Vegetables Gardening - Growing Organic Vegetables

Probably one of the most unique qualities of American cities is urban sprawl.
American urban design allowed for the gradual outward movement of populations
from a dense city center. It allows for large yards surrounding houses in green
neighborhoods far from the middle of the city, and in these yards many choose to
plant gardens, be they flowers to look at or fruits and vegetables to eat.

Despite this, urban centers are still dense with little green space, and in
other parts of the world with a more established urban design, densely packed
concrete and brick buildings are the standard and green space is as rare as the
Bentley owned by the rich tenant on the top floor of the brand new high rise
condominium.

In response, a new way of looking at gardening has sprung up, and you can take
"up" quite literally. Possibly one of the last frontiers in gardening is the
vertical wall space that is otherwise bland and artificial, or maybe constantly
a target for unsightly graffiti. Also known as Green Walls, Living Walls, and
Biowalls, vertical gardening is a 90 degree take on putting a constantly
changing personality where none was possible before. There are even ways to
bring your vertical garden indoors to add a unique splash of color to an
otherwise bland and bare space.

Not only are vertical gardens attractive, they are functional too. Studies have
shown that green space is cooler than the urban space around it, due to a
phenomenon called the Urban Heat Island Effect. That is why rural areas can be
many degrees cooler than their urban neighbors. In addition, the buildings and
roads absorb heat throughout the day and release it slowly at night due to their
generally darker colors. If the wall space was covered in a vertical garden,
the plants would cool the building to within 2 degrees of the ambient air. The
plants can also help clean up the air; they are natural filters that can clean
up excess carbon dioxide outdoors or help combat poor air quality if planted
indoors.

Many concepts and artists renderings for future urban planning show giant
skyscrapers seemingly overflowing with greenery that covers much of the vertical
space. It seems that vertical gardens could become the next big idea in urban
planning and making urban centers attractive to new growth. Many large cities
are pushing live-work zones in redeveloped sections of their downtowns, and
vertical gardens are definitely something that could be integrated into
beautification projects.

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