Vertical Gardens in Urban Spaces

Members: David Erbe, Andrew Bresee, Chanvearsna Omkar, Shaina Paulson

Advisor: David Tilley, Hooman Koliji
Project Concept/Abstract:
Background:
Green walls are vertical systems on buildings that contain plants. A living wall consists
of a planted system with a water source. Green walls provide many benefits to the environment
including filtering out dust, insulation, shading, cooling, noise reduction, and aesthetic value.
Problem:
Typical indoor environments are usually designed in a way that is not geared toward the
inhabitants comfort. In this way, nearly all indoor spaces create discomfort and stress within
people. Most indoor spaces have air quality that is lower than the outdoor environment and with
much higher concentrations of VOCs. Indoor spaces can also create segregation between nature
and its inhabitants. Many studies have shown that people become uncomfortable and less
productive the longer they are away from natural environments. This, in turn, decreases the
efficiency of employees and may lead to a worse experience for the employees.
In this way, a green wall, or vertical garden, is the perfect solution to many challenges
that people face in indoor environments. Green walls can clean air by removing VOCs using
bacteria that exist on plant roots and rhizomes. Green walls can also increase productivity and
mood. Studies have shown that greenery in indoor environments increase the mood and
productivity of the inhabitants, which is why there is a need for more green surfaces.
Objective:
Our objective is to demonstrate the use of hydroponic or aeroponic growing techniques
for vertical gardening in an urban setting. We will collaboratively design and build a vertical
garden that will foster a variety of decorative and edible plants. We will communicate with
multiple departments such as the School of Architecture and Facilities Management to build the
most productive and efficient system. The assigned space is a hallway with East and West facing
windows in the architecture building. Aesthetics are a primary concern however we will also
incorporate vertical farming and take into consideration environmental benefits. We will also
include a community element and have students play a role in moving the system to maximize
sunlight during different parts of the day.
Final Concept:
We plan to build a single modular green wall with vegetation on both sides. The system
will have the ability to rotate on a hinge 180 degrees to give both faces the opportunity for light
during different parts of the day.

Significance:
The addition of the green wall will add aesthetic value to the Architecture building. A
green wall can improve the Universitys physical appeal to students. Having an indoor gardening
system will re-connect students to nature even while they are inside.
The indoor green wall will also provide health and environmental benefits to the
inhabitants of the building. We picked plants that are not only nice to look at but ones that will
grow well indoors. The variety of plants to be incorporated in our green wall system can improve
air quality and a few of them are even edible.
Broader Impacts:
Building this green wall prototype, especially using our smaller budget, will force us to
spend our money wisely and create a green wall design that is innovative and inexpensive. If this
project proves successful, we can sell the design on a large scale. This has the potential of
creating a green wall movement, where owners of indoor spaces will add green walls whenever
possible. This will create huge benefits to the general population, as well as the businesses that
implement these designs. Building owners will save money, employees will work more
productively making businesses more money, and people will become happier and healthier as
produce is grown where they work and live.
Elements Of Design:
Environment- We are designing our indoor vertical wall in a hallway in the Architecture
building that has windows on both sides. The hallway is about 12 feet wide and 8.5 feet high
with about 20 linear feet window space.
Structure- The structure we are proposing is a modular, movable curtain in which the angle can
be physically modified.
Lighting- We plan to use artificial LED lighting to provide an energy source while the sun is not
active. We plan to install these lights on the modular system to ensure maximum efficiency.
Plants- We plan to use a small variety of plants that filter out toxins such as carbon monoxide,
benzene, xylene, and formaldehyde. Low maintenance, aesthetic and edible indoor plants that we
plan to grow are philodendron, lady palm, spider plants, tomatoes, snake plants, mint, and tea
leaves.
Growing Medium - Rockwool is a fibrous mixture of rock and sand that holds large amounts of
water, which acts as a buffer against power outages and pump/timer failure. It also holds a
minimum of 18% air at all times, supplying the root zone with a constant oxygen source and
prevents over watering.
Water and Nutrients- We are planning on using a water pump to move nutrient rich water
through pipes within the system and disperse it through an aeroponic spraying system or a
hydroponic drip irrigation system.

Budget:
Our budget from this project will be based off of the available funds from this class of $500.
With this $500 we will build two prototypes of the green wall, which will be one section of the
modular whole. The funds to build the entire structure will come from the Department of
Architecture. This single module prototype will be broken down in the following way:
Physical structural elements

$100

Plants

$100

Watering systems

$150

Lights

$125

Maintenances Costs/Misc

$25

Total

$500

Timeline:
Our next checkpoint in this project is finishing the final aspects in our two prototypes.
This will be done in early December. After this, we will pause for Winter break before starting
up again in the Spring semester. We plan on having our two prototypes built by the end of
January. After this, we will test these two designs until around mid February. We will find the
best design during this time and begin the implementation of the entire project once we are done.
Through the rest of February and March we will monitor and maintain the project, taking
samples frequently, and making minor adjustments to the design. We will continue to collect
data until mid April, at which point we will prepare our Maryland Day presentation, which we
will have finished before April 24th, two days before Maryland Day. Our Maryland Day
presentation will then be on April 26th, and our final Capstone Presentation will be on May 14th.
This Semester:
Proposal Due: November 22nd
Powerpoint Presentation: December 2nd
Prototype design finished: Early December
Next Semester:
Prototype finished in January
Project design and implementation
Install by Mid-February
Monitor until mid April.

 Have presentation ready by April 24th

Maryland Day Poster Presentation: April 26th
Final Capstone Oral Presentation: May 14th (Reading Day)