Vertical Gardening

Vertical gardening is one of the best ways to have a garden if you have limited space. Read these tips on how to grow a beautiful vertical garden!

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Vertical gardens are so fun and easy to create. There isn’t much to them and you can pretty much put them anywhere.

Recently, I was watching Home Town on HGTV (with my favorite DIY couple!). The front door was actually on the side of the house so they moved it to the front of the house. They created a vertical garden in place of the side door. I found that so interesting and creative!

Vertical gardening saves a lot of space and can also be very cost-effective. Keep reading to see the benefits as well as how and what to plant in a vertical garden.

Benefits of Vertical Gardening

They save space

Vertical gardening is perfect for those who wish to have a garden, but don’t have the space to do so. For example, if you live in an apartment and are short on space this is a great option.

These types of gardens are also perfect for the disabled that can no longer tend to a larger size garden. However, it doesn’t matter if you are short on space, disabled, or have plenty of room for a large garden, vertical gardening is still a great way to garden.

They can go anywhere

Besides being a space saver, vertical gardens can be planted anywhere. You can plant vertical gardens on

• fences
• walls,
• balconies
• small patios
• doors

With no weeding to be done, these gardens are easy to maintain. Risk of pests eating up your plants is also minimized and plants are protected from being dug up by animals.

They’re great for your health

There are some health benefits that come from vertical garden planting as well. Therapeutically, plants reduce stress and have a more positive impact on overall health. Some say that working on their gardens reduces their stress levels leaving them feeling calmer and more relaxed. Having vegetables around helps us to eat healthier foods.

Environmental benefits include improved air quality because vertical gardens act as a protective shield from harmful pollutants. According to One Million Moms, “Vertical gardens help to reduce the carbon footprint of a building by filtering pollutants and carbon dioxide out of the air, which also benefits those living nearby as the quality of the air is improved. Exterior wall vertical gardens also help to reduce heat absorption, which can result in significant energy savings in areas where people rely on air-conditioning during the warmer parts of the year.”

See also: All About Window Box Gardening

What to plant in a vertical garden

You can choose to plant vegetables, herbs, or houseplants in your vertical garden. Here are some examples from each category:

• Vegetables: peas, pole beans, asparagus beans, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, beets, carrots, onions, radish
• Herbs: chives, cilantro, sage, mint, basil, oregano, parsley
• Houseplants: flowers (alyssum, pansies, violas, begonias), ferns, succulents, flowering vines (morning glory, black-eyed Susan, hummingbird vine)

Don’t limit yourself to just these plants. Choose whatever you wish to plant for your vertical garden. Plants can be found just about anywhere including hardware stores, nurseries, and some grocery stores.

Recommended read: 10 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do With Lemons

DIY Vertical Gardens

Making a vertical garden doesn’t have to be difficult, nor does it have to be expensive. There are tons of ideas out there for DIY vertical gardens, you’ll just have to do a little research.

Here are some interesting vertical garden ideas:

• pallets
• mailboxes
• kitchen spice racks
• canvas shoe organizers
• galvanized buckets
• upcycled gutters vertically hung on a board

Vertical Gardening How To

1. Type – You first need to decide what type of garden you want to grow.
2. Placement – Will your vertical garden be indoors or outdoors? Full sun, shady, or both?
3. Plants – Succulents, herbs, vegetables, trailing plants, ferns, houseplants; choose plants that will get along together (same amount of sun or shade and growth rate).
4. Soil – You want to use potting soil because vertical plants dry out quicker and potting soil holds in moisture. Plants that don’t need a lot of water should be planted at the top since that part dries quicker.
5. Prep – Grow plants horizontally for a few weeks to allow the roots to establish themselves. This will hold the plants in place better when you put them vertically to grow.
6. Consider Drip Irrigation – Because vertical gardens have less soil they may need to be watered more often than a regular garden. Watering can also be tricky to manage without making a huge mess. Plus you want to make sure that all the plants are getting the same amount of water. Investing in a drip irrigation system would be very helpful.

Related: 5 Indoor Plants That Are Hard To Kill

As you can see there are many benefits to vertical gardening. If you live in an apartment, for example, you can have a garden on your balcony. If you have no space for an in-ground garden, think vertically. Look for walls and fences you can put your garden on. There are no limits to where you can place your vertical garden.

Do you have a vertical garden or have you ever considered vertical gardening? If so, do you have any tips you’d like to share?