Gardening is therapeutic. With the chaotic cityscapes, vertical gardens are explicit getaways for freshness and serenity. However, if you’re planning on exploring the domain of vertical gardening, it would be best if you familiarize yourself with the pros and cons of vertical gardening to make the best decision.
Whether you’re planning on your new vertical garden or familiarizing the idea of vertical gardening, this article is for you!
So, dive in as we brief out the basics of vertical gardening and its pros and cons.
What is Vertical Gardening?
Vertical gardening is the practice of growing plants in a vertical direction. Due to spatial constraints, these gardening techniques are popular in urban landscapes. It involves raising the plants upwards rather than in the conventional outward order. Its easy accessibility and maintenance save you from back pain from constant bending and caring.
The technique suits urban spaces eloquently. Thus, no more complaining about space constraints and maintenance troubles. They are often grown over walls and roofs to decorate indoor and outdoor spaces. They add a touch of freshness and greenery to the buzzing urbanscapes.
However, everything has its backlog. Let’s list out the pros and cons of vertical gardening to help you make the best decision for your homes.
Advantages of Vertical Gardening
In general, there are ample reasons to support vertical gardening. Many scientists and environmental specialists encourage the practice of vertical farming. However, these benefits also suit vertical gardening in your residential and commercial spaces on a lower scale.
Requires less space
The main reason to opt for vertical vegetation is space constraints. As the land value increases, allocating additional spaces for recreational hobbies like the gardening has become a luxury. People often neglect gardening for space reasons. However, vertical gardening reduces the spatial requirement and enhances the aesthetic experience.
You can also opt for different types of vertical gardening on various walls and roofs of your homes. They merge seamlessly with the background and don’t require additional floor space.
Protection from animals attacks
Plant-munching animals like caterpillars and other invasive plants can damage your plants. By vertically elevating these plant pots, we avoid such situations and protect the plant naturally. When you grow plants vertically, you can stop other ground-level pests from entering your plantations.
Control the organic nature of the plants
Another add-on benefit while growing a vertical garden includes all organic produce. Since we raise the plant bed from the ground, we can control the type of soil and water resource the plant absorbs. It removes the number of inorganic inputs like fertilizer or pesticides.
Reduces crop loss
Unlike the conventional method, owning a vertical garden can prevent crop loss. Even though most gardening prefers flowers over fruits and vegetables in their vertical garden, it is always encouraging to reap some edible produce. Since they are organic and pest free, you can also enjoy the benefit of healthy nourishment.
Unleashes your creativity
Gardening is fun. And vertical gardening is even more exciting and creative. Whether you grow your plants on your walls or roofs, this practice favors innovative approaches. You can explore your creative mind and curate many ways to decorate your vertical garden. Be it indoor or outdoor!
Cons of Vertical Gardening
Despite gardening being fun and thrilling, it can sometimes be tiresome. As in the case of a vertical garden, the complexity can make your work more complex and intense. Let’s discuss a few of those cons below.
Demands maintenance
Vertical gardening requires better maintenance than regular gardening practices. You might have to constantly fertilize and prune them to compensate for the limited nutritious availability and space constraints. Often these vertical plant systems can topple off under strong winds. Regular care and maintenance are the only way to help these plants survive.
Controls the plant’s size
As you layer the plants vertically, you limit the vertical spread of the plant. Opting for huge plant pots can encourage fast growth in plants compared to its setup, thus limiting their size. In worse scenarios, these plants can fade and wilt, eventually leading to death of the plant.
Expensive
Anything that requires an advanced setup, care, and maintenance comes with a price. These vertical systems are expensive compared to the standard garden styles. Be it the products or your physical input, this system demands more of everything.
Plants become dry
Plants are often kept away from direct exposure to sunlight and rainwater. One of the main disadvantages of growing a container plant compared to ground-bound ones is its capacity to absorb water. Since they already lack additional soil to hydrate at times of need, they often become dry. You can retain the soil moisture by controlling the temperature and lighting of the vertical setup.
Vertical Gardening can be your next venture!
Vertical gardening is a one-time investment that allows you to relish 100% organic produce. As we listed above, the pros of vertical gardening are efficient and more significant than the cons. Once you understand your garden’s needs, developing your vertical setup won’t take much time. Most often, they are a one-time investment and facilitate vegetation regularly. Creating a proper routine and regular maintenance will help you benefit from your hard work every time you harvest.
By Hajara Banu
Hajara Banu is a professional architect, content writer, and strategist. She is on her journey to share her love of architecture, design, and content creation. Besides writing, Hajara loves coffee and often experiments with cooking and organizing in her free time.
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