Rob Halpern

Thomas,

1. True, and it is going to run out so we are going to have to found our existence on something else if we wish to exist

2. They were required. They even had one of a sort. But apparently our government watchdogs and the industry did not think it economically important enough to make certain they could do the job. So we may conclude that…[Read more]

Indeed, it is easier and more comfortable to argue ideology than to wrestle with what we have done (we cannot simply put this on BP or the government while driving our cars, running our computers, listening to our IPods, etc.) or what changes we need to make.

Let me propose a different starting point for common…[Read more]

I think that whether it is ethical or not has to do not with the transaction but rather with the transparency to the client.
If the client is misled into believing that the designer is referring them to the best contractor around, rather than to one with whom he does business, that is unethical. If the professional connection is acknowledged, then…[Read more]

My gut feeling:
Lots of skill but the presentation is frenetic. No unifying design to hold it together.

can you create a style that can take us through your many varied incarnations without becoming those incarnations?

To that point: GM corn has been found in the mountains of northern Mexico where the wild species come from. No one is sure how it got there, but it threatens the gene pool for corn.

Scientists make promises and corporations make promises and yet stuff happens and it is impossible to un-do

They may “need” the ideal crop but we need to protect our shared resources and wildlife.

Bob, I would not assume that the constructive response is to suggest another species that can be harvested more speedily. As human population grows and as American ideas of consumption spread, we cannot simply expect the planet to churn out endless resources…[Read more]

And this appears to me to be a conservationist, biologist, ecologist, and agronomist issue first. What role do you see for L.A.s in the decision?

So now what has been done to Southern California will be done to Texas and Florida?
Apparently as Florida works to eradicate Melaleuca, there’s space for a new invasive.

I agree.
The site is designed already, so you can put a lump sum fee on it, specifying that the fee is based on the plans as of such-and-such date. Changes will be charged at $ x/hour. Hourly rates on their own can scare off the inexperienced. Like getting in a taxi with a $50/minute meter. The mind takes you to awful possibilities.

Besides, you…[Read more]

What is it you’re trying to find out?

Here in the northeast US, Rhus radicans is a terrible pest causing many people painful dermatitis. But some gardeners in the UK have planted it as an ornamental vine (the fall color is spectacular).

Elaeagnus umbellata is a beautiful silvery shrub, once widely planted. It has been shown to be a voracious invasive. Now forbidden

So “ornamental”…[Read more]

Trace, I wasn’t defending them or extolling them: just pointing out a factor in whether the US will do what it takes to require sustainable practices. The “don’t fence me in” ethos runs deep in the US history and psyche. If we want Change, we need to understand where people are

Not a joke, really. Apparently adherents of the “Tea Party” philosophy (?!) oppose taxation and government control. I am not clear what the difference is from Libertarians, but my point is that IF they represent more than the privileged few (as recent polls suggest they are) then how can the US Government accomplish imposing taxes, restrictions,…[Read more]

“Could that work in the U.S.?”

I think that rather depends on whether the “Tea Party” movement is a media fad or the will of the people.

And now….Twitter!

http://twitter.com/PlantWorldNews

I absolutely agree.
Perhaps in the full article he gives his definition of “sustainable,” from from this excerpt we have just so much yatter.

And by the way…why can’t humans be a part of “sustainable,” Are we going somewhere? Is pruning or dividing and transplanting un-sustainable? Why is “Exact replication of “natural,” un-peopled analogs “…[Read more]

There are many methods to do a planted wall or “green wall.” I have sometimes simply used prostrate (spreading on the ground) plants on the top of the wall to hang over and down the wall. But with a wall of that height you ought to consider how any green treatment will be efficiently maintained.

With a 4m embankment, I expect structure to be the…[Read more]

May I add that the challenge in doing a great glasshouse is finding the right architect.

The tension between horticultural requirements and heating/cooling issues, “green design,” water use, etc. puts us at odds with the architects. Many public glassshouses have been designed by architects who have never done anything like it before. They do not…[Read more]

One of my favorites: especially the huge fernery

YES…although I have had to go more international in the past two yars