Wall gardens are the new wall art
Vertical gardens are all the rage these days. Everyone’s talking about them: designers and clients alike. But what exactly is a vertical garden? Vertical gardens, also known as wall gardens, are wall-mounted plants that can be installed either indoors or outdoors. They’re typically made from a wooden frame and covered with some sort of mesh material that allows plants to grow in place while using minimal space. Many times they’re hung on a wall and have hanging pots attached, but they may also take on different shapes and sizes depending on the person designing them.
What’s the difference between vertical gardens and green walls? A green wall, or living wall, is very similar to a vertical garden—except it uses more complicated systems of irrigation and can be used to create entire walls covered with vegetation. You may see them around town in large public areas like parks or shopping malls where they can really stand out as a striking visual piece.
Now that you know what vertical gardens look like, let’s talk about how versatile they can be when you’re decorating your home!
In a world where a living, breathing green wall is considered more decorative than a hand-painted masterpiece, it’s safe to say that wall gardens are taking over.
Perhaps you’ve already seen some examples of these ubiquitous greenery systems, though you might not have realized what they were. If not, it’s only a matter of time before the trend hits your neighborhood, if it hasn’t reached there already.
A wall garden can be a delicate cascade of tiny ferns, or an artistic array of succulents. It may boast a multitude of different colors and textures, or it may be neat rows of the same species. It’s all up to you!
The great thing about having your own custom-made wall garden is how simple it is to maintain. You simply take care of the plants as if they were in pots—the difference being that instead of pots hanging on a wall, the plants themselves are hanging on the wall! Water is then dispersed through tubes in what’s called capillary action (meaning it moves upwards without any gravity by pulling water molecules along with it). The bonus here is that you can choose between watering just once a week or every two weeks—depending on your personal preference and schedule.
Why are vertical gardens so popular?
You might be wondering why people are suddenly so interested in vertical gardens. After all, they’ve been around for a while. Well here are just a few reasons:
- They use space that would otherwise go to waste. You don’t need to have much floor space in order to grow your own vegetables and herbs. Vertical gardens can make use of unused wall or ceiling space and bring life to otherwise bare spaces.
- They are beautiful and decorative additions to any home or garden. They look great outdoors and indoors, even on simple walls like white bedroom walls or office walls. A vertical garden is an easy way to make a room look warm and cozy without investing too much time or effort into decorating your walls with other types of art (though we think vertical gardens are kind of art).
- They are ecological! If you have the option between throwing away produce from a grocery store or growing your own vegetables at home, wouldn’t you rather grow your own? By planting vegetables, fruits, nuts and herbs in hanging flower pots (or self-watering planters), you can reduce the amount of plastic bags used by grocery stores as well as food waste thrown out by households every week. Even better if you live in an apartment building with no yard—you can start growing your own food at home!
- They require less maintenance than ground gardens! Water just drips down the wall instead of evaporating when it sits on top of soil all day long waiting for rainstorms that never come.
As amazing as it is, the vertical garden is also an ecological and responsible choice.
Not only are they beautiful, but there are additional benefits to installing a vertical garden in your space. From an ecological standpoint, living walls absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere, reducing greenhouse gases while simultaneously improving air quality.
They can also help reduce energy consumption by providing natural insulation to buildings—for example, they can maintain a comfortable temperature year-round without resorting to heaters or air conditioners. Additionally, vertical gardens have a cooling effect by absorbing heat away from buildings; this helps reduce the urban heat island effect, which is responsible for making cities generally warmer than surrounding rural areas.
Furthermore, living walls can be used for purposes of biofiltration; that is, they can filter polluted air through their root systems and plants. Vertical gardens also assist in reducing noise pollution in urban areas due to the sound dampening effects of their soil and vegetation.
Finally, vertical gardens provide habitat for birds and bees as well as other beneficial insects such as ladybugs and butterflies that act as pollinators.
What can you grow on your wall garden?
In a place like the Bay Area, where summer days can be brutally hot and modern architecture often leaves something to be desired in terms of aesthetics, anything that makes your home look good and stay cool is worth investing in. So why not try some vertical gardening?
