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Ask a Gardening QuestionGarden Design: Garden Design QuestionsLiving pillars

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Living pillars

#1 · 18th March 2024, 6:06 pm

Hello, this is part of a larger redesign, however I have seen 'living pillars' as a service advertised by other companies, so if it breaks any boundaries, feel free to delete

But in regards, I have gone to see a client, and they've suggested that they would like ivy growing up pillars, or some sort of climber growing up, to turn it into a living pillars. And I'm trying to do this as cost effective as possible, I've seen the price of living pillars

I've thought about the basics, for example, yes, I could put something round the pillars in terms of soil retension, like a bed, fill it, plant ivy and put eyelets and wire up the pillar.

But I had a few questions. How would it drain? Or would it work like a pot plant. Yeah it could work 2 years down the line as it grows, but what if the roots get too big? Would it be hard to maintain? Would it cause structural damage? I've seen ivy and things like Clematis, but can cause damage. I would like to fulfil the client's requirements, but I don't really have a network of people to ask, sorry if this is too much. I have attached a picture

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#2 · 19th March 2024, 8:59 am

Hi @calphoenix

Thanks for this interesting question on design. It doesn't breach the design or forum rules as they are so specific. More people cheekily ask me to design their gardens for free, and these get banned!

I've seen many living structures and collums on my journey as a garden designer, mainly in very humid countries like Singapore and Asia.

The advice I would give you is a lot of these are not structural. They are basically big mesh pillars filled with coir and other growing media, with creeping and climbing plants planted in pockets around them to give the illusion of a plant pillar.

For your project, I'd advise two things to bear in mind:

1 - Planting around the pillars will require drainage and some decent soil. So you will probably need to either cut a ring out of the flags all the way around, add a colour, and then fill it with some decent soil/compost. Then plant climbers. You will need decent drainage, though!

2 - Maintenance of climbing plants like Ivy. Whilst Ivy and large-leaf Hederas are probably the best for coverage, they can become unwieldy. How will the owners manage to stop it from creeping up and into the guttering or smothering the railing? Bear that in mind.

A better idea would be to design some circular, deeper planters around the base, like a big collar, and fill them with a mix of tall herbaceous perennials and evergreen plants. Maybe a few dwarf clematis will help you get some of the impact without the maintenance.

Do let us know how you get on, and if you want to advance your garden design skills, why not consider taking my online course?

All the best

Lee