Attach gutters to a privacy fence and plant a crop of lettuce. © Kerry Michaels/Cool Springs Press
One way to get more space in the landscape is to grow up.
Trellis, arbors, tuteurs, obelisks and tripods are just some of the structures we can use to get some height and blooms in the garden.
We can also attach window boxes, gutters and pots to a fence and plant in those, or create living walls. Structures that draw the eye upward also can help divide sections of the landscape to create rooms or sections.
To help with this trend comes Garden Up! Smart Vertical Gardening for Small and Large Spaces by Susan Morrison and Rebecca Sweet (Cool Springs Press, $19.95 paperback).
Vertical gardening maximizes every inch of space in the garden, the authors write. Whether you are growing ornamentals, such as climbing roses or clematis, or food, such as green beans or cucumbers, you are freeing up ground space for other plants.
Vertical gardening also covers a multitude of sins. Frank Lloyd Wright said, “A doctor can bury his mistakes but an architect can only advise his clients to plant vines.”
Although a chain link fence in the back yard or a utility box in the front yard may not be mistakes, they can be camouflaged with a trellis laced with vines. In an urban garden, mid-size trees or tall shrubs can be planted to soften the roof line of a neighbor’s house and create more privacy in your back yard, the authors write.
Even if you only have room for clusters of containers, make sure some of the pots have some height to them by elevating them and planting them with taller plants.
The book makes offers several design techniques, including how to create your own shade, plant recommendations for various settings and do-it-yourself projects.
Nice post Jo Ellen. I have a lot of fence.
I love this idea! Unfortunately, I live in an apartment and can’t attach anything permanent on my balcony. I may have to play around with the idea to come up with a free-standing alternative…