Recycling + garden = green

Creating planter boxes from old appliances serves both a practical and environmental purpose. — Photo courtesy the Cranbrook Guardian

Rick and Brenda Metheral from Cranbrook have melded two aspects of a sustainable lifestyle. Their eclectic backyard garden utilizes numerous recycled items. Garden beds made out of freezers were originally implemented for a very practical reason.

Rick had hurt his back and thought this method of growing might be easier on him. With a good supply of old freezers back home, an experiment turned into a freezer/fridge farm full of vegetables. This is not surprising as the Metherals hail from Saskatchewan and have salt of the earth farming roots . . . After the electrical workings and freon are removed from the freezers and fridges, Rick punches holes in the bottom of the white goods, fills them with one third gravel, one third manure and one third soil mix. They are then ready to plant. With old windows at the ready, it is easy to create cold frames for early and late season protection. -The Cranbrook Guardian

The garden was recently open to the public at Cranbrook’s Open Garden Day. For more photos and information—including a look at the Metheral's compost in a washing machine—Visit the post by The Cranbrook Guardian.