What are Urban Greenhouses?

Indoor gardening is quickly taking root among many bigger cities; people who don’t have enough space to create a traditional outdoor garden have begun experimenting with other ways of making cities green. From rooftop gardens to simple indoor planters, urban gardening is an easy way for city dwellers to stay connected to the environment. In some cases, urban gardening has even become a profitable community activity.

The Urban Greenhouse Movement

Urban greenhouses are one of the easiest ways for individuals to maintain a small garden within the confines of an apartment or building. They are small-scale planters that incorporate space requirements, décor and plant life into one container that can house many plants.

The company Urban Greenhouse specializes in designing containers that will allow individuals or businesses to grow almost any type of plant, from the traditional to the exotic. By combining artificial light with systems for managing humidity and ventilation, these products provide a way for people to grow plants inside and experiment with the types of plants they can successfully grow given the space they have to work with.

What is the Urban Greenhouse Initiative?

In many large cities, there is an absence of obvious green growth; buildings and asphalt dominate the landscape, leading to the urban heat island effect and an atmosphere filled with chemicals and smog. The Urban Greenhouse Initiative is a drive to incorporate greenhouses into the unused portions of big cities.

The Urban Greenhouse Initiative encourages individuals to organize and create greenhouses in empty lots and abandoned buildings. By providing the city with greenhouses, individuals will have access to organic, locally grown food that is free from pesticides and chemicals. It also provides educational opportunities for children, reduces the amount of gas created by transporting vegetables and keeps chemicals from being washed into rivers, lakes and oceans.

Creating greenhouses in abandoned lots is not the only objective of the Urban Greenhouse Initiative, however. The Urban Greenhouse Initiative also encourages individuals to participate in smaller ways, such as creating a community garden or starting a group of hanging gardens in houses, apartments and balconies.

What is Rooftop Gardening?

Building gardens on rooftops is another way urban gardeners are finding they can branch out and create green oases within the confines of a city. Rooftop gardens can be as large or small as the rooftop allows, and have many benefits aside from providing food and pleasure to the inhabitants of the building. Planting gardens on a roof can help to reduce the urban heat island effect created by city buildings, and the air quality is improved by the presence of plants.

What are Eco-Farmers?

Micro eco-farming is another major trend associated with cities and urban and suburban areas. Micro eco-farms are small, individually owned mini-farms, gardens or greenhouses that cover one to 25 acres of land. Micro eco-farms can include anything from local flower gardens to small cut flower stands to individually owned creameries or agri-businesses.

The drive behind micro eco-farming is to encourage individuals to make use of the land they have available to them in ways that are environmentally conscious and provide local economic benefit both to themselves and the community. Small farms can provide incentive to create a local farmer’s market and encourage individuals to become more self-sustaining. It also acts as an educational tool for teaching children about the process of planting, growing and harvesting food.