One of the coolest gardening possibilities is vertical gardening and no one does it better than botanist and the inventor of the Vertical Garden, Patrick Blanc.
The Garden House by Patrick Blanc Image credit
He has traveled the world studying the habitat of plants that live near waterfalls, clinging to the wet rocks extracting nutrients from the flowing water and has replicated it to create living walls of green art.
It appears the plants are growing on the buildings but that is only an illusion. There are many ways to construct a living wall but create this kind of scale he uses and industrial materials.
A steel frame is constructed alongside the wall and pexiglass, plastic panels are attached to the steel frame. Felt fabric is bolted to the pexiglass in a double layer. At the top edge of the panel a drip hose is sandwiched between the two layers of felt and attached to a pump at the base of the wall.
Underneath the wall is a sunken basin to catch the water that flows through the wall. It's basically a hydroponic system. Water is pumped up to the top of the wall where it flows through the drip line at the top and slowly drips through the felt, catches into the basin at the bottom and recycles back up.
Plants are selected so that the plants that can take more exposure to wind and dry spells are planted at the top and plants that can handle more water and shade are planted nearer to the bottom of the wall.
Cutting a small hole in the first layer of felt creates a little pocket that that the plant root can be slipped into where it will take root.
The fibrous nature of the felt is a perfect medium for many species of plants to thrive in, especially plants accustomed to growing near waterfalls. As long as there are nutrients in the water, the plants will grow.
Creating a hydroponic wall of plants provides the water and nutrients the plants need while building a stand alone wall of plastic panels to grow the plants on protects the building.
The plastic panel wall allows water to flow more evenly down the wall as the felt wicks the moisture to the roots. This helps moisture along the wall flow more evenly.
Temperatures inside the building stabilize keeping it cooler in summer and warmer in winter.
Patrick Blanc has traveled the world building living walls but lives in Paris, France so that's where you'll find most of his work.
You can see the Eiffel Tower in the background Image credit
Creating a living wall transforms the energy of a space and changes the mood of the people in that space. Plants just have that magical quality that connects with us on a primal level.
Beautiful outdoor environment Image credit
It can be a focal point in an indoor space and has a relaxing effect on people. A concentration of living plants releases negative ions and purifies the air, creating a soothing, healthy environment.
Indoor living walls purify the air Image credit
Imagine building houses with living walls as part of the design and including edible living walls as well. It would save energy and be a really cool place to live.
I'll take that room right there Image credit
I would build a living wall of edible food and an outdoor mini bar to have a drink and a fresh picked salad picked fresh from the wall. It would be fun to graze a few leaves as you walk by your house.
Can you imagine being able to nibble on your house? Like a gingerbread house only healthier.
A living wall of lettuce Image credit
Then you may as well go all out green and get the green car too.
The Green Car Image credit
