Metropolitan Gardening

H odgson Farms from Walden, NY brings us pallets of amazing blossoms at the Union Square Green Market. It's so early in the season but these flowers are busting.  It's hard to believe that spring is here - it's true these temperatures are record setting and bode some concern, but let's just stop for a minute and look at the flowers.

L yndon Fenlon runs the urbanhoneyco.com in Melbourne, Australia where he is growing bees to make honey that can be delivered hyperlocally. Lyndon is on my list for one of the most ethical and sustainable business models I've ever seen... um list of well you get it. Lyndon is the beekeeper poster child of the early 21 Century. He gave us an interview and spoke kindly of his love for bees in a way that was super funny and touching. He answers the question of colony collapse disorder (CCD) head on. Bryan Ogden: In your humble opinion what are the major reasons for colony collapse disorder? Lyndon Fenlon: A lot of things have been lumped under the same heading of CCD but I'll talk about the original condition I first heard of and that was the one where hives rapidly emptied of bees or died off extremely quickly and remained untouched even by the usual creatures that move in to clean up abandoned hives. My initial thought was that it must be viral but then agricultural chemica

B rian Houck is the chief horticulturalist at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. His role is to provide garden services and ecological restoration in an urban environment quite unique for most of us gardening in cities. Brian's sincerity and technical skill is compelling. Please enjoy this short interview we have had the honor of getting with Brian. Brian Houck (on right) with volunteers. Metropolitan Gardening: Zoo horticulture often might go unnoticed -but I've always appreciated care and thought surrounding animal enclosures at zoos. Brian Houck: Thank you for this observation. Zoo horticulture does play a significant role in the support for animal well-being and exhibit support. Our charge is to create, re-create and maintain the intended landscape design goals. Views into exhibits are critical to the zoo experience, with the landscape in particular enhancing the immersive feeling for the guest. By immersive, I mean the blending of elements within exhibits and publ

Bryan: What prompted the extraordinary focus on making your designs sustainable? Inka: Our planet is in bad shape. I think everyone should try to do their part to reduce their impact and we should try to do this in all domains of our lives, like at home and at work. I try to reach sustainability in the materials I use and also in they way I produce my collection Bryan: Have you found any benefit? Does acting ethically pay off? Inka: It's hard at first, because doing this right (sustainably) costs more and it takes more time to figure out if the things I think are sustainable are actually sustainable. I can see the benefits of increasing my local economy and I can see that people feel the difference in my product, so yes, I think it pays off. 

MG:What is your mission at Chinti and Parker ? C&P:At Chinti and Parker we have a clearly defined mission: to marry great luxury basics with environmentally and ethically kind production wherever possible. MG: What sort of production values do you have for your fabric? Tell us about the materials you use. C&P: All our cotton-jersey is made from 100% organic cotton, certified by GOTS, the Global Organic Textile Standard. The only exception is the grey marl. Due to its inherent blend of threads is too weak to successfully produce the ultra-lightweight quality we desire. As techniques evolve, we hope this will change. We have, however, pledged from the beginning that production values are to be considered in balance with the overall quality and beauty of a garment.

O k you're seeing a couple of serious interviews for ecofashion from the (capsule) show and you're wondering what's next? Well here's another company we found at (capsule) deep into green designs, that tailor makes it's wares, you could say they are bespoke because they will create to your individual needs and measurements and they use skinny little models too. They are TWIG TERRARIUMS and a fun thing for home and office fashion. MG:What gave you the idea to put little people and moss together? Twig:We're urbanites with nary a backyard between us except a little bit of concrete and a fire escape, so terrariums give us the sense of space and...acreage! Between us we now have dozens of backyards! Michelle has always been interested in botany, so of course she started the obsession. She found a cruet jar in her kitchen that she said was destined to become a terrarium. Katy soon followed suit and found a cute little mushroom-shaped jar. We both instantly

C ri de Coeur ||style conscious with a conscience :: ethical contemporary fashion|| MG: When you decided to create shoes in an ethically responsible way did you get any resistance from those around you? JD: I think there is a resistance to non-leather goods in this industry when presenting a designer quality shoe that is made of vegan products. I think that we are filling the void for those who seek out quality, but also want to make conscious choices that they can live with. The more people are educated about the impact the fashion industry can have on reversing global warming while also improving quality of life for people and animals (with regard to leather tanneries, meat industry and animal welfare) the more people want to support companies that are cruelty-free but also meets high-end fashion demands. MG: Have your designs been effected by your choices in material? JD: We seek out the highest quality fabrics for our shoes and handbags. The more "eco" they are, t