When and Where Did Vertical Gardens Begin?

Vertical gardening can be traced back to 3000BC, when Mediterranean dwellers grew grape vines as a food source and as a means to embellish their homes and gardens and provide shade in places where trees could not be planted. There are few references in historical texts to vertical gardens. However, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, are thought to have been designed and planted around 600BC in the ancient city of Babylon, close to the present-day Babil province in Iraq.

Legend has it that King Nebuchadnezzar II built these stunning gardens for his wife because she missed the verdant hills and valleys of her homeland. The historian, Diodorus Siculus, described the gardens as being tiered and watered through a clever irrigation system that connected them to the Euphrates River.

Vertical gardens continued to fascinate human beings throughout history. In medieval Europe, monasteries and castles often had espaliered fruit trees that grew flat against walls, thus providing their inhabitants with easy access to fruit. In the Renaissance era, a resurgence of interest in gardens saw the reintroduction of espalier techniques and trellises, which involved ‘training’ plants to grow against walls. The Victorian era also defied gravity in their landscaping, with climbing roses, ivy, and many more vines encouraged to climb up trellises and structures and add picturesque beauty to homes and gardens.

The 20th century saw a big shift in the ethos behind vertical gardening, with the lack of space in densely populated cities leading innovators like Patrick Blanc (a French botanist) to popularise the idea of green walls. Today, ‘living walls’ are used in a myriad of home and city settings to battle global warming and pollution and to give citizens a mental health boost.

The Benefits of Vertical Gardens

We have mentioned the role that vertical gardens can play in improving air quality and temperature, but they are also powerful stress busters. A recent study review showed that spending just 10 to 20 minutes a day in a park or green zone had a powerful beneficial effect on stress hormone levels. Other studies have shown that simply working near plants boosted productivity and lifted mood. For many busy city dwellers, walking by a stunning vertical landscape may be the only chance to get their daily dose of nature, and this alone is reason enough to invest in this beneficial urban adornment.

Vertical gardens have numerous additional benefits, including:

• A reduction in the need to bend and kneel – which is great news for older green fingers with osteoarthritis and other conditions that may impact mobility.
• Increased yield – those growing edible gardens can take advantage of walls, tiered gardens, and aeroponic towers to grow produce and/or flowers in small spaces.
• Less soil erosion – if you use soil in your vertical garden, you can rest assured that you won’t have to battle erosion and soil degradation as much as you would in a traditional garden.
• Reduced water wastage – most vertical gardens rely on clever irrigation systems (such as drip irrigation), reducing the amount of water required. The key is to direct water towards the roots of plants. Vertical gardening also allows for better drainage and aeration, which helps prevent overwatering.

How Are Vertical Gardens Grown?

There are many different options for growing vertical gardens, depending on the size, type of plants, and area selected. Typically, vertical gardens that are attached to walls (i.e. those that do not grow in pots or soil) are fixed to a substrate wall. The substrates are either organic or inert. Organic substrates do not require much fertiliser, but they degrade and need replacement in time. Inert substrates, on the other hand, do require continuous fertiliser, but they are more stable chemically and therefore longer-lasting. Vertical gardens grown indoors are typically grown over a moss substrate, which is antibacterial and has a protective effect against rot, pests, and diseases. Aficionados who wish to bypass professional landscaping services can simply grow their vertical gardens on wooden palettes, affix pots to a wall at different heights, or embellish trellises, bannisters, archways, and more.

Stunning Vertical Gardens to Visit

Vertical gardens are always a joy to come across, whether you are walking past a landscaped building or visiting a bank, hotel, or gallery with interior living walls. Below are a few buildings that are worth catching in person:

• CaixaForum Madrid

  This lush tapestry was the first large-scale vertical garden in Spain. It was designed by famed French botanist, Patrick Blanc, who has created some of the world’s most stunning vertical gardens. Over 15,000 plants cover a wall measuring 460m2 wall. The garden contains both autochthonous and foreign plants. Such is the fascination with it that CaixaForum offers guided tours to explain the origin of different species and the intricacies involved in maintaining a garden of this calibre.

• Siam Paragon Mall in Bangkok

  This upscale shopping centre is home to luxury fashion shops, fancy car showrooms, and an impressive food hall, but it is also a beautiful exponent of biophilic design. A myriad of vertical walls grace its interiors, as does a spiral vertical garden with hanging stems. The mall is additionally graced with its own aquarium, which is embedded into curved walls and which lends the shopping experience the grace and beauty of sea life.

• Bosco Verticale Skyscrapers in Milan

  Designed by the renowned Boeri Studio, these buildings are located in the Porta Nuova district of Milan. They are home to over 90 plant species, including shrubs and trees. The aim of this project is to increase animal and plant diversity in the Lombard capital, while also mitigating the effects of global warming.

• Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore

  Taking a plane from this airport is a bit like embarking on an adventure, thanks to its impressive biophilic design features. If you have kids, all the better! They will have the time of their lives here, so much so they may resist when it’s time to board your plane! At this airport, not only do younger passengers have a gorgeous multi-layered garden to gaze at, but they also have walking and bouncing nets, a mirror maze, a hedge maze, and a stunning canopy bridge to explore. Walk through the garden and breathe in the fresh air, taking in the beauty of the foliage that surrounds you so you are fully relaxed by the time you board your plane.

• Cloud Forest at Gardens by the Bay, Singapore

  Cloud Forest may not be affixed to a flat wall, but nobody can doubt that it is a vertical garden. It contains unusual vegetation that commonly thrives in cloud forest habitats, found at around 2,000 metres above sea level. This ‘human-made mountain’ is 1.5 times as large as a regular football field, it features a 35m-tall waterfall, and it boasts a humidity of between 80 and 90 per cent. Best of all, visitors can climb up the mountain to view all its unique plant species from up close!

Ideal Plants for Indoor Vertical Gardens

If you are thinking of starting your own vertical garden project at home, take stock of the following plants, which are easy to grow and pleasant on the eye:

• Pothos: A powerful air purifier that can thrive in low lights.
• Philodendron: Another pretty plant that improves air quality and can grow in poor light.
• The Prayer Plant: This gorgeous, large-leafed plant grows in green and purple hues.
• The Peace Lily: A leafy plant that produces beautiful white flowers.
• Spider Plant: A low-maintenance plant that delights with its ‘messy yet chic’ look.
• Rubber Plant: This popular houseplant has a longish stem.
• Baby’s Tears: This plant has tiny, bright green leaves that grow abundantly and are ideal for filling in spaces in a vertical garden.
• Herbs: These are so easy to grow and they add a beautiful aroma to your interiors.
• The Lipstick Plant: A brightly coloured plant with glossy leaves and bright red flowers.
• Ferns: One of the most widely used plants for vertical gardens, as they are ultra sturdy and require little upkeep.

Tip: If you have animals in your home, remember to research, as many everyday plants can be toxic to dogs, cats, and other pets.