My city garden thrives with these simple upgrades
Plus, my favorite zippy e-bike and more sustainable ideas.
Hi there!
Hope you had a nice weekend. It’s been a gorgeous last couple of weeks here in Portland with spring in full bloom. I’ve been busy getting our garden cleaned up and ready for food growing season, going on bike rides, and… celebrating my birthday!
Since today is Earth Day, I also wanted to share a few ways I try to live sustainably every day and the pieces that reconnect me to Mother Nature. I hope you have a chance to “touch grass” in a meaningful way today.
Let’s dig in!
Pedal Power
I recently got my e-bike out for the season and started cycling to work again. Around five years ago, I bought an xtracyle to take my son to school. (The model I have isn’t available anymore, but this one is very similar.) I liked the hoop that wraps around the back seat for kid safety and the Bosch electrical system for easy, dependable charging, among other features. My kiddo has now outgrown the e-bike, but I still love it for solo commuting. The electric assist removes any excuse not to ride; if I’m a little tired in the morning, I can just turn it up. And that extra space means I can haul anything I need—lunch, coffee, a rug I’m testing… No matter which brand you choose, a bike is great for your mind, your body, and our planet.
Analog Design
On a recent trip to NYC, I dutifully brought my stash of metro cards only to discover they were expired (why!) and basically obsolete anyways. Now you can just wave your phone over a screen at the turnstile. This makes it so much easier to ride the subway—no more waiting in line for the machine and fiddling with all the prompts—but it made me kind of miss the card, the physical ticket that grants you entrance. I admit my nostalgic perspective is definitely as a visitor and not a regular commuter. But our digital lives do make us give up tangible forms of record keeping. This got me thinking about efficiency and sustainability. The environmentally conscious way of doing things is often not the fastest or most convenient. Moving away from single-use items, like paper towels and plastic bags, requires you to wash more linens and tupperware containers—but I think that makes us all more conscious about the items we do use and own. They become more important as tools for everyday life. In my home, I love the collection of cloth napkins we have on rotation. We get to enjoy them everyday and remember where we got them—a vintage find, a gift, or maybe a prototype from Schoolhouse. This “inefficiency” is actually a good push to slow down, enjoy our things, and appreciate their use.
Vintage Vistas
On my family’s recent trip to the National Parks we made sure to stop at every visitor center so my son could stamp his NP “passport” in each gift shop, a cool way to keep track of all the National Parks you’ve visited. Maybe because I was in such a state of awe and appreciation for the natural beauty we were surrounded by, I wanted to hang onto that feeling with some swag. I kept being drawn to the vintage posters rendered in simple linework and beautiful colors. They originate from the Works Project Administration—part of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal plan to emerge from the Great Depression—which was founded on the idea that social good could come through building projects and design. The posters were intended as advertising but created a whole style of design that borrowed from Bauhaus and Mexican muralists—and ultimately became something uniquely American.
Growth Mindset
One of my favorite ways to welcome spring is to get our garden cleaned up and ready to plant veggies. It’s so satisfying (and delicious) to grow your own food, and we’re lucky to have the yard space. (Also: My wife has no interest in plants you can't eat.) We have four big feeding trough planters out back for strawberries, rhubarb, zucchini, carrots, herbs, habaneros, radishes, Persian cucumbers, summer squash, and tomatoes. (Our go-to seed source: Johnny’s.)
Last year I took on a project to beautify a portion of our front yard and add more planting areas—resulting in an espaliered fruit tree fence that has pear, asian pear, and apple trees, each grafted to have three varieties. I also built a raised cedar bed that proved to be the perfect tomato spot. We get the tomatoes started indoors under a great simple grow light system that’s nice enough to have out in our laundry room. (I had to fashion a cover for it because our cat was being naughty.) I haven't gone full victory garden yet, but I might eventually take over the front yard with more planters season by season.
Dream Weaver
Before I came to Schoolhouse, I worked for IKEA for almost 10 years and I’m still a big fan of the brand. They recently released their latest Stockholm collection—a higher-end line first launched in 1985 that focuses on quality, craftsmanship, and natural materials—and I’m really loving this all-wool flatwoven rug in an abstract birch tree pattern. Buying longlasting, durable goods is one way to hone a more sustainable mindset.
I’d love to hear about your favorite sustainable living tips and designs!
Katie xx
Your garden is so inspiring Katie! It's amazing what a few planters (and a lot of work) can produce. Love the disco tomatoes :)
That grow light system is fantastic! I’m going all in on gardening for the first time, and didn’t think I’d be able to find an indoor situation that met my aesthetic standards, but this is perfect!