Vertical gardens utilize space by hanging off walls, which means they take advantage of areas that might otherwise go unused. These gardens are also useful for covering up unsightly parts of your home’s exterior or interior walls—such as those that have cracks or mold damage. Once you have a wall garden set up, it should require relatively little maintenance beyond watering and occasional pruning (depending on what type of plants you’re growing). What does this mean? It means all the work you put into creating a vertical garden will pay off in spades later on when you’re enjoying fresh culinary herbs from your garden year-round.
But what can you grow on your wall garden? The answer is “just about anything.” You could plant flowers, herbs, fruit and vegetables—even succulents if you don’t want to deal with too much water. In fact, even small trees and vines can be grown on wall gardens! Just make sure to pick a species suited for your region so it can thrive long-term.
Here’s how to DIY your own vertical garden.
Now that you know a bit about the vertical garden trend, it’s time to get into the nitty gritty: how do you build your own?
First, it’s important to consider what type of plants will be used. Plants that grow fast and keep their leaves through all four seasons are ideal, as they will help create a lush look while also withstanding any winds or storms throughout the year. In addition, tall plants like vines can be used to fill out areas and add some depth. Finally, plants that require little sunlight are most suitable for vertical gardens placed on walls because they may not receive enough light in these locations.
Basically, if you’re going to invest in a vertical garden setup, you want to make sure it lasts!
Vertical gardens can be created from many materials and plants and will beautify any space in ways that traditional art can’t!
The possibilities that await you in your new vertical garden are endless.
- You can reduce your water usage by growing drought-resistant plants and by creating a self-watering wall like the one shown.
- You can beautify any space while also improving air quality by planting trees, ferns, ivy, or other air-improving plants on your walls.
- If you’re short on space, you can use your walls to grow food or herbs that would otherwise take up valuable real estate in your kitchen.
- Unlike art that hangs on a wall, a vertical garden is simply gorgeous to look at and is sure to impress guests as well as industry experts like Martha Stewart (and don’t we all care what she thinks?).
Wall gardens are the new wall art
Vertical gardens are all the rage these days. Everyone’s talking about them: designers and clients alike. But what exactly is a vertical garden? Vertical gardens, also known as wall gardens, are wall-mounted plants that can be installed either indoors or outdoors. They’re typically made from a wooden frame and covered with some sort of mesh material that allows plants to grow in place while using minimal space. Many times they’re hung on a wall and have hanging pots attached, but they may also take on different shapes and sizes depending on the person designing them.
What’s the difference between vertical gardens and green walls? A green wall, or living wall, is very similar to a vertical garden—except it uses more complicated systems of irrigation and can be used to create entire walls covered with vegetation. You may see them around town in large public areas like parks or shopping malls where they can really stand out as a striking visual piece.
Now that you know what vertical gardens look like, let’s talk about how versatile they can be when you’re decorating your home!
In a world where a living, breathing green wall is considered more decorative than a hand-painted masterpiece, it’s safe to say that wall gardens are taking over.
Perhaps you’ve already seen some examples of these ubiquitous greenery systems, though you might not have realized what they were. If not, it’s only a matter of time before the trend hits your neighborhood, if it hasn’t reached there already.
A wall garden can be a delicate cascade of tiny ferns, or an artistic array of succulents. It may boast a multitude of different colors and textures, or it may be neat rows of the same species. It’s all up to you!
The great thing about having your own custom-made wall garden is how simple it is to maintain. You simply take care of the plants as if they were in pots—the difference being that instead of pots hanging on a wall, the plants themselves are hanging on the wall! Water is then dispersed through tubes in what’s called capillary action (meaning it moves upwards without any gravity by pulling water molecules along with it). The bonus here is that you can choose between watering just once a week or every two weeks—depending on your personal preference and schedule.
Why are vertical gardens so popular?
You might be wondering why people are suddenly so interested in vertical gardens. After all, they’ve been around for a while. Well here are just a few reasons:
They use space that would otherwise go to waste. You don’t need to have much floor space in order to grow your own vegetables and herbs. Vertical gardens can make use of unused wall or ceiling space and bring life to otherwise bare spaces.
