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Grow Up and Out: Setting Up Your Vertical Garden

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If you love tending to plants but you don’t have the luxury of an expansive space, gardening up is your secret weapon to satisfy your green thumb and get the most out of a small space.

Vertical gardening offers easy solutions for growing plants in a compact space. Although a relatively new concept, this gardening technique is becoming more and more popular among novice and seasoned gardeners alike due to the incredible benefits it can give. For one, it allows tending to several varieties of plants without taking up too much space. It also entails less soil preparation and digging and demands minimal water use. More importantly, unlike the traditional way of gardening (with long horizontal rows on the ground) where plants are susceptible to aggressive weed growth, pests and diseases, vertical gardening minimizes these common issues, thereby allowing plants to grow healthily.

If you’re ready to enjoy the aforesaid benefits, below is a simple guide on how you can set up your own vertical garden.

Pick a wall

Start by picking a wall for your garden. If you have a wall that has an ugly surface that you wish to cover up, this will definitely suffice for the project. Keep in mind, however, that your plant selection will depend upon the wall you pick and the amount of sunlight it receives. Thus, if you have a specific variety of plants in mind, pick a wall that can provide them with the best growing conditions.

Create a frame

The basic support system of a vertical garden wall is a panel composed of a main frame, plastic sheeting and fabric. Setting up a sturdy frame will make it easier for you to take down plants.

The best materials to use to build the main frame are PVC pipes and four way joints, as they are light and they allow water to shed properly. Avoid using metal as the additional weight of this material can put a strain on the wall, or wood, as it is susceptible to moisture and rotting. You can build the whole frame setup before hanging it on the wall or you can simply piece the parts together directly on the wall.

Lay the plastic sheeting and fabric

Once the frame is set, attach the plastic sheeting onto it. The plastic will serve as a backing for the fabric and will also prevent water from getting on the wall. Next, lay at least two layers of fabric on top of the plastic using galvanized screws or stainless-steel staples. You can use just about any type of fabric that can retain water without rotting. Since this layer is where your plants will live as it is responsible for holding the water for them, make sure that you secure it well on place so that it won’t come off.

Set up the irrigation system, fertilizer injector and water filter

In order for your plants to grow well on the wall, you need to have an irrigation system in place that will provide moisture to the fabric. You can create this system out of poly tubing with lock fittings and emitters, which you can purchase from an irrigation supplier. Place the tube on top of the panel and use the emitter to drip water down. When attaching the irrigation system, opt for stainless-steel hardware to avoid corrosion. Then, add a fertilizer injector, which is a simple valve that will send liquid fertilizer to the irrigation system, and a water filter to keep the circulating water clean. Connect the system to a power source to see if it is working properly.

Pick your plants

As mentioned earlier, when picking plants for your vertical garden, consider the amount of sunlight your chosen wall receives. Equally important is to consider humidity, wind and cold to ensure that you will be able to grow greens that can endure such conditions. If you are just starting out with gardening, pay your local nursery a visit to get an advice from a seasoned gardener about which plants are appropriate to grow on your vertical garden.

Insert the greens

The next and final step is to integrate the plants on the wall. Do this by making horizontal cuts on the fabric layer using a razor blade. Remove as much soil as possible from the plants’ root balls to prevent root rot before inserting each of them into the pockets you made. To secure the plants in place, staple the cloth to the plastic backing, making a semicircle around the root balls.

This gardening advice was written by Ericka on behalf of Steel Buildings UK www.steelbuildingsuk.co.uk ,Ericka is fond of home-related topics and tirelessly shares her knowledge by writing and publishing helpful articles online.






Three Steps to a Fungi-Free Garden

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If you love gardening, there is nothing more frustrating than seeing all your time and effort go to waste due to fungi attacking your greens and blooms. To make matters worse, these culprits spread rapidly when conditions are favorable and eventually cause a wide variety of parasitic diseases on plants.


However, plant fungal diseases are usually the result of some factors that you can actually control. In fact, as simple as paying attention to your garden’s hygiene and cleanliness can do a whole lot in protecting your plants against fungi attacks. Written below are three more ways you could follow to keep damaging fungi at bay.

Mind your plant placement

Remember that fungi thrive well in damp conditions and planting your greens too close together will eventually result to crowding, which limits the amount of air circulating between the plants. When this happens, your greens are not able to shed water well, especially on their leaves. And if left unattended, fungal spores that are carried by air easily attach themselves on leaf surfaces, thereby setting the stage for fungal invasion.

To avoid this, it is vital that you site your plants properly to allow optimal air circulation around them. It is also wise to group plants together base on their level of water needs so that when you create an irrigation system, you will be able to apply the same amount of water to specific plants within your garden.

