roof gardening/ plant hoeing

[sunlitrevolution]

This Algae Farm Eats Pollution From the Highway Below It

A highway overpass is the last place most of us would think to install a farm. But algae, that wonderful little ecological miracle, is different. Since it consumes sunlight and CO2 and spits out oxygen, places with high emissions are actually the perfect growing area. Which is why this overpass in Switzerland has its own algae farm.

Built this summer as part of a festival in Genève, the farm is actually fairly simple: It thrives on the emissions of cars that pass below it, augmented by sunlight. A series of pumps and filters regulate the system, and over time, the algae matures into what can be turned into any number of usable products. According to the designers behind it, the Dutch and French design firmCloud Collective, those uses can range from combustable biomass to material for use in cosmetics and other consumer-facing products.

[solarpunks]

$300 Underground Greenhouse Grows Food Year Round; An Extraordinary Walipini 

From vertical farms to solar-powered “farms from a box,” we’ve seen how farming technology has grown leaps and bounds in recent years. But for those who prefer something a little more rustic, growing food from a hole in the ground is as low-tech as you can get.

A walipini, meaning “place of warmth” from the Amaraya Indian language, is an underground greenhouse with a transparent (usually plastic) covering that stays warm by passively soaking up the sun’s heat and absorbing the earth’s thermal energy.

This underground greenhouse collects the sun’s rays and earth’s heat to grow food Photo credit: schweibenalp.ch

Fruits and vegetables can be grown year-round, making it ideal for communities in colder locations that can’t usually grow their own fresh and local produce during certain parts of the year.

The farming method isn’t exactly new. Walipinis have been used in South and Central America for decades, including one that can grow bananas at 14,000 feet in the Andes.

The technique was notably adopted by The Benson Institute, a worldwide food security program of the Mormon church. According to The Plaid Zebra, the Benson Institute and its team of volunteers built a community-sized 74-feet-by-20-feet walipini in La Paz, Bolivia for around a mere $300.

Read more here: $300 Underground Greenhouse Grows Food Year Round; An Extraordinary Walipini 

[the-solar-review]

(via Pinterest: Discover and save creative ideas)

[sunlitrevolution]

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

Testing how long I can keep my roof open in a New England fall. These decorative chili peppers were a bit floppy earlier but they seem to be happier with a bit more heat and protection

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

Radishes are so easy to grow!

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

I haven't updated in a few days because I've been locked out of my garden! My landlord locks the roof because apparently people in the building used to throw proper ragers on the roof and upset the neighbors but I've been using it all summer to read and have my little garden. When the new lease started, they changed the locks. My poor babies were stranded! I tried to pick the lock with a hairpin, no success. I asked around, and found a friend with skills, and at another friend's recommendation she tried to pick the lock with a credit card instead of a hairpin, and it worked!!! My cucumbers died but they were already on death's door with fungus to begin with, and a few of my smaller basil seedlings are on the fritz, but they might pull through. Everything else looks surprisingly fine for being neglected for a few days, the weather was mild and drizzly. If this had happened in August, half of them would be dried up and brown by now! Cheers to resilient plant babies, me having my roof back, and to smart and scrappy friends who know how to pick locks. The card I used was a gift card given to me by my grandmother, who had always had beautiful garden. I think she would approve of the secret roof garden

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

My little rooftop garden. It isn't much but its a nice little escape. Next year I want to actually plan when to plant seedlings instead of just picking up random ones at yard sales.

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

Edamame plant #2 is happy and fruitful I planted another row of edamame beans. Hope they can mature and bear fruit in the autumn.

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

Look at my basil!

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

Pepper plant, really thriving in this heat! Poppin' lil pepper babies everywhere!

[midnightinparis]

colorful cacti

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

Happy lil thai basil cutting that propagated happily

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

Little baby peppers! Aaah! So smol!

[rooftop-terracotta-garden]

My lavender was getting shrivelly and unhappy after being on my roof in sweltering heat. She basically looked like broken leaves and sticks all over (still visible on her backside) but has sprouted nice new growth in just a few days inside!! Moral of the story is: listen to your plants and figure out what makes them each thrive!!

[houseplantjournal]

December 6, 2014 - look at how the Golden pothos leaves spring back up after watering! I took this time lapse back in August. Watering happened at 10am; time lapse ran until 5pm. This gif was created using every 10th photo - the file would have been too big if I imported every photo.

[milomade]

🌷🍀 anyone wanna swap cuttings? I have too many plant babies!🌵🌸