They are beautiful and decorative additions to any home or garden. They look great outdoors and indoors, even on simple walls like white bedroom walls or office walls. A vertical garden is an easy way to make a room look warm and cozy without investing too much time or effort into decorating your walls with other types of art (though we think vertical gardens are kind of art).
They are ecological! If you have the option between throwing away produce from a grocery store or growing your own vegetables at home, wouldn’t you rather grow your own? By planting vegetables, fruits, nuts and herbs in hanging flower pots (or self-watering planters), you can reduce the amount of plastic bags used by grocery stores as well as food waste thrown out by households every week. Even better if you live in an apartment building with no yard—you can start growing your own food at home!
They require less maintenance than ground gardens! Water just drips down the wall instead of evaporating when it sits on top of soil all day long waiting for rainstorms that never come.
As amazing as it is, the vertical garden is also an ecological and responsible choice.
Not only are they beautiful, but there are additional benefits to installing a vertical garden in your space. From an ecological standpoint, living walls absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere, reducing greenhouse gases while simultaneously improving air quality.
They can also help reduce energy consumption by providing natural insulation to buildings—for example, they can maintain a comfortable temperature year-round without resorting to heaters or air conditioners. Additionally, vertical gardens have a cooling effect by absorbing heat away from buildings; this helps reduce the urban heat island effect, which is responsible for making cities generally warmer than surrounding rural areas.
Furthermore, living walls can be used for purposes of biofiltration; that is, they can filter polluted air through their root systems and plants. Vertical gardens also assist in reducing noise pollution in urban areas due to the sound dampening effects of their soil and vegetation.
Finally, vertical gardens provide habitat for birds and bees as well as other beneficial insects such as ladybugs and butterflies that act as pollinators.
What can you grow on your wall garden?
In a place like the Bay Area, where summer days can be brutally hot and modern architecture often leaves something to be desired in terms of aesthetics, anything that makes your home look good and stay cool is worth investing in. So why not try some vertical gardening?
Vertical gardens utilize space by hanging off walls, which means they take advantage of areas that might otherwise go unused. These gardens are also useful for covering up unsightly parts of your home’s exterior or interior walls—such as those that have cracks or mold damage. Once you have a wall garden set up, it should require relatively little maintenance beyond watering and occasional pruning (depending on what type of plants you’re growing). What does this mean? It means all the work you put into creating a vertical garden will pay off in spades later on when you’re enjoying fresh culinary herbs from your garden year-round.
But what can you grow on your wall garden? The answer is “just about anything.” You could plant flowers, herbs, fruit and vegetables—even succulents if you don’t want to deal with too much water. In fact, even small trees and vines can be grown on wall gardens! Just make sure to pick a species suited for your region so it can thrive long-term.
Here’s how to DIY your own vertical garden.
Now that you know a bit about the vertical garden trend, it’s time to get into the nitty gritty: how do you build your own?
First, it’s important to consider what type of plants will be used. Plants that grow fast and keep their leaves through all four seasons are ideal, as they will help create a lush look while also withstanding any winds or storms throughout the year. In addition, tall plants like vines can be used to fill out areas and add some depth. Finally, plants that require little sunlight are most suitable for vertical gardens placed on walls because they may not receive enough light in these locations.
Basically, if you’re going to invest in a vertical garden setup, you want to make sure it lasts!
Vertical gardens can be created from many materials and plants and will beautify any space in ways that traditional art can’t!
The possibilities that await you in your new vertical garden are endless.
You can reduce your water usage by growing drought-resistant plants and by creating a self-watering wall like the one shown.
You can beautify any space while also improving air quality by planting trees, ferns, ivy, or other air-improving plants on your walls.
If you’re short on space, you can use your walls to grow food or herbs that would otherwise take up valuable real estate in your kitchen.
Unlike art that hangs on a wall, a vertical garden is simply gorgeous to look at and is sure to impress guests as well as industry experts like Martha Stewart (and don’t we all care what she thinks?).