Vertgrow Landscaping

You can simply contact Steven Elliott on his Cell: 0798919116. If you feel like you want to Request A Service on our website you are more than welcome. 

We will firstly shedule a date & time to meet "free of charge if located in the johannesburg north area", once on site we can discuss what you want and what you dont want in your garden. If you wish to request a design we can offer a free rough schetch or a 3D design with charge. Withing 1-2 weeks a design will be inplemented, once you are happy with the design we will go ahead with your proposal.

Our very detailed Proposals are itemized in an exel format. Each job described in its own line item. If you wish to remove or add you can happily do so. We also offer a Gold, Silver & Bronze package to best suit your budget. 

An invoice will be sent then depending on the scale of the project we will either ask for a 50 or 60% Deposit for work to commence..

We except Cash or Eft

Yes, you don't have to spend all your hard earned money at once.. This option is where a design is most needed.. a design is like a recipe for your garden, once implemented this will make the process much easier and satisfying. Once the design is agreed on we can then step back and decide which zone we would like to start on. For instance, the area where you & your family spend most of your time will be the best place to start..

We are based in Douglasdale Johannesburg. Our dream is to create beautiful spaces where ever they are needed around the world!!

Yes, we have hands on owner supervision.. we pride ourselfs on personal attention to each project.

Yes, we have a wide range of indoor plants & pots to choose from. We can help determine what plant will be best suited for your home, office or restraint..

We work all around Johannesburg North. Based in Douglasdale we also operate in Large Estates such as Ceder Lakes, Fourways Gardens, Houghton Estate, Waterford Estate, Olivewood Estate, Waterfall Estate, Kyalami Estate, Beaulieu Country Estate, Blue hills country Estate, Dainfern Estate & Westbrook

It is a good idea to use ground covers in mass large swathes rather than many different varieties planted together, viewing your garden shouldn't be busy on the eye especially for ground covers, you can mix it up with Shrubs and Tree's. Always choose plants for the appropriate growing conditions and surroundings.. Some drought-tolerant ground covers are: Aptenia cordifolia (Heart leaf) Armeria maritima (sea pink) Bulbine frutescens (stalked bulbine) Carpobrotus edulis (sour fig) Cotyledon spp, Crassula spp, Dianthus deltoides (pink) Dymondia margaretae (silver carpet) Echeveria spp, Erigeron Karvinskianus (erigeron daisies) Gazanias, Lampranthus spp (vygies) Osteospermum spp, Othonna spp, Polygonum capitatum (knotweed) Rosmarinus officinalis (Prostratus) Creeping rosemary, Sedum acre (wallpepper) Sachys byzantina (Lambs ear) Tulbaghia (Wild garlic)

Remember that plants suffering from water stress will suffer much more easily from Frost scorch than well watered plants. Always water your vegetable garden early in the day so that the soil is moist with no surface water on the ground or foliage by Nightfall. You will have to provide your vegetables with frost cover, one method is to use a floating frost cover which consists of thin white sheeting, it allows enough light and water through but does not prevent plants from suffering severe Frost damage however it is a very good way of producing Frost tolerant vegetables like cabbages, lettuce and spinach, as it boost growth and productivity considerably secure the sheeting with stones at the edges to prevent it from blowing away. It is also very good way to protect vegetables against bird damage. You can also put up permanent structure and cover with 30% shade cloth which will have a benefit of being at least 2 to 3 Celsius warmer on frosty mornings it also provides bird and hail protection. Another option is to construct many tunnels over your vegetable beds by covering rounded frames, placed at 1 m intervals, with clear plastic sheeting of 50 microns or more. Cover your overlapping plastic on the sides with soil to prevent the wind from ripping It off.

Planning and design are very important when you start a new garden or remake an old overgrown or neglected garden, your age and lifestyle personal preferences and requirements will determine the style of your garden. If you have a very busy lifestyle and lack the necessary time or money to maintain a garden you may have to consider a low-maintenance garden for instance one with a formal design or a design with little lawn and lots of paving and permanent water wise plants. If your garden requires a lot of watering there is an option of installing an automated irrigation system complete with a rain sensor. if on the other hand you have children and pets you will need lots of open space with lawn but whatever your Gardens function you should make sure that it's design reflects your own style and that of your house be it formal or informal.

