Last updated on August 26th, 2023 at 10:22 am
How to Create a Hanging Garden. Making a hanging garden in your house is a fresh and innovative design idea and will definitely make your home stand out. There are many different ways of making one, and it is only a matter of what you like, what you want and what suits you and your home best. You can choose between different sizes, shapes, design, plants, as well as pick the best spot for it, whether outdoors or indoors.
What are Hanging Gardens?
Hanging gardens, also called wall gardens, vertical walls and living green walls can be attached to walls or freestanding. They can be indoors or outdoors, on any wall of your choice, and can have plants that are pre-grown or planted on the site. It is an innovative idea for those who don’t have a backyard or simply not enough horizontal space for a conventional garden.
Which Plants to Choose?
Some of the best options when it comes to plants are different kinds of ferns, pothos, lipstick plants, vines, peace lily, philodendron and others. What makes them a good solution is that they don’t need a lot of sunlight, can withstand dry or humid conditions, don’t need a lot of watering, and are in general low-maintenance.
Carefully consider your options and choose what is best for the conditions you can provide. Be careful to expose the plant to enough sun, as well as water them regularly, or according to their needs.
An excellent way to go is also choosing native plants and perennials since they are already well adapted to your local conditions, such as the climate and the type of soil. This makes them more durable, resistant, and easy to maintain and they will last longer.
How to Build One – Important Considerations
To start with, you need to choose a wall. It can be basically any wall – one that you want to cover up, an empty one, the one you don’t use or don’t know what to do with. The weight of the garden is not really a factor in choosing it because it is in general very lightweight, and any wall can support its burden. Just consider the amount of light it has, and which plants can thrive on it.
The garden can be in any room, garden shed, basement, or even the attic. The attic is a good solution if you have nowhere else to place your hanging garden and it depends on the shape and building materials of your roof. It is an unusual place for one, but you can turn it into your own little private oasis. Of course, be careful to have proper conditions for it.
The most important thing is to have a properly insulated attic since they are usually the most vulnerable and exposed to outside conditions. If it is well insulated, then the garden will also be well protected and under your care and control.
Depending on the type and the solution for your garden, you may need to build a frame for it. It is not a complicated task, and you can do it yourself. There are three main parts you will need – the frame itself, a plastic sheet, and some fiber to put on top of it. The frame can be made to hang on the wall or be directly attached to it.
But, it is more convenient and easier to build it before hanging it on the wall. You will need to put a plastic sheet directly to the frame as protection from water, and put a sheet of fabric on it to retain the water well. After that, put the plants on this layer of fabric.
The last thing you have to do is to install a proper irrigation system. Of course, you can always take care of the watering by yourself, and do it manually. But then, you have to be careful to do it regularly and according to each of the plant’s needs.
By installing an automatic drip irrigation system, on the other hand, you can make the maintenance much easier. You can set it up so that every plant gets enough water as often as it needs. This kind of system will waste less water by distributing it more efficiently, and it will also save you time and money.
Design Ideas
One of many excellent design ideas is to build your garden in the form of pockets. It is a fun way to organize it, and you can also experiment with it, arranging the pockets in any way you like. You can build a frame and then distribute the planted pockets on it, or you can attach them directly to the wall. It depends on the kind of the wall you have and what it allows you to do.
The material for the pockets can be any that is strong enough to carry the soil and the plant, and durable enough to retain water and moisture without rotting. The best option for the environment would be some recyclable material.
Alternatively, you can use some other things and materials that are lying around your house not being used. You can repurpose some empty containers or jars and put plants inside of them, or even plastic bottles. You can attach those containers and bottles to your wall and arrange them in any way that fits your style and walls.
How to Create a Hanging Garden
One great solution is to cover the entire wall with lush greenery. If you decide to do that, choose plants that can grow two to three feet and then plant them on the top of the wall. They will grow out from the wall towards the ground. The excellent thing is that they will create shade when growing out from the top. Finally, plant some other plants that don’t need much sunlight beneath or underneath it, for example, fern and you will get a nice waterfall effect on your wall!
Author: Matthew James
Short bio:
Matt James is a freelance writer specialized in home improvement, smart technology, architecture & design. He has a love of outdoors and spending time with his dog Cooper. You can reach him on Facebook and Instagram.
