My urban farm: Grow Your Own (GYO) in style

Oups! The design of the blog has gone crazy! Sorry

It seems the blog's design has gone crazy! I am trying to sort it out...

I was going to post about BBQ's but cannot so ...here is a song about Indoor fireworks!

Elvis Costello-

Vertical farms: how urban can farms get?

May I encourage you to visit http://www.verticalfarm.com/ to get a good picture of what is in the pipeline for us urbanites?

It is full of essays, new designs and insights

Extract:

The Problem

By the year 2050, nearly 80% of the earth's population will reside in urban centers. Applying the most conservative estimates to current demographic trends, the human population will increase by about 3 billion people during the interim. An estimated 10⁹ hectares of new land (about 20% more land than is represented by the country of Brazil) will be needed to grow enough food to feed them, if traditional farming practices continue as they are practiced today. At present, throughout the world, over 80% of the land that is suitable for raising crops is in use (sources: FAO and NASA). Historically, some 15% of that has been laid waste by poor management practices. What can be done to avoid this impending disaster?

A Potential Solution: Farm Vertically

The concept of indoor farming is not new, since hothouse production of tomatoes, a wide variety of herbs, and other produce has been in vogue for some time. What is new is the urgent need to scale up this technology to accommodate another 3 billion people. An entirely new approach to indoor farming must be invented, employing cutting edge technologies. The Vertical Farm must be efficient (cheap to construct and safe to operate). Vertical farms, many stories high, will be situated in the heart of the world's urban centers. If successfully implemented, they offer the promise of urban renewal, sustainable production of a safe and varied food supply (year-round crop production), and the eventual repair of ecosystems that have been sacrificed for horizontal farming.

It took humans 10,000 years to learn how to grow most of the

Philippe Starck: new designs to help self sufficiency go mainstream

Fantastic new design by Philippe Starck: the personal wind power station. At the Milan show, the guru designer is showing new designs - no longer just about looking good.

I love this new creation that will be available in 6 sizes.

More details soon

Today is my thinking day !

Today I went to Tesco: parmesan up 10 percent. milk up 15 percent since I last thought about checking...

Now, that is nothing vis a vis countries where food riots are becoming a new reality: so I really question the value of gardens that are not productive and ...so should you ( Is that rude?) .

Well ...I find it more and more difficult to understand chic garden design of unproductive nature ( and yes, I am the author/editor of My Urban garden deco guide !)

Food for thought.

Anne

Farm life comes with a tepee, does it not?

My urban farm is about real ideas to GYO and ideas to live like 'in the good old days'.

This post is about a feel good idea.

I posted a few weeks back on a tipi ( or tepee) for adults by Gandia Blasco . Now I have found one for the family via DWR , Design within reach. It is not exactly cheap -circa 2000 USD, but , hey! what a feeling!

New York UF experiment by Manny Howard or why not to be over ambitious

A story from the  New York Magazine about a challenge to be self reliant for 30 days is great fun and maybe the example of how not to be over ambitious.

I am sure  the subject of UF is about to hit our lifestyle press big time - urging us to be 'a la mode' and jump onto the band waggon. But when real life hits, I believe that the best approach to navigate our way into UF  (ie I mean for us the really Urban kind)  is to go the old way : learn to walk before you try to run!

For the full- rather amusing- video click here

Residents in a New York neighbourhood are waking up to the sound of a crowing rooster each morning.  The rooster, along with accompanying hens, ducks, and rabbits, is part of an urban farm, designed and constructed by writer Manny Howard in his native Brooklyn.

Where to start learning about having ones own chicken in town?

For the beginners that most of us are, I recommend a quick stop at the following link as it  really is a great 101 :

http://www.organicliving.com/Urban-Chickens1.html

Status stories are NEW cool ... and GYO is a great one

I am a subscriber of a great newsletter by Trend Watching .This month they confirm Luxury soon will be defined by having the better story not the highest price only. I was happy to read that Gastro /edible gardens are becoming a must story if you want to have any cachet with your guests...as a private home or a restaurant.They tell the story of De Kas a restaurant in Holland: 'What has more value: the actual dining experience at Amsterdam’s De Kas restaurant, or the story about De Kas that guests can tell others after they’ve been? (De Kas’ story, by the way, is that although they’re located in the city of Amsterdam, they have their own nursery, where they grow herbs and Mediterranean vegetables in the summer, and various kinds of lettuce in the winter. (‘Kas’ is Dutch for greenhouse). Next? How about letting guest pick their own vegetables? ;-)'

Electrolux Hydrosphere or kitchen top dirt free veg growing in 2016

I have been looking a little closer at major brands efforts to help the very urban clue less start growing their own.In 2006 Electrolux very high profile  fourth Electrolux Design Lab competition theme was “household appliance solutions for food preservation and storage that promote healthier eating habits for 2016".

Kleber Puchaski’s HydroSphere was a finalist : a gorgeous transparent sphere for growing herbs, vegies and fruit indoors.
See , no need to buy a spade.

Get in the 'farming spirit' : a Qrater by Extremis and forget DVD evenings

Well yes, it is a bit of transition to go from DVD evenings, over-consumption, ...directly into this new trend. So I suggest the 'fake it til you make it' approach. Get the props first .

Love this one by www.extremis.be
Qrater is a very attractive campfire dish that can be used in the garden and in open spaces. All you need is to light the wood logs and the result is pure magic.

Singing a song or telling a story while looking at the constantly changing play of the flames and the fire sparks is a very special experience that has inspired people ever since fire was discovered. It is a very original and heartwarming form of togetherness that sometimes people even refer as “the television set of the jungle”. Obviously, options like individual grills, blankets, and yes, a sing along cd can also form part of this unique experience of being together around the fire