Vertical Gardens Looking Up

Danville-based business allows for perpendicular gardening.

Have you seen the new way to garden? Vertically.

It’s all the rage in New York and LA, where beautiful gardens cover entire sides of buildings, making a living wall. Now a Danville company, Vertical Gardens has created an innovative way to grow your prized pansies or garden fresh cherry tomatoes, without the fear of getting stepped on by the kids or dug up by Fido.

The system is simple—it’s a long piece of felt with pockets for your plants to sit in, and holes for them to grow through. It has its own irrigation system, and the entire garden can be hung anywhere a painting can. How easy is that? All you need to supply is the water and fertilizer of your choice.

Vertical Gardens is a home grown, Danville-based business owned by Harry Biba and his daughter, Annie Biba. The idea started when Harry Biba was inspired to build a smaller version of the larger, spectacular growing systems seen on the sides of businesses and buildings.

“I’m a builder kind of guy, so I built some prototypes for my front porch to see if I could make something smaller,” Harry said. “People liked them, I started making more, and it took off from there.”

Another nifty thing about the Vertical Gardens is that its irrigation system recycles the water. A pump in the reservoir pushes nutrients and water to the top of the felt. When it is completely wet, it drains back into the reservoir. The Vertical Garden can also be placed anywhere—indoors or out— as long as you choose a place that will suit the kinds of plants you have.

Vertical Gardens are custom made to order. Starting at $650, the system comes standard with the felt and irrigation system, which is easily assembled.