Introduction

We are delighted to have been awarded a grant from Godalming Town Council to install a Living Wall on the outside of the Denningberg Centre. Creating green spaces and infrastructure in urban environments is an important contribution to adapting to climate change. On a large scale, living walls can contribute to air cleaning, reducing the urban heat island effect and enciunraging biodiversity. Our small-scale demonstration project is designed to encourage others in the urban environment to consider living walls.

What is a living wall?

As the name suggests, a living wall is a vertical garden placed on an inside or outside wall. In our case, it will be outside. There are several different structures that are used for living walks, from small pockets for planting sedums, to the horizontal troughs we are using, about which there’s a bit more information below.

Why are we creating a living wall?

It’s well known that as we build more, and as we turn more land over to farming, we are in danger of losing green spaces and putting biodiversity at risk. A living wall is a great way of bringing some of this back.

Our living wall is very modest in size, measuring 2 metres tall and 2.4 metres wide. What we want to do, as well as fulfil our own aims regarding a small vertical green space in Godalming, is showcase what can be done to inspire other people to do the same. From little acorns…

How are we building our living wall?

We are using a series of horizontal troughs fixed on top of each other to create the structure for our living wall. The troughs are filled with soil and then planted. We decided to use two systems so we can compare their use and so that others can see them ‘in action’ should they be considering their own living wall. We have one system from a company called Plantbox. These troughs are made of recycled plastic. We have another system from a company called Wall of Plants. These troughs are made of metal. The image gives an idea how the troughs are installed. Both of our systems will require us to water the plants ourselves. Systems that connect to a water supply are also available.

What will we plant in the living wall?

We haven’t decided on the plants we will use yet, but we are going to zone the troughs into two areas. One area will be planted to maximise biodiversity and be good for pollinators. The other area will be used for edible plants.

As a Climate Emergency Centre, we will have an eye to plants that suit our changing climate. We also need to consider our water source, as vertical gardens don’t capture rain very well.

The living wall will be on the side of the Denningberg Centre which faces east, so that’s another planting consideration.

The front of the Denningberg Centre is on Bridge Street and opposite the car park at Waitrose. This is quite a high traffic area and we plan to use plants here that are known to be good at absorbing pollution.

Who is involved?

The project is led by What Next? (Climate Emergency Centre for Waverley). We are grateful to Godalming Town Council for the funds to buy the living wall structure, and their support with other resources such as compost.

We are running this as a community project and are very keen for individuals and groups to be involved. We are already partnered with Joyfull Greens, a local plant-based community cookery school, and  and invite other to join us. If you would like to know more about how you or a group you are involved with can be involved, please contact us at…..