A tree for rememberance

Here is an impressive concept from the 2011 International Design Excellence Award winners.
Poetree by Margaux Ruyant, from the DSK ISD School of Design in Pune, India, won Gold in the student category.

Ashes are placed in the Poetree urn and covered with soil. The family takes the urn home, or to a desired location and plants a tree in it.

The tree and urn are planted, and over time all that is left is the ceramic top and tree. The ceramic top resembling a gravestone.

The International Design Excellence Awards (IDEAs) were founded by the Industrial Designers Society of America in 1980 to communicate the benefits of design excellence to business and the general public.

The Best-in-Show winner will be announced later this year at the 2011 IDEA ceremony in New Orleans on 17 September.

It's great to see innovation with horticulture combined with an eco-solution to what is a very difficult time.

Great news: the Australian Garden in Cranbourne is now free for all!

The Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne is pleased to announce that, effective immediately, visitors will enjoy free entry to the Australian Garden.

The permanent removal of entry fees to the Australian Garden has been made possible through increased annual funding from the Victorian Government and will allow more people than ever to experience the sights and sounds of the Australian Garden.

One of the key goals of the Australian Garden is to be a community hub providing inspiration for, and education about, the use of Australian plants to create sustainable home gardens. This is a vital role in the context of creating sustainable and liveable communities within the south-east growth corridor.

“This is really exciting for us and we’d like to thank the Victorian Government for this wonderful initiative,” said Dr Philip Moors, Director and Chief Executive of the Royal Botanic Gardens.

“We opened Stage 1 of the Australian Garden in 2006, and have had a fabulous response from visitors. We’re really delighted that free entry will make the Australian Garden accessible to so many more people,” said Dr Moors.

Stage 1 of the Australian Garden comprises nine hectares. The opening of the second and final stage in mid-2012 will bring the garden to a total of 18 hectares and complete the vision for a garden which illustrates the journey of water through the Australian landscape while showcasing the great diversity and beauty of Australian plants.

For more details, click here.

JoeyCan - Water saving just got easier!

Here is a product that is brilliant!

The JoeyCan is an Australian invention that has been featured on the ABC's New Inventors. It is also the winner of the Red Dot Design Awards and something that everyone should own.

So what is it?

It is a water collector for the shower which readily converts into a watering can!

Here is how it works ...

Details:

• Australian designed, developed and manufactured

• Compact shape for easy storage and carrying (30cm x 8cm x 45cm)
• Made from lightweight, durable plastic
• 1000-litre minimum annual saving based on three showers per household per day
• Stunningly simple and easy to use


Now it's even easier to collect and recycle your own water and with JoeyCan, you can save 1000 litres of water annually for your garden, just by capturing the water which flows during temperature adjustment at the beginning of your shower.


To order go to JoeyCan. Available in blue, green and pink, JoeyCans are $25 each plus $10 postage.

Interesting Facts:
* Up to 10 litres of water can be lost down the drain each time you wait for the shower to get to the right temperature.

* If every household in Victoria saved just 4 litres per day using Joeycan, we would save 1,000 Olypmic-sized swimming pools every year.