CasaSugar

Cool Idea: Living Wall Systems

CasaSugar — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 04:30:00 -0700

To kick off Earth Day here on Casa, I thought I'd show you a very cool way to bring a little green into a cramped-for-space home or garden. The ELT Easy Green Living Wall ($39 - $249) is a modular-living wall panel that you can buy pregrown or that you can plant on your own. Made of 100-percent recyclable plastic, it is environmentally friendly, not to mention aesthetically pleasing. A vertical garden of sorts, it's a great option for those lacking green space, but it also has a wonderful, modern visual quality that I've seen nowhere else. Each Living Wall looks unique, as its appearance all depends on which plants are used. There are numerous ways to use Living Walls; you can take a traditional route, using it as decor (like a planter), give it function, using it as a fence, or take a modern approach, livening up an exterior wall, as shown. What do you think? Would you buy one (or several)? I kind of want one . . .

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DIY: Self-Watering Recycled Vase

CasaSugar — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 08:30:22 -0700

This DIY will show you how to make a planter from nearly all recycled (and free) products which will pretty much water itself. Without giving them much attention, you can grow your own herbs, flowers, or other plants. You can continue to re-use the planter, or simply recycle it when you're finished. If you don't like the look of the plastic bottle on your windowsill, you can always cover a recycled tin with some decorative paper, and slip in the planter for a look that's more your style.

Supplies:

1 plastic soda bottle (2 or 3 liter)
Newspaper, aluminum foil, or a bit of a black plastic bag
Twine
A drill or hot wire (to make a hole in the bottle cap)
Certified organic potting mix
A sharp knife (to cut the bottle)
Seeds

To learn the steps, read more

Here's how, compiled from here and here:

Cut the bottle. Cut the empty soda bottle in two (the cup and the reservoir), so the bottom part is bigger than the top. When inverted (i.e. when the bottle neck is inside the bottle), there should be about 2" of clearance between the neck and base, so that wick can dangle in the water. Do some measuring ahead of time, and mark your bottle with a guide before you cut.
Bore holes in the cap. Make one hole just large enough to thread the twine through, and several other smaller holes just for drainage.
Assemble the wick. Cut three lengths of 15" of twine. Line up the lengths. Tie them together in a knot 3" up from one end. Then, thread those 3" of the lengths of twine through the hole that you bore in the cap, so the knot rests on the inside of the cap. Those lengths will dangle in the water, drawing water up into the soil from the reservoir to feed the plants.
Line the interior of the cup. Since roots do better in darkness, you'll want to line the interior of the cup (where the dirt goes) with either newspaper, aluminum foil, or some black plastic bag. Newspaper is best (biodegradable), but just use what ever you have. Make it flush with the sides of the cup, putting it all the way in. Then, poke a hole in the bottom for the wick to come up.
Setting the wick and add soil. Screw the cap onto the bottle neck, pull the wick up so it hangs over the edge of the bottle. Figure out how much soil you'll need to fill the cup. Add 1/3 of your soil to the cup, keeping the wicks running straight through the middle. Then, coil one of the lengths of twine on top of the soil, around the other 2 lengths in the middle. Add another 1/3 soil and repeat. Then, fill the cup with the rest of your soil, keeping the last length of twine running up the middle. Spreading these coils throughout will help to distribute the moisture better.
Plant your seeds. Read this How-To for instructions.
Add water. Add water to the reservoir, but don't let it touch the cap.
Let it grow!

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Source and Source

Su Casa: Lovely Garden Colors

CasaSugar — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:00:41 -0700

Recently, Rubiesymusica wrote about the transformation of her home's outdoor space with the coming of Spring. She wrote, "Usually everything is in full bloom by Easter, but the lack of rain has pushed it back by two or three weeks. The lilies are starting to bloom, but the big pink and purple flowers that line the siding of the house are already gone!"
Do you want to post photos of your home? To join the Su Casa group, just follow this link and click "subscribe" beneath the photo on the lefthand side of the page. Once you're subscribed, click Share in the upper lefthand menu of any TeamSugar page and choose what type of post you want to create. If you have just one photo and some text, create a blog; if you have a gallery you want to share, select photos.

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