Vegetable Gardeners, 1496
By Shen Zhou, Chinese, 1427-1509
Link to image here.

The Man Who Loved China: The Fantastic Story of the Eccentric Scientist Who Unlocked the Mysteries of the Middle Kingdom
by Simon Winchester

The great Sinologist Joseph Needham (1900-1995) is a legend for his Science and Civilization in China, an encyclopedic account of China’s achievements in science and technology. Presently there are 24 volumes in his classic series. On his first day in China in 1943, he saw a gardener at work and this set in motion his magnum opus.

Excerpt:

Needham wrote: “The old Chinese gardener in ragged blue coat and trousers with a wispy white beard who potters around smoking one of these long pipes with a tiny bowl — and a mongol cap, periodically performing elaborate grafting techniques on the plum tree.”

Winchester wrote “He (Needham) had evidently stopped to watch this old gardener, and not just because of the man’s exotic appearance. He realized that in following as closely as he could the manner in which the man was splicing, tying, and grafting the plum tree, he was actually witnessing something rather important.

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Renderings by James Halverson of Vancouver based Lux Visual Effects Inc.

The Waterpod

From Time Out New York article
June 4, 2009

“Built atop a refabricated 99′ x 31′ construction barge, the Waterpod is about as DIY as it gets: Living units have been constructed from found or donated materials. Most of the food will be produced onboard; the garden will grow beets, potatoes, corn, raspberry bushes and a variety of greens, and eggs will be available from the six birds in the chicken coop, which also provide fertilizer. All water is acquired through a rainwater-catch system, and bathroom facilities include a dry-compost toilet and a solar-heated shower.

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