Ensure good landscape sanitation

As mentioned earlier, the key to keeping your garden free from fungal diseases is to observe cleanliness. Hence, if you have greens or blooms that are susceptible to fungal diseases, make sure that you regularly remove and discard leaf trimmings, old root systems and fallen fruits from their growing area to avoid the onset of fungi attack. If, for instance, you will reuse old pots, sterilize them before you put the greens in to minimize the risk of fungi infecting the plants.

Practice preventive measures

Keeping your plants in tip-top condition by properly attending to their needs is your safest bet to ensure that they will be able to withstand fungi attacks. Therefore, when gardening, don’t forget to practice preventive measures such as watering the plants’ bases instead of their leaves, applying fresh mulch every now and then to prevent spores from bouncing on the surfaces of leaves, and applying compost to keep both your soil and plants healthy.

Additionally, use horticultural oils and baking soda solutions to keep fungal diseases from infecting your plants in the first place. And don’t forget to provide your greens and blooms with optimum growing conditions (sufficient light, water and soil) so that they will grow healthily.

This gardening advice was penned by one of the regular contributors of Heritage Cleaning, a stone cleaning specialist in Scotland. Their steam-based stone cleaning system is acknowledged by Historic Scotland and has been used in the restoration and conservation of listed buildings throughout the country.

Damage to Lawns and Gardens Caused by Moles and Voles

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We are most familiar with moles, which are mouse-like creatures that can do so much damage to your lawn. What about voles? Well, their names might sound alike, and voles are also often mistaken for moles. These creatures, however, are different from each other. Whereas voles are rodents, moles are not. They also have different characteristics and food preferences. But both animals can wreak havoc to your garden and lawns.

The Mole – How It Destroys Grounds

Moles are insectivorous. This means that they won’t eat your precious tulip bulbs. Instead, they’ll feed on insect larvae, grubs, and earthworms. So, how do they cause damage to your yard? It is seldom to see moles crawling on the grass. They are always underneath the ground. These creatures create tunnels that they use to get to food sources. Oftentimes, moles create berms or mounded hills when forming their runways. So, while going on their merry way in search for their favorite worms, they also spoil your lawn.

The Vole and the Damage It Causes

Unlike moles, voles are vegetarians. They target seeds, bulbs, and roots. When food is scarce, such as during winter time, it’s also pretty common for voles to eat shrubs and tree bark. Because they like plants, they can cause considerable damage to gardens. Your prized plants are surely not safe if there are voles around. Just imagine all of your hard work going down the drain once voles start snacking on your precious dahlias or your succulent tomatoes. Won’t that make you feel really frustrated?

Voles can make tunnels if they need to. However, they often choose the easy way, and that is exploiting the tunnels that have been created by moles. In case they choose to build underground runways, they do not create berms. Nevertheless, they produce damage under the ground, which could also weaken the integrity of the top soil.

Keeping Out Moles and Voles

Voles

1. Keep grounds well-maintained.

Voles are attracted to lush vegetation, and they grow particularly emboldened when there are tall grasses or deep mulch that keeps them hidden. So, one way to discourage these critters is by ensuring that your lawn is maintained well. Mow grass regularly, and get rid of weeds. When putting mulch, keep the layer thin and not too deep.

2. Wrap tree trunks in metal wires.

Because voles eat bark, it’s best to protect the base of trees. Get some metal wires or mesh wires and put these around the bark of trees. Also, keep mulch and dense vegetation away from the base of trees.

3. Use traps and other methods to eradicate voles.

You can use humane mice traps to catch voles. There are also poisons and other substances that can be used to repel or kill voles.

Moles

1. Control the insect population in your garden.

Since moles are attracted to all sorts of worms and insects, be sure to keep the insect population in your lawn under control. By keeping their food sources scarce, they won’t be encouraged to live in your lawn or to go back to your garden every time they’re hungry.

2. Utilize traps to capture moles.

There are all sorts of traps that you can use, such as harpoon, scissors or choker mole traps. If you prefer a more humane way to get rid of moles, check out the Havahart traps, which are live trapping devices. But you have to be find a place far from your property where you can release the animal you’ve trapped.

Final Note

Critters pose a problem and a challenge to most homeowners. If you want to get rid of pests but you don’t know how, consult a professional. Experts will suggest what sort of methods you can use. They can also propose eco-friendly and safer options so that you won’t have to expose yourself, your kids and your pets to dangerous chemicals.

Attached Images:
  •  License: Creative Commons – Hackworth. “Bloody moles! 3 September 2007”. September 3, 2007. Online image. Flickr. December 5, 2012. image source

Claire Lassiter is a freelance writer who frequently blogs about pest management. She covers many topics, including rodents, roaches, stinging pests, and other damaging bugs. She provides material for Rove Pest Control, a company that specializes in eradicating several kinds of destructive pests.

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