Just thought I'd post 2 updated photos of how the herb garden looks now several months later. I do have to water it regularly if we don't get rain. Several herbs have set seeds. And some of the plants died back a little and then produced more leaves after I gave them a diluted dose of fertilizer! They've done well in the heat of summer with watering/rain in what I consider a small root area! Herbs are tough plants! My favorite herb is the Spearmint!

This is the larger vertical garden facing the east. The parsley has been feeding the Eastern Black Swallowtails! LOL!



And this photo shows the other 2 smaller side-by-side vertical herb gardens. The Swiss Chard (in the white rectangular container on the ground) got eaten up and is sending up new sprouts, so it looks bare in that container currently. Everything else has grown and even with me snipping pieces stays looking pretty over-grown most of the time! I really love this vertical herb garden!!!

I love this update. I especially like the idea of lifting plants high enough so that the birds can eat the parsley undisturbed. I have to guard against planting any low-growing plants that attract birds because my cats would never leave them alone.

Zuzu - Glad you like it!

You could plant fruiting plants in them too, like strawberries! It would make a great strawberry vertical garden!

Just love this idea, I've seen several of these done but yours is a big step above the ones I have seen. What a lovely and practical area. A "BIG"

Wonderful job, Becky. I need you at my house!

Holly and Tee - Thanks to both of you! I am glad you and others like my pallet garden!

I hope other gardeners copy my idea. It really makes a great way to grow herbs and keeps their growth contained in one area! This vertical garden could also be used to grow strawberries! I may try that next year and then plant herbs after the strawberries are done. This could be used in various ways!

It could also be used as a garden screen to give some privacy to an area of your yard from nosey neighbors.

I have plans to turn the area behind it into a kind of bird blind. A lot of the birds use the Cassia tree, right next to this vertical garden, and it is partially shading the area behind the garden pallets. It would be very easy to sit quietly in that area with camera in hand and snap away as the birds fly in and perch on the branches. It is a perfect area to "hide and wait" for taking wildlife photos!

wonderful idea. And I could use a strawberry bed as mine are on the ground and they don't get enough air circulation to prevent rot. Suggestion was made to underlay with straw but haven't done it yet. This would make a great privacy screen at the back of my little patio by the pond. It sits out in the middle of the yard and has absolutely no privacy from three neighbors. Not that they are nosy. Just the idea of it. Thanks so much for a very meticulous well made building plan. I have printed it off.

beckygardener said:... This could be used in various ways!

It could also be used as a garden screen to give some privacy to an area of your yard from nosey neighbors.

This is what I was thinking, too. So many folks ask what can be done for a bit of gentle screening between yards, and many times a large in-ground plant just won't work. This could be used almost anywhere.

Great going, Becky! Thanks for sharing.

Mary - Thank you! Glad you like my article and found it very useful.

To have privacy on your patio, you could build a 3-sided vertical garden, instead of the 2-sided one like I built. That way you could grow herbs, lettuce (and such), AND strawberries!

chelle - You are very welcome!

Becky, this is a great article! I love the way it is put together and really enjoyed the update pictures. What a great way to have herbs at that height so one is not always bending down for everything.

Your imagination is inspiring

Vickie - Thank you! You are totally correct ... I do NOT like bending over all the time, preferring plants that grow closer to eye-level. It also makes inspecting them for pests and disease much easier .... as well as watering and fertilizing. I really love the whole vertical gardening concept. With homeowner's yards getting smaller and smaller, going UP vertically is becoming the option for many to increase their garden size!! It's probably going to be the wave of the future for many gardeners! I'm already "boarding" that train!