Last Updated on April 10, 2024 by Real Men Sow
For people who find gardening relaxing and enjoyable but have no space to grow one, a vertical garden is the answer. Gardening indeed is a wonderful and soothing way to spend time outdoors with your thoughts and the dirt. This is particularly true post-COVID when many individuals started gardening to ease stress.
What Is Vertical Gardening?
Vertical gardening is exactly what it sounds like. It’s gardening on a vertical surface. It can be indoors or outdoors, with edible plants and flowers. The most common vertical surfaces are a fence’s side, an empty and open wall, or a piece of furniture that has been repurposed. A vertical garden can be a creative and innovative way to achieve the gardener you’ve always wanted.
What Can You Grow In A Vertical Garden?
A Vertical garden can be used to grow almost any type of plant that doesn’t need a lot of space. Vertical gardening is a great way to grow herbs and flowers. They don’t have to be planted in deep soil. Vertical gardens can be used to grow other kinds of plants. You just need to pay attention to the depth you are planting and plan accordingly.
If you plan to plant carrots in your vertical garden, ensure that there are at least 12 inches of soil for them to grow into. This is different than if you were to plant a herb with a shallow root system.
How Do You Build A Vertical Garden?
There are many types of vertical gardens, so there’s something to suit everyone’s needs and space. Martin has an example of a gutter garden made from old rain gutters. These gutters have been cut into sections and drilled for drainage. This is the easiest way to make use of your vertical space for gardening.
To ensure that the plants had plenty of drainages, we cut the gutters into four sections. Then we mounted them on 2x4s that were horizontally attached to a Trellis. Mount your vertical planters on sturdy supports that can withstand the weight of plants and soil.
After mounting the planters, we filled them up with nutrient-rich pot mix and then picked out the plants we wanted to grow. Then we planted them in the soil at regular intervals and gave them a good watering.
We used old rain gutters to plant edible plants. The gutters are only 5 feet deep. We also planted herbs and small edibles such as lettuce and kale. Vertical gardens made from planter boxes and buckets will provide more depth so you can plant more varieties.
Reminders When Growing in a Vertical Garden
- Remember that plants have different needs. Some plants need to be in full sunlight all day, like tomatoes. Others need just a few hours of light each morning, like flowers. You will choose the plants that best suit the space you have for your vertical garden.
- Depending on the year, you can either plant seeds or start in your Vertical Garden.
- You should water your plants often, as containers dry soil faster than if they were grown in the ground. The soil will dry faster if the containers are smaller or shallower than the ground.
