Unfortunately, not all plants can be grown through this method. Luckily, however, there is a large variety of plants that you can grow in a vertical garden. In many cases, vertical gardens might be the preferred method to use. The amount of space you have largely determined what you specifically can grow. If you really want to grow a plant, try to be creative, and you might find a solution.
The most common plants grown in a vertical garden are the vine and creeping plants. Most just employ the use of trellis or household structures. This, however, can be sometimes unintentional as many gardeners aren’t particularly focusing on building a vertical garden. Indoor flower walls are increasingly gaining popularity as well. They add contrast to your environment and give off a uniqueness you can actually customize.
Many gardeners might be looking into becoming at-home farmers. Given small lawn or apartment spaces, many new vertical gardeners might believe this option isn’t available to them. However, contrary to that belief, they have a lot of options available to them. Everything from vegetables, fruits, annuals and perennials can be grown at home, using a vertical garden. Now obviously, those plants that have natural vines are easier to grow. They maintain and yield better results because of their natural inclination to grow vertically. However, you can use techniques to make non-vertical plants grow like that as well.
Alternatively, you can use smaller varieties of traditionally big plants to grow them at your home. Using a type of cucumber that can grow stably within your designed structure is still a possibility. Or you could strategically use ties, slings and support items to hold your plants up. But sometimes, it would be more cost-effective and cleaner to simply plant something else. Just keep your options open.
Having said that, a vertical structure’s features are not the only determinant when it comes to what you can grow. Your location’s climate is perhaps the biggest indicator of what you can grow. If you have a backyard and want to invest, you can build a greenhouse to provide you with a controlled environment with adjustable stats. Shade is an equally important determinant. Just like plants need the sun to grow, they need shade, so they don’t burn due to overexposure. Different plants have different exposure limits so you might want to do a little research beforehand. Likewise, some plants grow well together and planting others together might be harmful to your entire garden. While you can definitely separate plants in a vertical garden, being informed about this will help you decide which plants you want to grow and which you should probably avoid.
Given how popular vertical gardening is, you can take the help of communities within your region or research online to help you determine which plants would grow the best in your area. They’ll even give you tips and tricks for your preferred plants and how to maintain them.
To help you get started with organic growing, let’s list down some of the most common items you can grow in your unconventional garden:
Beans
How much depth do you need: 16 inches
Required soil temperature: 60 degrees
Space between plants: 2–4 inches
Preferred structure: Trellis or a tepee
You can use a number of different types of beans, but pole beans are the best option as they grow vertically naturally. Good types to try out include, heirloom Kentucky wonder, Helda romano and blue lake pole.
Carrots
How much depth do you need: 9–15 inches.
Required soil temperature: 55 degrees
Space between plants: 2 inches.
Preferred structure: Pots or pockets.
You’ll need to choose a deep alternative since carrots have long-running roots. Carrots should always be watered properly and have enough space to grow their roots.
Cucumbers
How much depth do you need: 18 inches
Required soil temperature: 70 degrees
Space between plants: One per pot
Preferred structure: Trellis with pots as starting points.
Alternatively, you can use strings or other kinds of support. A great variety to try out for beginners is the Salad Brush. It’s disease resistant so you’ll be able to get some practice and some yummy cucumbers out of it.
