Vertical garden brings life to Edmonton airport

Travellers arrivingat Edmonton International Airport are being greeted with a new sighta "living wall" made up of over 8,000 real plants.

"A lot of people assume that its fake, that theyre not real. And as soon as they find out they are real, theyre just astounded," said Mike Weinmaster, an artist with theVancouver-based company that installedthe 1,400-square foot wall.

The wall, one of the largest vertical gardens in Canada, is partially inspired by the cloud formations often seen on the prairies. The plants arent placed in soil and are instead fed through hydroponics.

Weinmaster says as the plants grow the shape of the wall will change.

"I wanted it to be interesting, not just the colour and the textures, but also the depth," he said. "Theres some trees and shrubs and bushes on here as wellwhich were going to let grow about eight feet out of the wall."

Weinmaster says the plants will also clean the air around the wall.