know the phrase “right plant, right place.” In professional landscape design, design research is the process that leads you there. It’s the stage where you study the place first — its light, soil, water, microclimate, and constraints — so that planting decisions are based on understanding rather than guesswork. My approach to planting design always begins with design research, and Eden Dock is a good example of that.
I developed the landscape research and planting strategy for Eden Dock in 2022 as part of the Design and Access Statement, working as an independent planting design consultant to HTA Design. The overall masterplan was created by Howells, with Greengage as the project ecologists.
Eden Dock is surrounded by skyscrapers that create low light levels. The dock water is brackish, which adds yet another interesting challenge.
The Eden Dock Landscape Strategy
The floating elements of the project create a unique advantage: as some units are literally floating with roots able to go directly into the water, this removes the pressing issue of drought tolerance, but adds the restriction of the brackish water. I grouped them into native and non-native typologies, with planting palettes for sunnier and shadier parts of the dock.
The HTA brief required plantings with a more garden-like character along the walkway and the seating. This more complex ornamental yet drought-tolerant design was later, unfortunately, value engineered and simplified to a ubiquitous residential planting mix.
Client:
HTA Design
Collaborators:
Howells, The Eden Project, Greengage, Biomatrix
Planting Design Consultant:
Anna Andreeva
HTA Design
Collaborators:
Howells, The Eden Project, Greengage, Biomatrix
Planting Design Consultant:
Anna Andreeva
Location:
Canary Wharf, London
Project type:
Public realm
Stages:
Concept & Schematic Design
Canary Wharf, London
Project type:
Public realm
Stages:
Concept & Schematic Design
2022
