DIY Vertical Garden Ideas (For More Growing Space In Small Gardens)
It’s no secret that I love to garden. But with a relatively small yard, I always seem to be running out of room to add new plants. So I’m excited to try out these DIY vertical garden ideas to help create more gardening space.
There comes a day in most gardeners lives when you realize that you don’t have enough garden space.
It could be that you have a small yard and didn’t have much space to begin with. Or maybe you have a bigger yard and have just accumulated way too many plants…so you’ve run out of room to plant more.
In any case, if you’re like most gardeners, not having any room for new plants doesn’t actually stop you from buying new ones. And then you’re left trying to figure out where you’re going to squeeze them in. Or what you can get rid of so you can put in the new one.
Well, there’s one way to increase your space that doesn’t require much extra land. And that’s to grow up.
Since I’m in the market for some extra gardening space, too, I decided to do a little digging (garden pun intended) and see what DIY vertical garden ideas I could come up with.
Keep reading to find my list of creative vertical garden design ideas.
1. Vertical Pallet Garden ideas
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Unpainted pallet
The first of the DIY vertical garden ideas I found is to use pallets.
Since upcycling pallets is so popular these days, it’s not a big surprise that there are a lot of people using them to create vertical gardens.
Some people keep the pallets looking pretty much like pallets, and use the space between the boards for plants.
Painted pallet
Other people use the pallet as a means for supporting their planters. In this case, they’re actually tin cans used as planters (talk about an inexpensive way to create a DIY vertical garden!)
Of course, I might be a bit biased on this idea, since the cans are painted blue and the pallet is painted purple…I love this color combination!
In fact, I liked this idea so much I made my own version of it using larger window boxes so they don’t dry out as fast.
Freestanding pallet
Some people deconstruct the pallets to make them look more like long planter boxes.
This one has more than pallet attached back together to make an inexpensive freestanding vertical garden.
Living wall pallets
And some people go all out to create an entire living wall out of pallets. How amazing is this?
I love how they alternated the pallets so that some of the slats are horizontal and some are vertical.
And I’m sure they must have an automated watering system* to make sure those plants at the top stay as green as they are!
Click here to find out how to make your own DIY vertical pallet garden.
2. Tall Vertical Garden
This tall vertical garden is somewhat similar to the pallet vertical garden above, but with a DIY trellis instead. Since you’re building the frame yourself, you can make it as tall and as wide as you want.
The simple trellis has slats going across that are just far enough apart for the pots to fit through.
It looks like there’s a rail at the back that the bottom of the pots rest on which keeps them at an angle.
In any case, I love the idea of doing whole squares with the same flower. It’s that old gardening rule that a grouping of the same plant always makes a bigger impact than just one.
Wouldn’t this make a great privacy fence? Except you might have to put plants on sticking out both sides to keep the neighbors happy 🙂
Another similar idea is to fill in some of the squares with different sized logs. Which really adds some interest to this tall vertical wall.
3. Vertical Landscape
For a similar look without having to build as complicated of a structure, growing vines on a lattice fence can also create a vertical garden.
My mother’s garden uses Hydrangea vine along with Hostas, Allium and Rhododendrons to create a vertical landscape that also acts as a privacy fence.
You can find a list of flowering vines that would work well for a vertical landscape HERE.
4. Lattice Vertical Garden Ideas
Speaking of using lattice, I found a few DIY vertical garden ideas that make use of it to build creative structures.
DIY Trellis Garden
This DIY lattice trellis is super easy to make. And the rails are thin enough that you can use S-hooks to hang buckets from them.
It’s a simple project that makes a very effective vertical garden. Get the tutorial HERE.
Lattice Succulent Garden
This DIY vertical garden is made from lattice where the holes between the slats are just the right size to fit standard square pots.
Fill in all of the holes with potted succulents and you have an easy DIY vertical succulent garden.
You can see this lattice project along with some other vertical garden pictures HERE.
Lattice Vertical Garden Wall
This DIY vertical garden idea is also built on lattice although you wouldn’t know to look at it.
It uses a bunch of potted plants attached to a lattice background to create this vertical garden wall.
To attach the pots, all you do is drill a hold in the back of them and then use a piece of wire to attach them to the lattice.
For a really inexpensive version, re-use the pots that your plants came in.
You can even make designs out of the plants, by arranging them in the right order on the wall.
Or, if you want to go for a very colorful vertical garden wall, use pots of all different colors to add some pizzazz.
5. Terracotta Pot Garden Wall
Speaking of colorful containers, I love this wall of blue terracotta pots. (Of course, since blue is my favorite color…that might have something to do with it).
