How to establish living wall on west facing balcony in Brisbane?

[HonoraG]

I am setting up a Living / Green Wall on a balcony in Brisbane near Bunnings Stafford with a western outlook, so shade & late afternoon sun. I have the structure set up plus drip watering system to each pot (see attached image). I am going to use tropical plants for their durability and easy maintenance. My next job is to identify the best medium. As the drip system will be on a timer (set 3 times a day for a few minutes each time), I thought that water retention is important for each pot. From my research, I have identified that a premium soil mix, perlite and vermiculite are necessary for water retention. Some sources say that peat mix and clay balls are also preferred in the combination. I don’t want to go over the top, so just need some pointers from the Bunnings experts. Is premium soil mix, perlite and vermiculite the best medium option? If so, what is the best premium soil mix product suitable for a living wall? Should I include peat mix and/or clay balls in the medium mix? Some clarification about fertilisers when installing the plants in the wall will be helpful, Slow release fertiliser (for continuing fertilisation) and/or a liquid mix when planting? Your advice is very much appreciated.

[JacobZ]

Hi @HonoraG,

A warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it's wonderful to have you with us.

Nice work with your living wall, it's a very exciting project that will be wonderful once it is in action.

If you were making your potting soil, using dirt from your garden, then I would certainly recommend adding additional water retention components, fertilisers and wetting agents, however, it is not necessary right away if you use a premium potting mix.

You'll find that most premium potting mixes already contain components aimed at retaining water. For example, the Scotts Osmocote 50L Premium Plus Superior Potting Mix contains coir peat. You can always increase the amount of water-retaining material in the mix, but it is entirely up to you. Either Brunnings Vermiculite or Brunnings Perlite will be good options.

You'll also find that most premium potting mixes contain a certain amount of slow-release fertiliser, such as the 6 months included in the Scotts Premium Plus Superior Potting Mix I have mentioned above. You can always pick up a Scotts Osmocote All Purpose Controlled Release Fertiliser to add to your soil, but you should wait for around 6 months before doing so. You don't want to overload new plants with fertiliser as they can burn new roots.

You can add clay balls or drainage gravel to the bottom of the pots before adding your soil to act as a reservoir that will encourage the roots to extend down towards the water. This will help with water retention and promote strong root growth.

Adding a plant tonic or soil conditioner such as Seasol will also be beneficial. They differ from fertilisers as they do not provide significant levels of primary nutrients (nitrogen, potassium, phosphorous), instead, they support long-term soil and plant health. For the long-term productivity of your soil, it would certainly be worthwhile.

The best advice I can offer is to not overthink it early on. A premium potting mix will contain everything your plants need to thrive in the early stages. You can always add to this mix later on if you are not getting the results you expected.

The main thing is to ensure your plants are taken care of and you take action when anything happens to them. If anything comes up that you are unsure of, you can always jump on Workshop for some assistance.

Allow me to tag @robchin and @mich1972 to see if they have any tips.

You can also check out How To Plant A Vertical Garden for some further guidance.

Let me know what you think and if you have further questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Jacob