Along with the plethora of pot plants with lush foliage, green walls are becoming trendier. Whether it is indoors, on a commercial space or household, or outdoors, they make any space more pleasant.
Real vertical gardens bring plants into more compact and waterproof areas of town.

They are living beings that, not only, allow us to decorate spaces, but mainly improve air quality, reduce building energy costs because they allow for better temperature regulation indoors, and they also contribute to the reduction of noise pollution, contrary to the vast majority of the building façades, which propagate sound and noise more intensely in the cities.

There are two great families of vertical gardens: interior and exterior. The first have the same weather conditions all over the world, approximately 21ºC, no wind, and similar brightness intensity. These features lead to choosing appropriate plants, a well defined set. Some of the examples are species from the Philodendrons or Schefflerea genus, and some Ficus species.

In what concerns the exterior, the palette changes according to the climate and solar exposure. It may be interesting to choose deciduous and persistent plants in order to create an interesting seasonal dynamic.

For instance, the species of the genus Bromelia will be more appropriate for partial shade areas, whereas the genus Tillandsias prefer sunlight.

There are multiple ways of creating these vertical walls; felt screen canvases may be used to form pockets which hold the necessary amount of soil and water for the plants; or sphagnum moss (Sphagnum spp.) contained in a metallic grid, for instance. These walls are always associated to a programmed watering system, supporting pipes and tubing with the necessary distances to water all the plants.

Nowadays there are also several modular options, which may easily adapt to each situation.

One of the first and best known authors of this kind of garden is the french Patrick Blanc. One of his best known gardens is the famous green wall at the Caixa Fórum building in Madrid, and also the Dolce Vita Tejo shopping centre in Portugal.

Besides being a very current trend, vertical gardens allow for the exploration of a multitude of plants with varied features, which capture our attention.

Indoors or outdoors, these walls brighten any area, making the landscape more inviting. We feel good being near them due to the relaxing environment they provide, transporting us directly into nature!

Amália Souto de Miranda
Landscape architect