Planting the blue pots with pink and red flowers makes the colors stand out even more.
And did you notice? You can’t see any supports on these pots.
How do you hang the pots?
So how do you duplicate the hanging in thin air look?
For smaller pots, you can get away with these planter pot hangers*. They’ll hold pots with a rim up to 8″ in size.
They’re pretty cool because you can’t see any supports from the front so the pots almost look like they are floating in air.
To hang larger pots, you’ll probably want to use one of these ring-type planter holders*. They provide more support for heavier pots. But you can see them.
6. Floating Shelves Vertical Garden
The next one of my DIY vertical garden ideas is to use floating shelves.
Rather than attaching the pots directly to the wall, attach the shelves to the wall (or fence) and then place the pots where you want them.
This is a more economical way to go if you have a lot of pots you want to put up (much fewer hangers required!)
But they do need to be in a protected area where they won’t get blown off by the wind.
7. Window Box Wall Garden
Of course, if you prefer not to use pots (they can dry out quickly if you live in a hot area without much rain), planter boxes can be hung on a wall or fence, too.
Here, they’ve used planters with vertical wood pieces on a fence that has horizontal wood slats. The contrast helps to add some extra architectural interest.
Of course, you can also make plain wood boxes and paint them the same color as the house.
Planting them all with the same type of plant creates a very cohesive look.
Rustic window boxes hung on a barn wood fence have a totally different vibe altogether. And the rabbit on the old bike adds a bit of whimsy to the garden.
8. Freestanding Vertical Garden Ideas
Lattice and planter box vertical garden
If you don’t have a wall or a fence in your yard. Or if you just don’t want to attach things to the wall, building a freestanding vertical garden may be the way to go.
Putting up some lattice in front of the wall, and hanging planter boxes from it is an easy way to get some vertical garden space.
Arbor garden
Of you can build a freestanding vertical garden structure from scratch.
This one is made from an arbor with some wire screening, which makes the pots really easy to hang. Get the step-by-step tutorial from Shannon at Home Made Lovely.
9. DIY Ladder Vertical Garden
This DIY ladder vertical garden is another easy project that will let you add some vertical greenery where ever you have a little space.
The nice thing about this project is that it’s fairly easy to move. So if the spot where you put it used to get a lot of sun, and now it doesn’t. Just pick it up and put it somewhere else.
Get the tutorial from Ana White.
10. Boot Garden
This is probably the most creative entry on my list of DIY vertical garden ideas.
I never would have thought to hang boots from the fence as planters! But I love how pretty the different colors are, even when the plants aren’t blooming.
Find out more on how to do this HERE.
11. Framed succulent garden wall
I love this idea for creating a framed succulent vertical garden.
It’s basically a wood frame with some chicken wire that helps to keep the dirt and the plants in place.
Because there is so little soil to work with, you do need to make sure to use plants with shallow root systems. Which is why succulents work so well.
Find out how to make a framed succulent vertical garden HERE.
12. Monogram vertical garden
Another one of the creative DIY vertical garden ideas is this monogram planter by Ellery Designs for Remodelaholic.
What a pretty way to personalize your garden!
13. Hanging Pop Bottle Garden
At first, I wasn’t sure what this next DIY vertical garden was made of. And then I realized that it is pop bottles!
They have a hole cut out in the middle, and some drainage holes added to the bottom. Then just string them together to create a recycled DIY vertical garden.
If you don’t want to go through the work of removing the labels (or you just want to jazz them up a bit), you can always wrap the bottles in fabric or twine.
Find out how to create a pop bottle vertical garden HERE.
14. Hanging Shelf Garden
Another one of the hanging DIY vertical garden ideas is this string shelf.
It’s basically some boards with holes drilled in the corners and string (or wire) tied under each corner.
You could hand this from a gazebo or porch, or install a post with a support beam to hold up the shelf. Just make sure it’s in a protected location so the wind doesn’t blow all the pots off.
15. Felt Pocket Vertical Garden
Growing plants in fabric pockets is another easy DIY vertical garden idea.
You could make one for yourself from landscape fabric.
Or you can buy one already made*. Since they’re not very expensive, I think this is the route I would go 🙂
16. Traditional Hanging Pots and Window Boxes
Finally, if all else fails, there’s always the tried and true vertical garden solution of using hanging baskets and window boxes.
For porches and verandas, these are almost a given. But you can do the same idea almost anywhere around your house or garden, by adding hanging brackets to fence posts and walls.
That’s it my list of DIY vertical garden ideas. Hopefully, you’ve found some inspiration to create some extra gardening space for your own yard.
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This post was originally published on January 11, 2019 but was updated with new content on February 3, 2024.