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Plants in the Kitchen, New Approaches

Posted by Amanda Clarke, March 27, 2008 at 10:15 AM

Windowsills cluttered with scraggly little herbs may soon be a thing of the past as designers develop new ways of integrating plant life into the kitchen.

The AeroGarden brings “NASA-tested, aeroponic technology” to the kitchen counter. Occupying about the same space as a bread maker (the original version) or a blender (in the case of the newer, smaller model), the soil-free system allows you to grow herbs, salad greens and vegetables with minimal effort. “Planting” is accomplished by simply inserting pre-sown proprietary seed pods called Bio-Domes, and from then on a computer controls the light, moisture and nutrient levels during growth, as well as providing alerts when it’s time to add more water or nutrients. The systems are pricey and the range of plants available is a bit limited, but I’ve heard nothing but good things. And, having killed just about every plant I’ve ever owned, edible or otherwise, there’s something very appealing about the product’s guarantees for success.

In the less technical realm, Turkish designer Erdem Selek has created a quirky plant cage meant to serve as a dish rack, such that the water from drying dishes hydrates the plant below. Not only does this device take care of plant watering while solving the problem of water collecting in stagnant pools, as it does in most standard dish racks, but it saves a little space, which is always a good thing.

And from Tineke Beunders of the Dutch design pair Ontwerpduo comes Windowherbs, a clear plastic rendering of the classic flower pot form, cut in half, and decked with suction cups. It would be a simple, lovely and workable herb solution in kitchens with no windowsills or with windows that are opened and closed often.

Though I’m not wholly convinced of the long-term sticking power of suction cups, detect a touch of the precarious in the dish rack (at least in the current prototype), and find terms like "aeroponic" and "Bio-Dome" disquietingly futuristic (Soylent Green anyone?), all in all I applaud these attempts to refine and augment the position of the much overlooked kitchen plant.

About the author: Amanda Clarke is a recovering restaurant pastry chef with a background in architecture. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, where she writes, tests, and develops recipes and works on freelance food-styling gigs between walkings and feedings of her two dogs and husband.

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Tags: Aerogarden, design, planters