These are the best plants to grow on your garden wall, according to the experts

You don't need to sacrifice style for practicality – this is how to combine the two for a beautifully secure garden

Garden wall with climbing roses
(Image credit: Martin Stenmark)

Garden walls are perhaps the most practical features of your exterior. However, this doesn't mean you need to compromise on aesthetics. Experts have revealed how to use greenery to combine style with functionality, so you can rest in a safe but nonetheless beautiful space. 

With a host of plants to choose from, it can be hard to know which will best accentuate your wall – or at least it was – until we picked up some garden wall ideas from the experts to share with you. These are the best flowers and foliage for the job.

‘You'll want to hang a beautiful plant like climbing roses on the wall, which can be trained to grow on your garden wall in any direction you would like,’ explains Zack DeAngelis, Founder of Treejourney.com. He adds that climbing roses will detract from the brick (or any other wall material).

Garden wall with climbing roses

(Image credit: Martin Stenmark)

'One of the best varieties of climbing rose is the Lady of Shallot, which complements the color of a brick wall very well due to its orange color.'

If you are interested in fewer florals but more greenery, Paul Knapp, the Landscape Designer and Founder at LandscapeArchitectural.com, suggests attaching a living wall to your structure. 

'This live wall would allow you to plant edibles, perennials, annuals, or succulents,' he explains. Sharing his garden design ideas, he recommends planting sedum, pachysandra, liriope, salvia, heuchera, ajuga, and petunia to begin. 'For edibles, you can grow lettuce, herbs, strawberries, and tomatoes as well.'

Garden wall with climbing roses

(Image credit: Ian Murdoch)

Alternatively, while you cannot grow or hang larger shrubs like boxwood or arborvitae trees from a hard garden wall, you can still add some vegetative interest by hanging vines in a planting bed behind the structure. 

'Perennials such as creeping jenny, bougainvillea, or some wisteria would be a nice option to hang over the edge,' Paul says. Or, you could grow vines at the base such as ivy, hydrangea, clematis, or trumpet vine that will grow up the wall, he adds.

Flowering plants in a small border and sweet peas growing up a fence. A former sloping garden, redesigned and terraced cottage garden

(Image credit: Future/Colin Poole)

Meanwhile, for an elegant, but undeniably simple addition to your garden wall, Bjorn Kvaale from Hitechgardening.com urges you to invest in a wall trellis or bamboo fence. His top picks include this trellis from Walmart, which you can pair with clematis, vines, or other climbing plants for a striking feature. 

These vertical garden ideas will add interest to the most important part of your garden – we only wish we had known about them sooner.

Megan Slack

Megan is the News and Trends Editor at Homes & Gardens. She first joined Future Plc as a News Writer across their interiors titles, including Gardeningetc, Livingetc, and Real Homes. As the News Editor, she often focuses on emerging microtrends, sleep and wellbeing stories, and celebrity-focused pieces. Before joining Future, Megan worked as a News Explainer at The Telegraph, following her MA in International Journalism at the University of Leeds. During her BA in English Literature and Creative Writing, she gained writing experience in the US while studying in New York. Megan also focused on travel writing during her time living in Paris, where she produced content for a French travel site. She currently lives in London with her antique typewriter and an expansive collection of houseplants.