We’ve been living in the concrete jungle for too long and it’s time for a necessary change. Taking humans completely away from nature is, in the long run, completely unsustainable.
We need to take a breath of fresh air and start making some big changes in the design of what a city can be. Thankfully, we are starting to see some pretty amazing innovative changes already.
Urban agriculture and city farms have been making their way into the city lifestyles for some time now, and living walls are joining in. Today, there are some amazing vertical garden examples already showing off the positive benefits that they have. Some of these benefits include;
- Better air quality by plant life producing more oxygen and removing carbon dioxide.
- Energy conservation through their natural cooling effects on buildings and creating diverse habitats.
- Well-being and health are manifested through the plant’s therapeutic effects on humans.
- Food production can be achieved by using vertical gardens to harvest vegetables, greens, and fresh herbs.
- Creativity and artistic expression will be added to any space through the use of living breathing walls.
- Communities grow stronger when surrounded by plant life. Studies even show a reduction in the crime rate.
You will not only see vertical garden examples outdoors covering the otherwise boring brick wall but indoors too. Adding vertical gardens to your office space is proved to increase productivity.
A living wall in your home will bring you fresh air and a naturally relaxing ambiance. Living walls in schools are shown to enhance mood and therefore focus is improved.
You really can’t go wrong with the endless positive benefits that this eco-friendly concept has. So let’s take a look at 10 incredible vertical wall examples that will inspire hope for change.
10 Vertical Garden Examples For Increased Productivity
1. A Stark Contrast
Here you can see a clear contrast of what’s in the past and what’s in the future. That old brick wall serves no purpose other than to hide whatever is happening inside. Whereas the incredibly built living wall is adding a texturally beautiful expression for your eyes to gaze upon.
Shades of greens, purples, and reds decorate the wall and make you forget that you are shrouded by concrete buildings. It absorbs carbon dioxide that you breathe out and provides you with fresh oxygen that you can deeply breathe in.
2. Any Wall Can Be Improved
No matter the type of preexisting walls that form the building, a vertical garden can be designed on it. The clever combination of giant windows that provides a generous amount of light to enter, surrounded by plants working to naturally cool the building is incredible.
A type of wall like this is a sure mood-booster to anyone lucky enough to walk by it. Professionals have been coming up with creative solutions to tackle any type of wall with their green thumb ideas.
Whether it’s curved, impossibly tall, round, or a unique shape, plants will find a way to make it more beautiful.
3. Installation
The installation of a vertical garden (or living wall) has a lot of planning involved. The first step is the design of the wall itself. This includes carefully choosing the mix of plants that will adapt and flourish in the environment chosen.
Placement of plants will create the artistic look of the wall which can be as imaginative as creating images/written words or abstract patterns. Plants are then planted in modules in a vertical position and are allowed time for initial growth to fill out.
Once the plants are healthy and happy they can be installed onto the wall.
4. Artistic Expression
This wall is a sight to behold, a true masterpiece. The careful design that has gone into this wall shows a spectacular artistic expression. Incredible varieties of colors, tones, and textures keep your eyes wandering and your mouth wide open in astonishment.
Just imagine how much oxygen a wall like that releases into the air each day! People walking by, or taking a break from work can indulge in its beauty and take their minds away from their everyday stresses and worries.
5. Irrigation
How does the irrigation work in a vertical garden system like this? Living walls on this sort of scale have built-in irrigation systems that are hidden behind the plants. Harvested rainwater from the roof of the building can be used to provide ample amounts of water.
Behind-the-scenes of the living wall is always kept moist which will help in the decomposition of mature roots as new ones grow in. If necessary, fertilizers or pesticides (preferably organic) can be pumped through the irrigation system to supply the plants with.
6. Where do Vertical Gardens Belong?
Everywhere! Vertical gardens truly belong everywhere in my humble opinion. They have the accessibility to transform pretty much any building into a functional and sustainable one.
Boost public spaces, uplift commercial buildings, better the subway systems, and add beauty to the airports, schools, and restaurants. Vertical gardens/living walls belong in all human habitats because humans go together with nature.
7. Show an Example
Green solutions like the example of vertical gardens are the type of examples we need to set for future generations. Caring for nature and our environment should be a priority in all new innovations.
Not only do we ourselves want to live in healthier more beautiful environments, but we should want to leave something sustainable for the next generations.
Teaching kids about the benefits of living walls and proving it by installing them in their neighborhoods and cities will help shape a greener future. Vertical gardens are an awesome solution to many problems faced in city-living.
8. Plant Selection
Plant selection is a very important part of creating a living wall. You want the vertical garden to not only look majestic painted in bold arrays of colors, but you want it to function and stay healthy for a long time.
Annuals are of course an option and if you have a shorter wall where planting is more accessible then changing the plants up annually can be easy and fun.
Of course, perennials seem like the best option, especially for large-scale projects, because planting is a one-time job and maintaining is the only work you have to worry about.
9. Solar Powered
Want to make things even more eco-friendly? You can power your water flow with solar panels for a futuristic design. Take things to the next level by adding in some aquaponics.
Nutrient-dense water (due to the fish manure) flows up to the feed plants, the plants will then clean the water and return it to the fish. A full circle sustainable system that will provide you with healthy oxygen-releasing plants as well as farmable fish.
10. Bettering our Everyday Lives
So through these vertical garden examples, I think you can come to understand the endless benefits of being surrounded by nature. Humans belong to nature and removing us from our natural habitat is not a sustainable system. If we can simply add plants to our everyday commutes, our workplaces, and our homes, we could be a happier and more vibrant society.
Many countries in the world have already started to implement living walls and urban agriculture into their cultures. Companies are jumping on board with the idea of providing a healthier work environment which inevitably boosts work morale and productivity.
Communities can get involved by working together to install their own living walls in hopes of creating healthier environments to reduce crime rates and provide food in otherwise urban food deserts. Living walls are the future, and the future is now!