Sempervivum living wall

I need to create an evergreen privacy screen ten feet wide by 30” tall. I live in Chilliwack, so am thinking zone 7. Full sun, in windy location. Love sedums and sempervivums. I thought I might build three frames out of 2x6 (to sit side by side - more manageable and can reposition to cover most crucial three feet in case of winterkill) plant them with sempervivums or sedums on one side through mesh (and dried moss to hold dirt) and make the back of wood, let it grow this summer horizontally (would use a temp screen this year) then put it vertical in the fall or spring to leave it there permanently, would this work? I have sedums and sempervivums in pots on same deck, they have survived winters fine, (except for this winter the sempervivums not so much!) though conditions in the wall might be a bit more extreme. I also have visions of the dirt washing away gradually. Any ideas?

I have already considered and discarded many vines grasses and shrubs growing in pots but couldn’t come up with anything that really worked. Closest I got was C armandii planted in the ground below, but my deck is second story, it isn’t guaranteed to get that high. Also ivy, kind of boring, planted in pots on the deck growing up trellis. Would have loved Pieris japonica lined up in row of tall pots but apparently potentially toxic to cats.

Might hedge my bets and plant one frame each of ivy sedum and sempervivums.

One cedar in a 20’ high hedge died and left me in view of bank of second floor apt windows with snoopy neighbours. Will replant cedar but will be years to reach height.

Thanks for any advice!

 

I have several thoughts about this

I am a fan of hen & chicks etc

They are a lot of work

And especially in large vertical frames (remember the popular Pinterest type style of old large picture frames and then chicken wire etc )

They are heavy and potentially can rot when placed on a wooden deck / railing

The plants themselves are pricey (fair enuf) — And have you checked price of least-likely-to-rot cedar lumber lately? Ouch!


How about keeping your fav plants in the containers

And look at something like this - link below

yes I know some people might shy from artificial - but it’s a once treatment and I hope feline safe

No watering dripping down below (if it’s a condo that detail is really important)

I saw them at Home Hardware - and Rona

Then you can have instant https://naturaedecor.com/
And invest your time and enjoyment in to some colorful favorites

Yes - wayfair has lots of stuff too - all the usual temptations!
I have seen recently a lot of small deck outdoor stuff at Ikea Canada too
You can browse and order on the CANADA website

Meanwhile start here
Home - Naturae Decor

I am not associated with any of the links / suggestions - I just like to keep up with latest ideas because we all have neighbors :)

And I added a few pix of my hen and chicks assortment for fun

Looking fwd to your updates

 

I do like living walls with succulents, but I can't say I've seen too many that are successful over long periods of time.

 

I’ve been doing more research-apparently sedums ultimately are doomed if you put them in an exterior living wall planted vertically. They eventually sustain damage by leaves snapping off where they are weakened by turning ninety degrees trying to return to a horizontal orientation. I think I can make it work with sempervivums instead. It could be interesting to combine red, lime, and regular green sedums. Thanks for your input.

 

Hi,
Thanks for your advice and pics. In my more desperate moments I actually have thought about what you are suggesting. Still a distinct possibility as a temporary measure during the first year while I am trying to grow something up. Thanks for the resource info. Nothing on the shelves locally, probably a Covid result. Apparently there may be shortages of bagged potting soil etc. because plastic bag manufacturers switched over to disposable gloves etc. What a world we live in these days!

 

Ooops! Reversed the words sedums and sempervivums. It is the hens and chicks which loses weakened leaves, not the sedums!