outdoorgrowing medium
Vertical growing
Stacked or wall-mounted planting, indoors or out, used where floor area is the scarce resource rather than light or soil.
What this changes about growing
- Upper tiers shade lower ones, which is the constraint that decides whether a stack works at all.
- Rooting volume per plant is small, so it suits shallow-rooted leafy crops and herbs.
- Watering is uneven by nature: the top dries first and the bottom stays wet.
Safety
A watered vertical planter is heavy. Wall fixings have to carry the wet weight, not the dry weight.
What GrowingHQ has assessed in it
Only plants with an actual assessment appear here. A plant that is absent has not been ruled out — it has not been looked at for this method.
| Plant | Suitability | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| Apricot | Well suited | A south-facing wall; Fleece over the blossom on frosty nights; Hand pollination |
| Blackberry | Well suited | A fence, wall or post-and-wire run |
| Cherry | Well suited | Wires; Summer pruning only; Netting |
| Chives | Well suited | Small, shallow-rooted and hardy — an unusually good fit. |
| Fig | Well suited | A south or west wall; A restricted root run |
| Gooseberry | Well suited | |
| Grape | Well suited | A warm wall; Strong wires |
| Lettuce | Well suited | |
| Loganberry | Well suited | |
| Peach | Well suited | A south or west wall; A winter rain screen; Hand pollination |
| Pear | Well suited | A south or west-facing wall; Wires; Summer pruning |
| Redcurrant | Well suited | Wires; Summer and winter spur pruning |
| Spinach | Well suited | |
| Strawberry | Well suited | |
| Tayberry | Well suited | A fence or wire run |
| Whitecurrant | Well suited | Wires; Spur pruning |
| Apple | Workable | Wires and posts, or a wall; Summer pruning every year |
| Basil | Workable | |
| Coriander | Workable | |
| Cucumber | Workable | Netting or strings to climb |
| French bean | Workable | A climbing cultivar and a structure that carries the weight |
| Mint | Workable | Confinement is built in, which suits it. |
| Oregano | Workable | Suits the drier upper tiers. |
| Parsley | Workable | |
| Pea | Workable | |
| Plum | Workable | Wires on a south or west wall; Summer pruning only |
| Raspberry | Workable | |
| Runner bean | Workable | |
| Thyme | Workable | Small and drought-tolerant, which suits the drier upper tiers of a stacked planter. |
| Carrot | Not suitable |