Plant installations remind us to stop and smell the peperomia
Photo by Rachel Pressley
Some plants are bold and uncompromising. Madison Samuels knows this firsthand. As the Florist Manager at Flora Botanical Living, a full-service floral-design studio and retail plant shop in West Asheville, Samuels spends hours taming notoriously wily species such as orchids. “Plants are living beings,” she reminds us, “and they can be very sassy.”
And yet we crave their company. The presence of plants has been shown to lower anxiety markers like heart rate and blood pressure, and to signal our brains to pump out more serotonin, a feel-good neurotransmitter. And it’s not necessary to immerse oneself in the backcountry to reap these benefits. Even a potted spider plant or easy-growing sword fern can brighten the mood.
These reasons, coupled with nearly two nail-biting years of COVID-19, have inspired more and more people to add living walls to their homes and businesses. Samuels says they’re essentially vertical gardens that can be installed inside or out. Flora built its first living wall back in 2012, way before HGTV picked up on the concept. The Asheville-based plant shop has since installed living walls in residential and commercial buildings across the region.
She took a break from wrangling roses to talk with Carolina Home + Garden about this blossoming trend.
Living walls are gaining ground in the interior-design world.
Why do you think that is?
People want to reconnect with nature, especially after having to be inside because of COVID-19. Bringing plants into a space makes it more welcoming and inviting. They bring a certain comfort and joy that we’re so desperately craving.
Photo by Rachel Pressley
How does Flora approach the design process?
It definitely starts by figuring out the space itself. Each space is so unique, and that uniqueness will completely change the living-wall design. We start by asking: “How big is the wall? What is the lighting like? Where are the windows placed? Are the windows north- or south-facing?”
Those details make a big difference. For instance, south-facing windows get a lot of light, so you need to choose cacti, succulents, euphorbias [also called “spurge” plants], and other plants that do well with bright light. Since a lot of houseplants can’t tolerate tons of direct light, that’s something to be mindful of.
What does the installation process look like? How long does it take?
We hire a licensed contractor to install the pocket system since that process involves drilling fairly far into the wall. After the wall pockets are installed, we come out and place the plants in each pocket, which are about a foot long and made out of recycled plastic or plastic-lined wool. We will put some stones at the bottom of each pocket to help with drainage, add a little bit of activated charcoal to prevent mold from growing, and then top that with some dirt. Planting takes about one to two days.
Photo by Rachel Pressley
This process is fairly different than, say, designing a floral bouquet or a wedding arrangement. For one, you are scrambling up a ladder in a client’s house or business. What is that like for you?
It can be pretty frustrating. You have to find the perfect balance of dirt. You can’t have too much dirt because when you insert the plant, it won’t fit. But you also want to have enough dirt so it will thrive. Of course, since you’re dealing with dirt, the process can be messy. We always try to bring tarps.
How does a homeowner or business owner maintain their living wall?
Living walls are fairly low maintenance. They need to be hand watered once or twice a week. Overwatering will cause drainage issues.
Which plants do best in an indoor setting?
There are so many different kinds of plants that thrive indoors, but it depends on the lighting situation. There are low-light plants, medium-light plants, and high-light plants. I like to suggest easy beginner plants that are adjustable to most lighting situations. For instance, mother-in-law’s tongue (also called snake plant), ZZ plant, peperomia [a species that includes the baby rubber plant], and philodendron. These plants are pretty luscious.
How do living walls transform an interior space?
Living walls lift our spirits. They help bring calm and create fresh air, which is always a plus. But more importantly, living walls connect us to nature. They prevent us from being so drained by the world we live in. They remind us to take it slow—to stop and smell the flowers, so to speak.
Flora Botanical Living, 428-B Haywood Road, West Asheville. To learn more, call 828-252-8888 or visit florabotanicalliving.com.