Green walls growing popular

Vertical gardens or ‘living walls’ are starting to become a feature in homes and commercial buildings the world over. Restaurants and cafes now have healthy edible plants on display, while homeowners are using the walls as space-saver gardens or privacy screens.

How do they work, and how easy would it be for you to have one in your home?

Installed indoors, the vertical garden not only becomes a feature wall, but also removes toxins and unhealthy contaminants from the air. It is partly for this reason that it has become a popular element in recent commercial architecture.

Outdoors, it is perfect for blocking the sun from heat-absorbing walls, or creating instant fencing, private nooks and feature walls.

Apartment dwellers can take advantage of modular units to grow a vertical garden on their balcony – tomatoes, herbs, strawberries and many flowers will thrive happily this way, as long as they have sufficient light and water.

Some systems are hydroponic, while others are soil-based, using a lightweight growing medium. There are numerous modular vertical garden systems available on the market that are easy to assemble, or you can opt to have your wall installed by professionals with the plants already established.