If you have ever coaxed a vine up a trellis or even hung a potted plant, you have created a vertical garden. In theory, it is as simple as that. A vertical garden is any garden that makes use of vertical space to maximise growing opportunities. In practice, though, there is much more to it, as any good landscape designer and they will tell you just how complex it can be. There are ways to make creating even a large vertical garden easier, though. Here's how to create a vertical garden the easy way:

Planning Your Vertical Garden

Any good home improvement project starts with a plan. If you are interested in vertical gardens, you probably already have a vague idea about what you want to grow. Do you want to grow vegetables or ornamental plants? Where do you want to plant your vertical garden? Why do you want to go vertical? Is it because you have limited space or because you have heard that plants that grow vertically give higher yields? Whatever your reasons may be, there are two essential components to a vertical garden:

1. Soil
   
2. Water

As obvious as these two components are, they require some thought. Do you have the right type of soil for the plants you want to grow? Do you need to construct a retaining wall or do you need containers? If you need containers, what kinds of containers will be best for your garden? While an ornamental clay pot may be ideal for a single plant, it is not ideal for a vertical garden comprised of a number of plants. For these, you may need a modular system. 

How are you going to water your plants? You can do it by hand, but look into the advantages of an irrigation system. Drip and below the surface irrigators are more efficient than surface watering and do not waste our most precious natural resource: water. For more information about these, check out our article, Choosing Irrigation Systems for Vertical Gardens.

Growing Your Vertical Garden

In order to grow healthy plants, you need to start with healthy plants. If its fast growing annual vegetables you're growing, you can start them from seed, but if you want to plant slower growing ornamentals, it's probably best to buy them from a good local nursery.

Aside from good soil and regular watering, plants need to be supplied with nutrients in order to thrive. You will need to be able to fertilise your vertical garden regularly if you want to get the most out of it. Again, your local nursery can provide you with the best fertilisers for your plants.

The easiest and most foolproof way to create a vertical garden is to get a vertical garden kit. Designed for vertical gardens of all kinds, the kit will include modular planter boxes and/or facades for climbing plants. Then it's just a matter of arranging them as you like, giving your plants a little TLC and watching them grow.