Vertical Wall Garden How-To

Yeah!   It is finally warm outside and this year I am WAY ahead of myself and I'm already finished with our outdoor flower planters and herb garden (well, about 85% finished):

Can I tell you, in our area of the country, there is only about a 95% chance of a frost after Mother's Day?  (Or so I was told at the nursery.)  So I felt really confident last week planting all of our annuals in their spots for the summer.

I was super busy and this isn't even half of it:

.....and then it happened....

I woke up Mother's Day morning to the warning that we were likely to have a frost that night!!!  That's what I get for being on top of things....

I spent the evening - after the boy's were down - creating little green houses over my planters with plastic and stakes (who have I become?!?!).  Actually I made my husband do it - he had to since it was Mother's Day (who has he become?!?!?).  Everything seems to have survived.  Just in time too:


In preparation for the first link up tomorrow, I'm sharing my Vertical Wall Garden How-To.....

(Ok, ok, it's not actually vertical or hanging on a wall yet, it needs at least a week or so to settle its roots and spread its flowers, but can you imagine it with me?!?!  :))

Before we move on, though, I have to admit....I'm a novice when it comes to gardening.  We've owned our house for four years now and the first three summers we (ok, the landscapers) spent more time tearing out landscaping than anything else (it was a jungle back there).  So this project was quite a mental challenge for me, but it was pretty simple to do.  Here, I will break it down into five easy steps.

To complete this project you will need:

Planting Container (that you can hang on the wall with wire)
Potting Soil
Flowers/Herbs/Ground Cover
Chicken Wire / some sort of wire
Individual Starter Cells (or the like)

This list is quite flexible, just get creative with what you already have on hand to keep the cost of this project down.

Step One:  Choose your planter and flowers.  I chose to turn an unused shadow box into my planter base, but anything you can hang on the wall and fill with dirt should work. 

Next, I chose my flowers and purchased peat moss (which tends to be lighter weight than regular potting mix):

When choosing my flowers, I:

• varied texture and color to make the mix more interesting;
• chose plants that each require 3 - 6 hours of sunlight; and
• used flowers that will spread quickly to cover more space and fill in empty or bare spots 

Step Two:  Cut and position your wire.  The wire will secure the plants in place and minimize shifting once your planter is hung on the wall.  Measure and cut the wire before placing your flowers.  I used a wire basket that is meant for grilling fish and veggies directly on the grill:

Step Three:  Position your flowers in empty containers.  I simply cut down leftover flower containers and positioned them so that they won't shift once I hang this on the wall:

Step Four:  Fill with peat moss. 

Step Five:  Position the wire over the plants and secure it to your frame.  I used finishing nails to secure my wire but a staple gun can work too.

 
Let the plants settle for 1 - 2 weeks prior to hanging on the wall.  Your done.  Just remember to water one to two times a week by removing the planter from the wall.  Until it's ready to hang, I'm using this as a centerpiece on our outdoor coffee table:

 Did you notice my rock planter above??  Here's a close up:

We found the rock in our yard when tearing out the landscaping.  It had a perfect whole in it and this year I decided to try and plant an asparagus fern in it!  Hopefully it thrives. 

Stop back by tomorrow to share your outdoor projects at our link up party and to find more outdoor inspiration!

Linking at:  Savvy Southern Style / Give Me the Goods / Swing Into Spring / Clean & Scentsible / Stone Gable / No Minimalist Here