If your balcony or terrace needs a bit of greenery, you have a piece of an empty facade or you want to breathe some life into a place where you usually spend a break at work, we have the perfect solution for you. Nothing prevents you from finding your own piece of garden where there is seemingly no place for it. All you need is a bit of cleverness and our help so you can drink your morning coffee in the company of live plants. Chat with colleagues in a friendly environment? A place of rest for customers, guests or household members? See how much fun a vertical garden can bring and find out what balcony flowers are suitable for planting a seasonal green wall!
Why is it worth investing in a vertical garden?
Thanks to the seasonal green wall:
- you will completely change the appearance of your balcony or terrace even when they are located in the very centre of the city,
- use perfectly every centimetre of free space in order to add some life-giving greenery in it,
- you will provide your environment with a pleasant, favourable microclimate,
- you will take care of the proper air humidification and help improve its quality - remember that plants effectively absorb dusts and harmful impurities,
- you will improve acoustics of the space; greenery will help in damping the sounds coming from the street,
- you will conjure up a garden that will invariably improve your well-being and make you feel positive in facing your daily responsibilities.
Vertical garden in the open air - complications
Unfortunately, while as for the interiors we have almost complete freedom when it comes to design, installation and maintenance of green walls, in the case of open spaces, vertical gardens are much more demanding. In Poland, it is difficult to keep them in good condition throughout the year. This state of affairs is caused by the winters - these dry and devoid of snow can freeze even plants in the ground, let alone flowers exposed to direct weather conditions.
Today's technology, with the use of which the vertical gardens are built, does not yet allow for the accumulation of the amount of soil that would allow plants to survive winter conditions. Our system is suitable for outdoor installations and to some extent it is resistant to atmospheric conditions, but the wall does not have enough space for developed root balls. If we could install so much soil in the walls as we would need it, the gardens would be too heavy - however, the safety of the façade and the entire building structure is the priority. As a result, little space for the root ball leads to freezing of plants throughout the winter.
How to evade the Polish winter, i.e. the seasonal green wall
Fortunately, the above problems are not so large and they can be circumvented. Seasonal vertical gardens will allow you to stay in the green space in spring and summer (when you can also enjoy self-cultivation of fruits, vegetables and herbs). When the golden Polish autumn comes, the leaves will change their colour which will not take away the charm of the garden at all. Only in the winter the plants (or at least some of them) will freeze and in the next season they will need to be replaced. Just remove the problematic flowers and cover the seasonal wall with a garden non-woven fibre. You can also dismantle the whole garden and move it to some secluded place, e.g. a garage or basement. Planting the wall with annuals is another way to overcome these minor inconveniences.
What flowers will be suitable for a green wall on the balcony?
If you are considering vertical cultivation and are wondering what specific plant species will stand the test in the open space - do not worry, the choice is much broader than you might think. In the seasonal vertical garden, almost all balcony species will be suitable - the most important thing is that the given flowers have the right size of the root ball. Available plants enable to create both multi-coloured flower compositions, as well as modest green gardens.
What do you need to remember about if you already establish the favourable size of roots? First of all, check how much sunshine is in your balcony. If the terrace is rather shaded, we recommend you to consider ivy, periwinkle, pachysandra terminalis and veronica. Generally speaking, all species of plants with large leaves will be a good choice, as they do not tolerate exposure to sunlight - they should be protected against sunstroke by planting them in the shade.
If there is much sunshine in the balcony, the situation is completely different. Then it is worth considering the use of multicoloured heuchera, sedum, lavender, catnip and various decorative grasses. Herbs such as mint, lemon balm, basil, thyme and sage, will also be a great choice. Later you can pick them from the green wall, brew or use as spices! Fruits and vegetables - from cherry tomatoes, wild strawberries or strawberries, to lettuce - are also a perfect choice.
As for the typical flowers for the balcony, we recommend primarily geraniums, petunias, begonias, lobelia, surfinia, helichrysum, busy lizzies and urticas. When mixing individual species you will receive a seasonal vertical garden in all the colours of the rainbow. You can follow your own intuition or use one of our ready systems - in both cases your balcony or terrace will undergo a complete change!
