About this project

from May 8th to June 6th, two arboravita ('trees of life') will sprout out of the cement on the williamsburg waterfront across the water from midtown manhattan as part of the Urban Art Project's Inaugural Sculpture Exhibition:
http://www.uaprojects.org/current-projects

from there, one will travel to the crest hardware garden on metropolitan ave. for their annual art show while the other will make random public appearances in williamsburg throughout the summer.:
http://cresthardwareartshow.com/

inspired the teikei (Japan) and organopónico (Cuba) agricultural movements, we have created this small CSA (community sponsored articulture) to help cover some of our costs and share the fruits of our labor & love. principles of both movements will be remixed with respect to fit our particular paradigm.

we believe it is Just Time to initiate experiments in radically rethinking design on every level of our society in order to rediscover interwoven interdependence, mutual wealth creation & contribution, and a personal purposeful connection with the living beings that sustain & nourish us.

we welcome you to join us on our quixotic quest.

:: crops growing so far ::

shu ('the dry one') :: strawberry (earliglow / everbearing) : marigold (mexican / french / calendula) : arugula : amaranth (love lies bleeding / tricolor / green giant) : melon (tigger / golden midget) : purslane : cactus : aloe : onion (red / spiral / satmar special) : oregano (greek / cuban / italian) : spearmint : curry : yarrow : pink clove : red valerian (jupiter's beard) : sunflower (mom's massillon monster) :

tefnut ('the moist one') :: potato : cabbage (red / kohlrabi) : beets : brussell sprouts (long island) : kale (red russian) : beans (anasazi / asparagus) : passion flower : geranium lemon rose : hyssop (agastasche tuttifrutti / anise) : sage (purple / blue) : allium (chives / globe) : chamomille (german / roman) : echinacea purpea : red clover : basil (kasar / holy) : borage : stevia : lamb's ear : french lavender :

:: notes ::

rewards will be distributed monthly around the time of the new moon & limited by the availability of the harvest at that time. crop distribution will be given in the order of when pledges are received. we have limited the rewards to what we believe the trees can reasonably produce in a 4 month growing season & will honor everyone's particular preferences (and maybe, then some) to the best of our bounty, nature willing.

if you are not ready, able or willing to make it to brooklyn at some point over the next 4 months to redeem your reward, please consider including an appropriate additional amount for postage costs. we will promise to take care of the handling with care in return. thanks.

we do not make any claims to be "Organic" as per USDA standards (whatever that means), as we are using a synthetic structure to grow organic materials. however, the story of each crop and detailed recipes of soil, fertilizer & pesticides (all carefully prepared & tested to be considered "Organic") will be fully & freely shared with everyone who participates.

:: inspiration & reference ::

between the street and the river of the great city
grew two trees of life visible from this side & that.
they each bore thirteen manner of crops,
yielding their fruits each & every month.
and their leaves were served as
medicine for the healing of nations.
~ Book of Revelations 22:2
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_of_life

If you simply stick to the technical viewpoint that organic agriculture is agriculture managed without the use of chemicals, you will fail to notice many paradoxical problems you face today. ~ Teruo Ichiraku
http://www.joaa.net/english/teikei.htm#TEIKEI-10

seeds in laHabana:
http://www.youtube.com/watch...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organopónico

ECHO's rooftop gardening bible : http://www.echonet.org/content/urbanGardening

DIY growing column how-to from Hong Kong : http://journeytoforever.org/edu_cardboard.html

sub-irrigation specialist : Bob the Greenscaper @ Ctr. for Urban Greenscaping
http://www.insideurbangreen.org/