Image from my luscious backyard Fancy exotic bouquets are losing their bloom. Flying in flowers from around the world is expensive in terms of money and the environmental impact. Some florists this summer are starting to use local flowers for their bouquets: as in picked from neighbourhood gardens. Now florists are turning gardens into mini-flower farms for their small businesses; renting or trading space in neighbouring gardens for flower beds. Part of the success comes from a change in...Read the full story on TreeHugger

From An Illustrated History of Furniture, Frederick Litchfield: Dining table made of boards and trestles TreeHugger founder Graham Hill is trying to radically reduce his footprint and live happily with less space, less stuff and less waste on less money, but with more design. He calls it "LifeEdited." At TreeHugger we are going to go seriously back to first principles, looking at the design and furnishing of his 420 square foot apartment. Why Do We Have Furniture? Witold Rybczynski writes in Read the full story on TreeHugger

Credit: Mike Baird Asian carp aren't the only invasive species causing trouble in the United States. While the monster fish captures headlines as it inches toward the Great Lakes, other species have already colonized other parts of the country, and are costing plenty of money to control. A finance website has totaled up the toll, listing "10 Invasive Species That Cost the U.S. a Bundle." See if you agree, disagree, or are just surprised by some of the choices. ...Read the full story on TreeHugger

Image via The Gumdrop Bin It's not news that chewing gum is the scourge of city sidewalks. Nor that it takes a lot of money and energy to clear gum off walkways, shortening the lifespan of the surfaces at the same time. Designer Anna Bullus read the statistics of the gum problem in London -- that the government spends...Read the full story on TreeHugger

images from Wallpaper* Wallpaper* Magazine has always been a bit over the top, but they did have an eye for beautiful things. However the money-no-object aesthetic can be a turn-off. Thus I am a bit conflicted showing their International Bike. It is truly a thing of beauty, and comes in a lovely bag made by Nivaldo de Lima that would probably even get past Read the full story on TreeHugger