Vertical gardening is a big trend. It’s only logical: you don’t need much space for a spectacular result. Ideal for smaller urban gardens, roof gardens or balconies but also great for a larger garden. Wave your magic gardening wand: change a bare wall into a living wall!
DIY or buy
If you’re handy, you can build your own vertical garden yourself out of materials like pallets, boxes, gutters or grow bags. These days, more and more ready-made systems are becoming available. You can even use them to create a garden partition. The more densely you plant it, the less the construction will show.
Which plants?
Many plants can be used for this. It’s important, however, to choose ones with shallow roots. If your green wall receives a lot of sunlight, then Thrift (Armeria), bellflowers (Campanula), Bugleweed (Ajuga reptans), cranesbills (Geranium), daylilies (Hemerocallis) and Autumn Moor Grass (Sesleria) would work well. Coral Bells (Heuchera), Coleus and Hosta prefer semi-shade. And Japanese Spurge (Pachysandra) and Periwinkle (Vinca) are perfect for a shady wall. Mix or match the plants you especially like!
Watering and fertilising
Vertical gardening is actually the same as horizontal gardening except that you don’t have to bend over as much. Limit the size of plants that become too big by pruning them, and replace any plants that don’t perform well. This will happen more often than when simply planting in the garden soil. The soil in vertical gardens is more prone to drying out, so water frequently and don’t forget to provide fertiliser. Make sure that excess water can drain off. A drip irrigation system would be practical and is already built into some systems.
Tips
- Since water trickles downward, plant the most drought-tolerant plants at the top and the moisture-loving plants at the bottom.
- Include edible plants such as Thyme (Thymus), Mint (Mentha) and wild strawberries (Fragaria vesca).
- Gardening on a wall will keep your house cooler in the summer and serve as insulation in the winter.
Also interesting:
Kinds of perennials
Evergreen plants for endless enjoyment
Perennials, what are they?
