A living wall adds a ton of greenery and texture and can make a stunning focal point in your home. If you want the look of a plant wall without the work, or if you’re a renter and don’t have the luxury of building a somewhat permanent structure, then this is for you. Check out these options and find a simple solution to create an easy living wall.
Traditional Living Wall Method
There are many ways to create a living wall. Typically, if you see one built professionally in an office or hotel lobby, you’re looking at a frame that houses angled trays or a hanging curtain with pockets sewn in to create individual spaces for soil and plants. You can achieve the same look using wall-mounted brackets designed to hold potted plants. A series of brackets placed nearby so that the greenery overlaps creates the appearance of a living wall. The plants obscure the structure as they fill in, creating the illusion of the plants growing from the wall. These structures are permanent and effective.
Install Tips
A living wall can get heavy, especially after you water the plants. It’s essential to ensure any structure is properly secured to the wall. This type of installation is easy if you’re handy but not so simple if you don’t have experience with this sort of thing. Use screws to secure a permament support and ensure the screws connect with a stud, the 2×4 upright that is the structure of a wall. Locate the studs in a wall using a device known as a stud finder.
You want to use screws that measure about two inches long. At least one inch of the screw should be in the stud. It also needs to go through half an inch of dry wall to reach the stud. Also consider the thickness of the living wall structure the screw needs to go through.
A permanent install isn’t for everyone, so here are ways to get the look of a living wall without concerning yourself with locating studs, sourcing hardware, or worrying about whether or not you’ll get your deposit back.
Book Smart
Fill a bookcase with houseplants. Include vining plants, like Pothos or Hoya. Ferns, like a Button or Crocodile, or Air Plants are great ways to fill space. Be sure to diversify to add texture, color, and dimension! Utilizing a bookcase mimics the look of a living wall. It won’t have the same visual impact, but it’s much easier to set up. A bookcase provides the ability to move plants around easily, so vining plants can relocate to higher shelves as the stems get longer.
Leave enough space for each plant to grow and spread. As the plants fill in and flourish, you may need to spread them further apart to ensure each one has the necessary space to grow. Give the plants time to grow and spread to create a stunning statement piece.
Pro Tip: Place floor plants next to the bookcase to obscure the furniture and create the look of a true living wall.
Some plants, like a Staghorn Fern, can be mounted to a board and hung on a wall. Grouping several together can create a mini living wall that makes a big visual statement.