BY JESSICA RIDGWAY
How does your garden grow? Perhaps with sustainability in mind? Some local businesses, like Christopher David CDExD, offer these eco-friendly products to help spruce up your space this spring. Want to create an indoor garden? Participate in a terrarium do-it-yourself workshop at this residential and commercial design firm and bring your garden home. D.I.Y. projects not your style? Check out the selection of greens and blooms at Christopher David’s store in Portland’s Pearl District.
Portland’s TogetherFarm designs sturdy and sustainable blocks for the garden. Easily build a garden box in less than five minutes using TogetherFarm Blocks without any tools or carpentry experience. Customize your garden using these food-safe, recycled plastic blocks and feel good knowing each piece was manufactured in the U.S.A.
Lacking outdoor space? Bring the outdoors in. Yolo Colorhouse features new, earthy tones in their newest release: The Handcrafter Color Collection. Inspired by the spirit of early-American crafters, this collection incorporates shades of of wood, beeswax, glass and metal. And don’t worry about smelly fumes, Yolo Colorhouse prides itself on creating paint that is better for you and your environment.
The Rainbarrel Man Company builds beautiful, one-of-a-kind rain harvesting systems out of rain barrels. (Invest in a rain harvesting system to easily water your crops or redirect water from your downspout to your garden.) Since 1998, Rainbarrel Man Co. has been making the barrel cores from recycled plastic and furnishing them with western red cedar wood from a locally-owned sawmill.
Portland artist James Harrison wanted two things: to grow plants in his garden and create a unique area. He constructed his solution and it blossomed into Arborela, which Harrison describes as “the union of public art and private spaces.” Harrison, alongside his craftsman business partner Evan Holt, create sturdy structures for vines and climbing plants to grow upon. Arborela features five products: The Cove, The Fort, The Wedge, The Cuff and The Column, but the duo welcome all design ideas.
Family-owned SecondStone Products collects granite considered “waste material” from stone fabricators in the Portland-Vancouver area and cuts it into reusable tile that can be used inside or outside your home. Each week, SecondStone reuses between three to ten tons of wasted stone. Retile your patio with a pattern of your choice and rest easy knowing that nothing will end up in a landfill.
