Re: vertical gardens/living walls

Gill
Interesting that you post this now, as I have been
asked to consult on a plant list for a similar living
wall to be built here on an east facing wall for a 
San Francisco school.  Of course Patrick Blank has
done interior living walls in Paris that use
subtropical/mediterranean plants that certainly could
as easily be done outside here in our mild marine
influenced medit climate, that as easily accomodates
subtropicals with year round irrigation, as it does
mediterraneans.

I would suggest that you either go dry and use
exclusively medit/succulent plants, or go more
subtropical/ripararian mediterranean species that will
handle the constant irrigation.  I also assume that
frost hardiness will be an issue for you?  We
typically don't need to worry much about that here in
Berkeley/San Francisco, where we are borderline USDA
zone 10.  I don't think you can mix the two
successfully without specializing the irrigation
system to zone it for wet/medium/dry.  Having seen
Patrick's plant lists for at least one interior
project outside Paris, I was surprised to see so many
plants that I ordinarily use in California gardens
from South Africa, Brazil and Mexico as part of his
mix.  In particular, I wouldn't have thought using
Cussonia paniculata would work, as they get tree sized
here, so it would be interesting to see how some of
his walls hold up over time.

Have you decided whether to use small planters with
soil, or strictly the felt with plants from cuttings
for your wall?  This will of course affect your plant
choices.  Keep us informed of how your wall
progresses, they certainly look interesting in Patrick
Blank's web site photos, and I would like to see more
of them here in the USA.  I have even been considering
doing one in my next spec home/garden project here in
the Berkeley Hills, but haven't decided if it really
fits in with a Morroccan themed house and garden,
which is the design brief from my client.

I must admit that your planting zone, USDA 7/8 is abit
outside my typical/preferred range of experience, as I
mostly deal with 9/10 plant lists,(and really enjoy
working with subtropical desert gardens or true zone
11/12 tropical gardens),  but I would be happy to vet
your list and offer suggestions as I can.  I would
tend to emphasize plants that colonize from the roots,
don't get too tall, and maybe emphasize plants that
drape nicely in nature, and would be useful to drape
over a planter wall, and would be equally happy
hanging from a vertical wall.  This description of
plant type lends itself to ferns, gesneriads,
succulents, bromeliads, etc in our climate zone. 
Plants such as coast redwood understory or woodland
plants in general such as Heucheras would also do
well.


--- "gill.cei" <gill.cei@wanadoo.fr> wrote:

> ViergeI and a couple of associates want to make a
> living wall/vertical garden/mur vegetal that is
> appropriate to our local climate - Mesditerranean,
> zone d'olivier, approx = USDA zone 7/8  Our plan is
> to make a sample, experimental panel this autumn
> and, all being well, to construct a large version
> next year.  Most of the references I have found so
> far use plants which aren't very "Med" in character
> - does anyone have any experience of living walls in
> Med climates that they would be prepared to share? 
> Ideas for appropriate plants (I already have some
> but would be interested in others)?  All comments &
> suggestions gratefully received.
> 
> Gill Pound
> Nr Carcassonne,
> Languedoc
> France
> 
>
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