Thanks to | GO Groningen HoD and Toet Toetjes en taartjes
This reuse Greenwall is the outcome of our participation in the project GO (Groningen Ontwerpt), around the theme of climate adaptation by means of vegetation. Our studio was pared with an entrepreneur in the city centre of Groningen; a café called TOET that specializes in cakes and deserts. The lack of a materials budget formed a framework for our project, so to reuse material was the desirable way to produce a sustainable design, but also a way to cut costs.
The design task we formulated was: Design a Greenwall that makes use of a waste material that is so common that everyone can collect it and make their own low budget Greenwall
TOET uses a lot of drinks cartons, the Bar le Duc water cartons have a green, light blue appearance ánd a water outlet. The multiplicity of these cartons makes for an abstract entirety that looks in place with the identity of the colourful café. The street in which the Carton Garden is displayed is a popular access street from the station to the food market.
DIY leaflets are made available for customers of the café, but also for the public that passes. TOET can harvest the herbs they use for the food and drinks they serve. The water that is used to water the plants, or rainwater can be collected and reused after it seeps down through the garden into a carton gutter. If a carton wears out it can be replaced with an empty drinks carton from the bin, so the garden is easy to maintain long term.
Climate adaptation is a great task to sustain quality of life in our cities in the future, an issue that will require a lot of design thinking and sustainable creative solutions. Although we are keen to create climate adaptive concepts, we know with Carton Garden we are only scratching the surface of this adaptation task ahead. Nevertheless, this low budget Greenwall initiative offers positive interaction with the public and might even seduce to reuse and grow your own vertical vegetation.
