greencube garden and landscape design, UK

Vertical planting has been incredibly popular during the last 10 years, inspired and driven by Patrick Blanc's amazing installations, seen in London, Paris and across the world. I dabbled with it back in 2006 for a rhs chelsea show garden, creating my vertical living art installations, but we have since played with the ideas. Here's an idea we carried out back in a tiny courtyard garden back in 2007, using offcuts of paving, to create the crevices in which I planted a mixture of Sempervivums, requiring a teaspoon of water, these plants can thrive in this sunny location and are incredibly low maintenance. Here mixed with Rudbeckia deamii, Achillea, Verbena, Anemanthele (although be careful with this grass, it can self seed anywhere, but easy to pull up unwanted seedlings) and topiary. This vertical idea creates a great, original, textural focal point that breaks up the white rendered walls that enclose this tiny courtyard.               ...

So here it is my treasured sparrow flats, this has got to be the most original and unique christmas present I have ever received, now proudly positioned on the north/westerly wall of our house. My triangular designed sparrow flats ( great tit's also welcome) , with 10 nesting boxes integrated within, you could call it the sparrow hotel. I'm waiting with anticipation for the birds to move right on in. All colour co-ordinated to tie in with our windows and doors. HOW SPECTACULAR. A big thank you to DAD Buckland (my father-in-law) who lovingly built this for me with great attention to detail and execution of my original brief. ha ha. It was delivered along with a tawny owl nesting box which has been positioned in our oak tree, we often hear the Tawny owl calling and we are hoping it likes its new home! So along with the nectar rich meadow that we carefully sowed last spring and was full of bees and butterflies this summer and my bug hotel wall, Our meadow this summe...