Category: agriculture
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Growing the Shrinking City
Following up on the proposed plans for the ‘shrinking’ city of Detroit, I was excited to see this link from City Farmer News announcing plans for Hantz Farms, set to be the ‘World’s Largest Urban Farm’ using a patchwork of vacant lands on the lower east side. John Hantz, CEO of Hantz Farms explains: “Detroit…
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Plant Power
We often discuss the types of ways vegetation can be of benefit to humans – for instance phytoremediation. A few posts that loosely collect into a narrative regarding some unique opportunities to engage plants in our social and environmental structures in inventive ways. The benefits are myriad and wonderful. Read on. Crime PreventionVia Treehugger: “Suginami,…
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Urban Chickens Build – 4
For the newly dubbed ‘Chicken Cube’, it’s ecoroof time (at least the structural components sans plants and soil). Here’s a quick summary of Sunday’s flurry of activities: :: 3/4″ plywood frame + cedar siderails :: fitting the metal soil retention edging :: some counterflashing with pond liner :: dry-fitting the liner on edges :: mechanically…
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Detroit: Urbanist Opportunity
An interesting post via the Sustainable Cities Collective from Kaid Benfield asks the provocative question “Is Detroit (the city) a lost cause environmentally? Altogether?” and again makes me wonder why it is that Detroit seems to always get framed in thoughts of negativity, versus thinking of it as a potential opportunity to redefine the way…
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Urban Chickens Build – 3
A crappy weather weekend, but some major progress today… :: the roof framing goes in :: the front plate is where the removable ecoroof will attach :: plywood goes on (window to the right, egg hatch capture door to the left) – giant shrubbery attacking the roof is from my overzealous pruning of the lilac…
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Amphibious Architecture
Somewhat related to the concept of global climate change that will potentially innudate significant portions of urban areas (or maybe just a way to deal with growing land prices) the idea of inhabiting floating barges or houseboats is both new and old. I first heard the term amphibious architecture in reference to Dutch developments that…
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Yard Sharing
An article in today’s Oregonian has a bevy of local resources for one of the cooler trends of the urban agricultural movement, garden sharing, “… a trend that appears to be spreading roots across the metro area as apartment dwellers and landowners, strangers and neighbors unite to grow their food at a time when seed…
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Urban Chickens Build – 2
A summation of days 2 & 3 of the experiment in urban chickens… with the final form framed out and the interior in place, ready for roof framing and plywood, and eventually ecoroof and siding. Should be habitable by this weekend… :: 2 walls down… :: and 3… :: and four… :: framing the interior…
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Urban Chickens Build – 1
After a lovely weekend day spent rounding up materials for the Experiment in Urban Chickens, I spent Monday putting together the foundation, floor and starting to frame out the walls… some pics. :: my trusty helper Ginger inspecting the building pad :: finished and level base to keep the chickens off the ground :: the…
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Re:Vision Dallas = Vertical Green
The annoucement of three winners for the Re:Vision Dallas Competition on Bustler was telling in some of the interesting forms, and the consistency of veg.itecture as a vital building element – particularly the use of roof and walls faces for environmental, aesthetic, and productive means. Check out the full array of info and pics on…