Spring and summer have arrived, and many homeowners are turning their attention to outdoor spaces. For those with limited ground area, living walls offer a way to bring greenery into small gardens or even onto balconies. Leading garden architects and designers say the trend is growing, and several recent projects show how vertical planting can transform a space.
A ‘Central Jewel’ in Corten-Steel
One designer said they let the plants guide the aesthetic.
For a sunny wall, they chose sun-loving varieties like violet-blue perennial geraniums and fuchsia ‘Genii’. The vertical garden is integrated into a corten-steel water feature, acting as what they called a “central jewel” in the garden. It sits within a layered crown of planting, but does not dominate the space.
Disguising a Garden Room in London
In a small yard in East Dulwich, London, a family used a green wall to hide an existing garden room.
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The structure distorted the boundaries.
It made the outdoor space feel larger without losing any footprint. It surrounds two round windows and a central pink door, which remain the focal points. Plants include Japanese forest grass, Chinese rice-paper plants, pohuehue, fuchsia ‘Hawkshead’, soft tree fern, and Japanese maple.
Rooftop Green Wall Supports Wildlife
On a London office building rooftop, a project claims to be the city’s first double-sided green wall. It features more than 50 plant species, including hebes, rock roses, lavender, shrubby honeysuckle, Mexican fleabane and cape jewels. The design also aims to support urban wildlife — insects, tits, wrens, and robins.
Weight was a constraint at that height.
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But the vertical garden comes in at just 25kg per square meter, making it one of the lightest in London.
A Seamless Threshold in Melbourne
Another vertical garden serves as a threshold between yard and interior in a Melbourne home. It’s made from a reinforced cement-panel base with vertical timber columns painted in Dulux’s “Cottage Green.” From the yard, climbing vines like star jasmine grow along a trellis and are trimmed to look like upright topiary.
The team took inspiration from the geometric gardens at Levens Hall.
For an outdoor area designed mainly for entertaining, one firm used a green wall to add abundant texture alongside hardscape. The palette was deliberately restrained and mainly evergreen, with white accents from Japanese anemones and hydrangea paniculata flowers.
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That approach ensures the green wall stays visually appealing year-round, they noted.
The choice of plants is critical. Many professionals opt for evergreens and sun-loving species tailored to the wall’s exposure. One specialist pointed out that the installation must blend with the surrounding architecture — it’s not just a decorative add-on but a structural element that can define a space.
As these projects show, living walls can adapt to different climates, spaces, and purposes.
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