Homeowners are always looking for the next best thing. It’s one of the reasons we’ve fallen in love with home renovation shows like The Block and House Rules. However, what is achievable for a reality show may not be the same in real life (we don’t all have lots of time and unlimited budgets!). And that’s one of the reasons why artificial vertical gardens have taken off. Achieving a vertical garden with real plants can take a lot of time, energy and effort. So, faux is definitely trending. But where do you start?
Artificial Vertical Garden: Top questions
We’ve prepared a list of some of the top questions you asked us about our artificial vertical garden range, and our answers to help you make the right choice for your space.
1. What can I do with a kitchen window that looks onto a fence?
A glass (window) splashback is a key feature of any home, so greater thought must go into designing the area, as you and your guests will regularly look out from this area of your home.
We suggest that a premium panel such as the white oasis or select range are used as this gives you fantastic depth and variation to your green wall and will make it the envy of your friends.
2. My neighbours look into my yard, how can I fix this?
Creating privacy is often easier than you’d think. One super quick option is to get a 2m hedge and put it into a planter. If you want greater height you can add a tall pot and some bricks inside so the hedge sits on that. The other option is to get a timber trellis fence extension then simply staple a green wall panel onto this.
When adjusting fencing heights, or balcony railings please check to ensure this complies with council and building regulations.
3. Are all fake vertical gardens the same?
Absolutely not! Generally speaking, fake green walls come in a few variations from a quality perspective. However, you can be easily fooled as they may all look the same, to begin with.
Non UV Green Walls – these are simply straight plastic formed into a leaf with various colours. These will become brittle and fall apart when exposed to the sun (however they will look 99% the same as UV engineered panels.
UV treated panels – these are effectively non UV panels with a UV spray over the top. These will often be 20% – 40% cheaper than a fully UV engineered panel. However, you will need to re-apply the spray as it will come off in the rain and heat over time.
UV engineered panels (these are what we sell at Designer Plants). These have the UV protectant within the plastic, to ensure it doesn’t wash off. This allows your plants to last longer. Our plants have been tested for Australian weather standards.
UV Engineered panels with fire protectant added: these are our select range panels which have an additional additive included to reduce flame spread to 0. Please note that one should ensure all products are independently considered with respect to suitability for safety, fencing, fire and building requirements by an approved expert.
4. How can I quickly cover up a drab looking wall?
Typically, attaching green walls can take a matter of hours. For example, a 3m x 3m wall onto timber may take 3 hours or so to complete. These are really easy and quick to set up!
5. What is the most popular green wall panel?
Please see our blog on the top 9 greenery panels.
6. Do I need to cover an entire wall or fence with a vertical garden or just a section?
This is a great question and one which really depends on your circumstances. Often if you are after a wow effect we would suggest covering an entire area. However, if you love the look of timber panels, you can mix them together.
7. I want the outdoors inside – how can I do this?
Our green wall disks are perfect for this as they are easy to attach and look like a masterpiece by themselves and don’t require any framing. Alternatively, you may consider using two panels and then build a timber frame around it so that it looks like a hand curated piece of art.
8. Do I need to get rid of my live plants or can I use both live and fake plants?
Definitely not! We actually recommend mixing the two. One of the key benefits of green walls is that they can provide greenery where live plants can’t grow, or where they will regularly die. For example, some clients have put a green wall up on a fence in front of a splashback then attached some wall hanging pots to grow herbs. Other times people have used the green walls as a great backdrop to tall plants such as cypress so that they don’t need to look at a drab old fence.
9. What do I need to do to keep a fake vertical garden looking great?
Not much at all! We would suggest giving your faux greenery a wash every few months with a hose or similar. You may also wish to add some UV protectant spray to prolong the life of the plants for even longer (not necessarily required though).
10. How long have you been operating for?
We started off as a small family business around 10 years ago, and have since grown to be one of the largest distributors of green walls with offices in Melbourne, Sydney, the Central Coast and agents in QLD, SA, and WA.
11. How much do artificial vertical gardens cost?
Transforming your home doesn’t mean you need to spend thousands on knocking out walls or doors. You could uplift your space in a matter of minutes with a high quality faux green wall.
Our artificial vertical gardens start at $79.95 for a 1 meter panel and are easy to install. When looking at the cost of faux vertical gardens, it’s important to consider the time and saving you get with the plants not requiring any soil, fertiliser, trimming or water treatment on a regular basis.
12. How do I install a vertical garden?
Visit our useful guide to install your artificial green wall.
13. What plants are suitable for small spaces?
Even if your home or apartment is small, faux greenery can still be the answer. Consider creating your own plant pot with our fake plant’s range. Or make a statement with our green walls disks. The disks are a beautiful feature on a table or on a wall.
Need further help?
Got a question not answered here or maybe you need a helping hand? Our team of design consultants is here to help. Contact us and book your free design consultation.
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