Formal Gardens are usually small to medium sized and laid out on a level or Terraced piece of ground. They can be either classic or modern in style, with symmetrical and geometrical shapes. Informal Gardens are usually large to medium sized and situated on a slope or uneven terrain. They can have many different styles, for example tropical, Cottage, Japanese, Mediterranean & Indigenous. Depending on its size, a single garden can have more than one theme. By dividing the garden and two different areas one can have, for instance, a gravel garden, a children's play garden, a herb garden, a Mediterranean garden, a shade garden, a Woodland garden, an Italianate garden, a Japanese garden, a rose garden, a vegetable garden or a patio area Etc. It is a good idea to keep a scrapbook of different Gardens that have caught your fancy, to help you decide on a style and theme of your own.

Garden Design is not achieved by following rigid rules and regulations, but should be inspired by one’s individual taste, imagination and artistic sense. There are, however, general principles one should follow to create a successful garden.

Unity: The garden should be a reflection of the style and architecture of the house, with different parts of the garden blending into the pleasing whole.

Harmony and contrast: Lines, forms and shapes should flow together harmoniously to enhance the style of the house. Contrast is achieved by combining straight lines with curving shapes and by using different foliage textures and colours. Colour can also be used effectively to create an impression of depth in the garden, for example by using bright colours in the foreground and soft muted colours in the background.

Proportion and scale: This is the relationship between the different dimensions. Use features, plants and elements in scale with the house and surroundings.

Balance: This is the careful distribution of features without necessarily spacing them equally far apart. A well-balanced garden gives a feeling of stability and restfulness.

Focal point: This may be, for example, a Pond or water feature, or a group of striking plants that focuses attention and adds interest to the garden.

Creating vistas: The Illusion of distance and space can be created or a view can be framed by either trees or a Moon Gate or arch. These tend to concentrate the observer’s attention, rather than allowing an all-encompassing view of the garden.

Depending on the amount of money you want to spend, you can either consult us at Vertgrow Landscaping (Steven Elliott: Cell 0798919116) or go about rejuvenating your Garden yourself. Do not be overhasty - take time to assess the good and the bad points first. Many shrubs May only require good pruning and feeding to come into their own. Start with the worst future and assess it's worth; eliminating the worst Solutions will enable you to start planning with what is left. It will also be easier to choose the type of garden and you want. An area with lots of trees, for example, can be converted in a Woodland garden. Areas where the lawn does not grow because of too much shade or too heavy traffic can be converted into a gravel garden, or the area can be paved, planted with a shade-loving ground cover or mulched. There is a wide range of materials available to choose from. Another alternative would be to remove lower branches from trees to let in more light for the plants and lawn under them to grow again. It is very important to draw all the existing features to scale on graph paper, If not we at Vertgrow offer this service, we give expert advice on plants and features to choose for the different areas if you haven't been able to make a choice yourself.

The architecture, shape and Topography of the area will determine the design. A level area with a geometric shape would be ideal for a formal garden, whereas is a sloping and irregular shape would be better suited to and informal design.

By conferring with a building contractor you will be able to determine where existing trees and shrubs should be retained. Remove all unwanted plants. It is not a good idea to start planting trees before building starts as they might be damaged or destroyed during building operations.

You could build a herb garden or renovate an old fish pond, restore paving and paths or lay flagstones in areas where the lawn does not want to grow, plant colourful annuals in containers, put up nesting logs and bird feeders. Put up trellis work against an unsightly wall and plant a Creeper against it. Make a Mediterranean area in your garden, make a gravel garden a Japanese garden or plant some plants that would attract birds and butterflies.

Sandy soil needs good lime and plenty of organic matter about 5 cm thick and lots of organic matter. Add a layer of loam about 5cm thick and lots of matter such as manure compost or peat moss. Green manure crops will also help. Dig this into the sand to a depth of about 30cm. Apply a complete fertilizer at Regular intervals during the growing season. When planting trees and shrubs, large holes should be prepared and filled with good lime, compost and complete fertilizer. Mulch establish plants to improve water retention and reduce water usage.