The 14 Best Plants for a Vertical Garden

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Vertical gardens are a great way for gardeners to create additional garden space and expand their gardening possibilities. These gardens take nature and grow it up, turning a wall into life with as little ground area used as possible. Vertical gardens are ideal for confined areas or city homes, and they can turn boring brick walls into colorful growing features.

Selecting the appropriate plants is essential for a thriving vertical garden. The condition of the plant, according to light, climate, and humidity, should be taken care of. Here are some of the beautiful and useful plants that deliver a real appeal in vertical gardening.

Ferns

Ferns have dense and luxuriant foliage and prefer low-light conditions, so it’s no wonder that they are an excellent choice for a vertical garden. Great for growing in humid environments, they need to stay moist, so a regular watering regime is essential, and that makes them ideal for vertical gardens. Their graceful fronds provide a lush interplay of texture and motion to the vertical garden.

Pothos

Spaces with bright, indirect, or low light make excellent homes for pothos plants! With their cascading appearance and trailing vines, pothos lend a graceful cascade to vertical gardens. Due to their no-fuss character, pothos are beginner-friendly plants and perfect for advanced gardeners, too.

Succulents

Succulents are ideal for vertical gardens because they are drought-tolerant, meaning they can store water. Bright sunlight and well-draining soil are the requirements for these plants, which vary greatly in color. With them, you will have a well-maintained and aesthetically tempting vertical green space that is modern, too.

Orchids

Orchids make vertical gardens look more beautiful and exotic. Because these flowers can often be abundant, they make excellent climbing plants due to their epiphytic qualities—rooting on other plants instead of in the soil. They need special attention, such as regular moisture and filtered light.

Herbs

It is a great idea to plant some fragrant herbs such as basil, mint, and thyme for cooking. Most of them are sun plants and need adequate light. The easy access to freshly harvested herbs, their space-saving qualities, and many other effective ideas!

Spider Plant

Spider plants are among the most rugged plants available, making them a go-to plant for your vertical garden. They thrive in any lighting conditions and help clean the air, making them ideal for creating a better atmosphere. The arched leaves and miniature offshoots add interest to the shape.

Bromeliads

The vibrant colors and unique shapes that bromeliads add to vertical gardens are worth the care they require. Naturally, they are ideal for wall installation comfort and adapted to attach themselves to trees in the wild.

Hoya

Photo Credit: Patrick Clenet/Wikimedia Commons

Known as wax plants, they have thick, waxy leaves and blooms that smell heavenly. As trailing plants, these woody vines do well with indirect bright light and far less watering, so they are low-maintenance choices to introduce on your green wall. Their flowers are lovely and unique.

Philodendron

Philodendrons are vertical, easy-care plants. They do well in low-light environments and are great climbers, providing any space with dense greenery. Heart-leaf types, especially, have a charming air of elegance toward upright blossoming.

Ivy

a close up of a plant — Photo Credit: Pexels

The Ivy is a rapidly growing evergreen vine that allows for many creative living wall designs. It is highly adaptable to different light levels, and the thick hanging vines look positively old-fashioned. As a climber, Ivy spreads over big spaces rapidly and turns into a living wall.

Japanese Sweet Flag

This green and white Japanese Sweet Flag is a tough little ornamental grass that gives your vertical garden a light, airy touch. It will do well in partial shade and can withstand various moisture levels. Its refined narrow blades and varied hue make it a very interesting option.

Lavender

Lavender is a very aromatic plant with beautiful purple blooms that benefit not only the senses but also sight, making it ideal for vertical gardening. It requires sunny, well-draining sites and is quite drought-tolerant. The scent of the lavender herb has a calming effect that helps one relax and also provides relief from stress.

Peperomia

Peperomia are little green plants with a wide range of leaf forms and hues. They thrive in bright, indirect light and are perfectly fine with the occasional touch of water. Their adaptable nature and particular foliage patterns offer an interesting vertical-form orientation.

Fuchsia

Fuchsia is a visual feast in the living world of vertical gardens. This shade-tolerant plant is a cascading flower in vibrant shades of pink, purple, and red. Fuchsia likes some shade, regular water, and cooler temperatures.