Vertical Home Gardening

By Ashleigh Smith

If you have never tried vertical gardening before, make this your year to try something new. Vertical gardening is a growing method that is becoming more and more popular to make the most out of small growing spaces. Its principles can be used for both home vegetable gardens as well as more complex ornamental designs.

This is not a new trend, it is actually one of the most effective ways to produce more in confined spaces. Vertical gardening has been popular throughout history as a way to beautify any garden space, produce higher yields of food per area, and provide shade in bright locations.

It doesn’t take much more than some seed and a supporting structure. That structure can be a fence, string, tree, post, etc. If your plants can attach or lean against it, your garden will do just fine.

This doesn’t have to be a big adjustment from how you usually plan your garden. For a larger harvest simply plant your tallest/longest varieties at the most eastward side of your planting area. This will allow the rest of your garden to get the necessary light it needs without being shadowed by the taller varieties.

Make sure you have your structures ready to go from the time you plant your seeds or starts. As they grow, you may need to guide their tendrils or tie the plant to your support system.

One of the best things about using a support for vining plants is better access to your harvest later in the season. Propping your plants up can also help with disease prevention as there is better airflow through your plants preventing molding issues.