Vertical Gardens of Raleigh!

I recently took my youngest daughter off to college- Go Wolfpack! While in Raleigh, I took a little field trip to visit some of the vertical gardens adjacent to the NC State campus. Of course- it only took my mind off of my overwhelming grief for a brief while- but here they are for your enjoyment!

This first example (below) uses a quite obvious container source- galvanized buckets attached directly to the wall of this shop, in between two downspouts. A metal frame secures the buckets to the brick building façade.  The irrigation system encircles the containers- which is of course always a necessity in vertical gardening. The plants used here are: Wave Petunias, Purple Heart and other summer blooming annuals. I personally would like to see more perennials in vertical gardening- allowing for more all year color and does not need to be changed out as much with the seasons.

The next examples were  found at Cameron Village: The first one used a few more perennials such as ferns, Ajuga and then inserted annuals to be changed out with the seasons. This vertical garden design used a lightweight frame which holds the plant material ‘cells’- including the soil media and also attaches to the irrigation drip tubing for watering. The irrigation can be used to also feed the plant material, as well as, water them.

The next example also used Asparagus Fern, along with Creeping Jenny and Purple Heart to make a statement. This also  used a metal frame to hold the plant cells onto the vertical garden.

Our last example illustrates how vertical gardens are an excellent way to spruce up a blank brick, or other wall of your property. This example uses galvanized steel cable to create the framework where a vine or other trailing plant can grow into a pattern. The vine used here could be an evergreen such as Carolina Jessamine, or Creeping Fig or any other flowering vine. The cable is installed directly onto the wall, instead of using a frame as in our other examples.

So the next time you think about a gardening project, consider going vertical- The possibilities are endless!

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