All Things Green

What if the clothes hanging in our wardrobe could be responsible for tackling climate change head on? What if they can even photosynthesise? In this episode of All Things Green, we consider how the fashion industry is looking to new and exciting plant materials—such as mushroom, algae and pineapple—to tailor, trim and parade down runways, all the while saving the environment one step at a time.

When we lose touch, what do we lose? As a tribute to human connection during COVID-19, we at The Plant Society reflect on how arborglyphs have come to represent, celebrate, and play a role in love, loss and human spirit, as well as plants in general. From loved-up teenagers carving their initials in trees, to botanicals being splayed out at weddings—where brides throw bouquets enthusiastically behind them—as well as funerals, the birthdays, the graduations and anniversaries, and more. Over time, plants have long come to represent what makes us so inherently unique: the way we express our love for one another.

Eleven years ago, Apple debuted its slogan: there's an app for that. Gardening apps are on the rise, and there are a variety of types: from foraging apps, to identifying plants, vegetables and herbs apps, to plant-related games. Given how plants have become a salient part of contemporary, Western culture... could it be that our mobile phone is now the most useful tool of all in the garden? We tackle the complexities of what happens when apps take over our lawns, windowsills and plates.

Urban agriculture is a growing trend around the world. But given its environmental credentials—such as being local and transparent—food grown sustainably and in city environments is often married to a hefty price tag. We speak to co-founder Christian Hampson of the Yerrabingin Indigenous rooftop farm—a 500-square metre garden created on the rooftop of a Mirvac office block in Sydney—about accessibility, the rise of Australian ‘agritecture’, and what his relationship with native plants and urbanisation looks like.

What does it mean to have a rich, sensory world—and, more importantly—what does this mean for plants? For us, being able to see, hear, feel, smell and taste means being able to survive, as well as being able to ensure that others of our same type and species can too. We can sufficiently warn our peers of threats, establish bonds and alliances by way of laughter and intimacy, and initiate reproduction and connection. But what about the greenery that surrounds us?

House plants are on the rise, and have been for some time now. In the 21st century, we have long expunged the ethos that plants are just for eating. They are—and can be—a number of things now, with myriad meanings: plants are decor, air-cleaners, nature’s own relief from the daily grind, symbols of love, connection, loss and progress able to be wrapped and gifted, a graduation present, a kind gesture, a romantic emblem. So, how did we get here? And what exactly is the Bloom Boom?