Bring the green inside – placing a green wall in your home

Rhea Purnita Paine Rhea Purnita Paine
Green walls, CONILLAS - exteriors CONILLAS - exteriors Garden
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There is nothing as rejuvenating as reconnecting with nature. If you live in a city, even going out for an evening walk doesn't bring in that connect with nature, as you are more like to take a stroll in a concrete jungle, than a green recluse. While you can not change your outdoors, why not change your indoors to make it more green? A simple way to do this is to create a 'green wall' in your home. A green wall is a wall partially or completely covered with plants, flowers and creepers. But this greenery doesn't grow from pots below, but instead grows from a growing medium like soil, which is part of the wall. We have simplified this process for you, so follow our 6 easy steps and bring some green inside your home with a green wall!

Availability of light

The first thing to consider is the availability of light. No plant can thrive without light, preferably sunlight. Thus, a space which has a skylight like in this room here designed by ARCHITETTURA & SERVIZI, or a room which has big French windows and thus can let in ample light during the day, is a better place to have a green wall. If you don't have these options, try and place focused artificial lights on your green wall to help the greenery thrive on it.

Where to place it?

The next thing you will wonder of course, is where to place it? Since the wall will have soil and other components like fertilizers in it, it is best to avoid putting such a wall in the bedrooms or kitchen. This way if there is any kind of additional bacteria that grows on the wall, it won't affect you while sleeping and won't grow on your food. A less personal space, like a dining area, or living room, or the foyer is a better place to have a living wall.

Water supply and flow

While creating a green wall in your home, also keep in mind it's water requirements. If the wall has an existing water source or pipe inside your job will become easier, as you can fix sprinklers or pipes into the soil on the wall to replenish it with water regularly. As this is a vertical garden, and not a horizontal one, simply spraying it with water won't do the trick. You can't use a can to water such a wall as you may flood the rest of the room in doing so. If you choose to use a mechanical or manual spray, you will have to ensure every corner get's sprayed with water evenly, and may need to use a ladder or chair to get to the top most sections.

Kind of walls

The kind of green wall that you have is decided by the kind of plants you grow on it. A Panel Systems green wall has plants like Sage and Prowall pre-grown into it's panels and can be used inside in any kind of climate.Versa Wall is a wall with a tray system which is popular for indoor displays. In such a wall plants are grown elsewhere and the inserted into the wall, which allows people to have a variety of plants in the wall. Freestanding walls are most common indoors, you can keep changing the plants in such a wall and is ideal for displaying flowers, as no flowers are seasonal by nature.

Plants

While growing a green wall is a great idea, you need to also decide on specifics like which plants would you like to grow on a such a wall. Pothos, Lipstick plant, Sword fern, Wedding vine, Peace lily etc are some of the most common plants that are grown on a green wall. You can even grow flowers like – Orchids, Lavender, Carnations and even Roses on a eco wall indoors.

Art and advantages

No matter where you place a green or eco wall, it improves the air quality of your home, and thus helps you stay healthier. But a green wall is not just a step closer to nature, today it has become an art onto itself. The idea of a Green Wall was first conceived by Stanley Hart White in 1938. However, it is Patrick Blanc who made it popular by creating one of the most famous green walls at the Musee du Quai Branly in Paris. You too can turn your eco wall into something more, be it a floral paradise like the one here designed by MATERFLORA LDA, or a hillside wall with ferns like this. If you have a lawn but feel it's not thriving, here are 6 horrible mistakes you could be making!

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