Living Wall

For some reason this summer I'm having a really hard time getting my outdoor garden up and running.  Not sure what I'm doing wrong, but with the exception of 2 tomato plants and a little bit of lettuce, everything I plant has withered up.  Like, overnight.  Bummer, I know.  Living alone, I don't really need to grow as much as I was trying to but I miss the meditative state that an afternoon of gardening would put me in.  And, being underemployed in a new city with almost no friends, I really need some constructive ways to fill my time. 

Since the outdoor gardening thing wasn't working, I recently made one of these in my kitchen.  I love it!  It's about 5 ft wide by 4 ft tall.  Figuring out the hydration system has been the toughest part - I'm still tweaking it a bit.  Also, I thought it would be fun to try some hydroponic stuff in the reservoir (think lettuce and strawberries, not pot) but despite TONS of research on the webz and feeling pretty confident that I did everything right, nothing grew.  It's not that they died (though some of the plants on the actual wall haven't made it), they just didn't do anything.  Just stayed in their little seedling state forever, until they got a little slimy in the water and I became worried about the safety of eating them (salmonella is a big concern with hydroponics), so I scrapped them.  Still debating whether to try again.

Patrick Blanc is the man when it comes to living walls.  He did the Cal Academy of Sciences, The Drew School, and a zillion other amazing walls all over the world.  If you're digging the concept or looking to waste a bit of time online, google him.

Here's some pics of other walls - I'll try to take/post some of my own soon!