Completed in just one morning on April 5, 2013, a private home located on Calle Dofins in Lloret de Mar, Spain, has a beautiful custom greenwall planted with over 50 species of succulent plants. The size measures 2 x 4 m, creating 8 m2 of vegetation on the fence.

“My clients asked me to cover the fence in order to have more intimacy in their garden. As the climate is very temperate in Lloret de Mar located on the Mediterranean shore, I thought succulent plants would be a good choice. I used small stainless steel modules 50 cm x 50 cm, x 5 cm deep, with vegetal soil covered with a coconut sheet,” says designer Marc Grañén.

The rust-proof square lattice mesh forms a lightweight cage ideal for planting. The modules were pre-grown and mounted in a greenhouse for about 15 days before the assembly, thereby facilitating the rooting of plants horizontally. The modules were planted and hung at Clavisa Nurseries, which grow cacti and succulents, in Vilassar de Dalt, near Barcelona.

In this case, the wall bracket was the very fence separating the two properties, which was actually a metal mesh grid itself, which greatly facilitated the hanging of the modules. To reinforce the fence, which was not designed to withstand the weight of an added plant structure, diagonal braces were welded onto it for bracing, creating brackets as straps at the base of the supports. Finally the fence structure was ready to support the panels, plus Marc added a safety factor of 50% of its own weight. To hang the modules, stainless steel S hooks were used.

Some of the greenwall succulents include: Echeveria amoena, Echeveria elegans,Sedum acre, Burrito, Sedum kampschaticum, Sedum ludidum, Sedum nussbaumrianum, Sedum oaxacanum, Sedum oreganum, Sedum palmeri, Aeonium arboreum, Cotyledon macrantha, Zygocactus spp., Aptemia cordifolia, and Mesem bryantemum.

The greenwall is watered with a 16 mm Techline drip irrigation system placed every 30 cm horizontally along each row of modules. A rectangular stainless steel catch basin collects excess water which is redirected to a planter of palms and other vegetation to one side. Thus, the beautiful mosaic tile feature on the bulkhead remains clean.