They Turn Walls Into Gardens

They Turn Walls Into Gardens AG WORLD 33-6-22 You can plant a garden on a wall, inside or outside, with a living wall kit from Elevated Landscape Technologies (ELT). "We sell retail kits as well as larger custom-designed systems complete with irrigation and lighting," says Greg Garner, president, ELT. "Our largest so far was for a shopping mall in England. It's around 3,000 square yards in one location." Benefits include cleaner and fresher air, cooler walls in the summer and warmer walls in the winter, as well as, of course, easily picked fresh produce. "Our dealers can provide a recommended list of plants, maintenance schedules and likely plant replacement schedules for your area," says Garner. "You need to evaluate available light. Larger systems also require a water source and power. You may also need to evaluate the load bearing capacity of the wall or floor." Residential retail kits are much smaller. A Living Wall Single Kit is 31 in. high by 22 in. wide by 6 in. deep. It's priced at $395 and ready to go, complete with a cedar stand, manual irrigation system and instructions. A 59-in. tall Double Kit is priced at $537.99. All you need to add is soil, plants and water. For suggestions on a do-it-yourself wall gardens, visit the Gardening Tips æn' Ideas website. It offers links to several different types of on-the-wall growing systems at gardeningtipsnideas.com/2008/07/starting_a_diy_vertical_garden.html. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Elevated Landscape Technologies Inc. (ELT), 245 King George Road, Suite #319, Brantford, Ont., Canada N3R 7N7 (ph 519 458-8380; or 866 306-7773; info@elteasygreen.com; www.eltlivingwalls.com) or Patrick Blanc, Vertical Garden; (info@murvegetalpatrickblanc.com; www.verticalgardenpatrickblanc.com).

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