Look Pretty For Me! A Book Review “Of A New Garden Ethic” by Benjamin Vogt

A few pages into Benjamin Vogt’s new book, A New Garden Ethic: Cultivating Defiant Compassion For An Uncertain Future, Vogt talks about two fundamental ways human beings think about ecology and engage with nature and the environment.

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Recycled Stuff You’d Actually Want To Buy

‘Fresh Morning’
Recycled Paper Dangle Earrings

I’ve been wanting for a while to do a post about recycled things that are attractive. So many recycled products are not very pretty and, although we may want to buy them to support companies or artists who use recycled products we don’t buy them because we don’t actually like them.

So, here are some products made with recycled materials that, at least in the eye of this beholder, are esthetically pleasing.

A Very Portable Greenhouse

Urban Gardens posted about this very portable greenhouse on their site a few days ago and I thought it was so great I just had to post about it on my blog.

This amazing greenhouse was designed by Studio Besau-Marguerre in Hamburg in collaboration with Adrien Petrucci. It comes with a leather strap, which, aside from being fashionable, is also practical as you can move this small greenhouse inside or out as weather permits.

Find A Place To Compost

A picture of compost soil (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Have stuff to compost but no actual place to compost? Go to FindAComposter.com, enter your location and compost centers will magically appear on your computer screen.

As for keeping the stuff to compost until you get to the compost site you have a couple of options. As we don’t have much counter or under the sink space I put it in a plastic bag in the freezer. But if you have a bigger kitchen there are all kinds of small, kitchen top and under the counter compost pails with charcoal and other kinds of filters that work well.

Beautiful Hanging Planters

On Urban Gardens I saw a post about Farrah Sit‘s wonderful hanging planters.

What struck me about these planters is not only their beauty but their dedication to craftsmanship. The planters are made from hand sanded porcelain, the straps are vegetable tan leather, a type pf leather that is strong and smooth, and connected to the planters with a solid brass screw.

Because the planters don’t have drainage holes I suggest filling the bottoms with a few inches of gravel and planting with something that doesn’t mind having slightly damp roots. Mint is a plant that comes to mind. It is very easy to grow, smells great and you can cook with it. Iris versicolor  is another as are various kinds of Wood Sorrel (Oxalis), which is pictured below.

Oxalis acetosella : Oxalis petite oseille, Gy, avril 2004, licence GFDL (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If you like these planters you should look at Farrah’s other designs at her web site.