Living and working in small spaces can present a challenge when it comes time to making room for an indoor garden. I thought it would be fun to see how vertical growing could change things up. Enter Boskke, a Wellington, New Zealand-based company specializing in gardening design for urban living.
Boskke comes from an old English term meaning ‘bosky’, loosely translating to ‘small forest’, perfectly appropriate for what plant lovers can achieve with their products in a small space. Boskke’s simple design and easy to use planters are made of recycled plastic, helping to minimize the company’s environmental footprint.
I visited By Nature Design, a Canadian distributor of Boskke’s new Sky Planter as well as the very popular WallFlower Frame, launched at last year’s EpiC Vancouver. Both the SkyPlanter and the WallFlower are modern ways to bring nature inside people’s homes and offices.
A ceiling hook and two different lengths of wire are included in the box, along with a locking disc, Slo-Flo reservoir, and instructions. Watering is done through the top holes; when the green stick on top sticks up, all is golden. When it’s low, it’s time to feed your green friend. The smart reservoir system feeds water gradually to the plant’s roots. There’s no excess water to drain away, so none will evaporate.
I found this an ingenious way to add some nature to your space while not giving up any at the same time: the ceiling is one of the least used areas of a home or office.
Together with Fred Collay, Director of Sales and Communication, we planted (or rather, Fred demonstrated) how quickly a Sky Planter can be set up, using standard plant soil.
His biggest tip is to make sure that the planter has enough soil from the start, adding the potted plant’s soil as well.
His studio is filled with rows of planted canvas squares, ready for being assembled into their frames, and shipped to various florists and customers around Canada. Mother’s Day is just around the corner; Fred is currently scrambling to meet order demand.
The planters are sold in three sizes (sans plant), priced at $24.90 (small), $29.90 (medium), and $39.90 (large). Currently, the Sky Planter is available at The Walrus, Coal Harbour Florist, and Bird on A Wire Creations. Florists that sell the planter will let customers select a plant. The florist will then assemble the planter on site and charge accordingly.
There’s a variety of colours as well as a transparent model suitable for orchids. The Sky Planter is also the winner of a 2011 Red Dot Design Award. We found just the spot to enjoy this planter in our home.
You can keep up with how fans around the world are using their Sky Planters via Pinterest.
I was given a small Sky Planter for the purposes of both testing the planter’s functionality at home and writing this article.
