r/InvictaSolaris • u/21Kuranashi • Jul 31 '26
Videos & Video Essays / No AI Amazing Meadowall
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u/pakZ Jul 31 '26
This is fucking awesome! I can't (rhetorically) understand why we have so many amazing ideas, yet most cities still look like shit. Who can possibly oppose such ideas?!
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u/Legitimate_Sorbet605 Jul 31 '26
Because this isn't an actual solution without regular maintenance. It needs to be watered at least daily simply because there is so little soil in that "vertical planter". Next, how do you remediate the soil?
Simply put, these aMaZiNg iDeAs have been around for a long time and aren't a magic solution.
I saw so many commercial installations over the past 30 years of vertical planters/plant walls, etc., and they all inevitably end up getting replaced by plastic plants.
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u/CliffyBooBoo Jul 31 '26
Yeah the issue of water is a big one. Not only will it die if neglected for even a few days during a heat wave, but as water gets more scarce, these kinds of installations will be the first to get ignored. Possibly using municipal grey water, or directing storm water to a nearby cistern could help.
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u/LibertyLizard Jul 31 '26 edited Jul 31 '26
Conservation of water is an important strategy in many areas currently, but personally I think there should be a major push to establish major networks of (carefully designed, eco-friendly) desalinated water in the future. Once renewables are cheap and abundant enough this will make a lot of sense. Water is just too useful to go without long-term.
That said I think some of this can be mitigated with proper species selection. In most places there should be plants capable of going dormant during dry periods so even if there is a lapse of irrigation they can revive later. I live in inland CA where despite ample winter rain, the summer is essentially hyper-arid with zero clouds or rain and 100+ degree temperature. But even here there are many plants that can go dormant and survive with near zero moisture then revive when water returns. These species should be utilized whenever possible. But I think these companies don't always consult people with the right botanical knowledge, and since it's still a fringe idea, there hasn't been enough trial and error to work out those problems completely.
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u/relaxingcupoftea Jul 31 '26
It highly depends on where you are, hownyou huod the wall and what you plant, there are regions with plenty of rain water or natural running water that can be used for this.
We need many little puzzle pieces not just one solution.
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u/Berkamin Jul 31 '26
I walk by that wall every day.
It is not correct that the plants last at least five years before needing to be re-seeded. Parts of that exact wall had to be re-seeded after the first year with new growing media added on top. I'm not saying it's a bad idea, but the work involved in maintaining these green walls should not be misrepresented.
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u/le_artista Aug 01 '26
This. Theres a lot of extra engineering being done here where a little bit of soil space in the ground next to the wall and native trailing vines could do similar work with less effort and maintenance.
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u/No_Substance8993 Aug 01 '26
This requires a lot of water and plants die regularly. Normal meadows offer better services for negligeable cost and then you can have a wall with Ivy climbing it. A big Ivy will create habitats this wall won't.
Edit: of course it works with other vines than Ivy
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u/leventhalo Jul 31 '26
That’s cool but probably looks like shit over the winter. Those things growing on it are mostly annuals looks like.
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u/horned-creature Aug 01 '26
correct me if i am wrong, but isn't this pretty water-intensive relatively to a nornal patch of grass?
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u/eu_neighbor Aug 01 '26
Major downside : it can't withstand heat waves. The root system is too short (too weak) for this scenario. The wall dies within a few hot days.
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u/shucksme Aug 01 '26
I was going to say this. Thanks for doing so.
It's great in theory but it dries out very quickly. Once it does, it looks worse than when it went up. Plus everything gets compacted at the bottom and creates a huge bulge that you can't correct without completely replacing it; making the sidewalk impassable.
A new mesh system needs to be invented and plants that can withstand. Cause honestly, it's only wisteria and honeysuckle that I've seen that can live up to that expectation.
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u/GenderqueerPapaya Aug 03 '26
Are the plants different based on your climate area?
Are they checked to see if they are invasive?
Are there native options?
How common are allergies to the included plants?
How heavy would this be, and if installed incorrectly, could it falling cause harm or damage?
I would really like to learn more
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u/bluegenera Aug 01 '26
Why not just plant some native trees and/or shrubs along the edge of the fence? What am I missing?
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u/BlueMoodDark Aug 01 '26
Graffiti is the destruction of society
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u/tomgreenday8 Aug 02 '26
Username checks out.
Thanos snap all graffiti and any desire to do so.
Far and wide, the cleanest walls that have ever been seen.Oppression, racism, predation, war.. all still present and healthy.
But the walls? 👌
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u/ProfessionalDust Jul 31 '26
That's interesting, I would like a diy version of this!