The Parasite Farm is a new indoor gardening system that encourages small space urban gardening while composting waste into fresh, fertile soil. Designed by Charlotte Dieckmann and Nils Ferber, the system consists of several planter beds and a compost bin with a chopping board lid that can be mounted on any kitchen table. The pair developed this simple system to encourage growers to get back in touch with agricultural production, and we think they’ve succeeded – it’s as simple as planting seeds in trays on shelfs and inserting grow lights above.
After chopping up your home-grown veggies you simply slide the waste seeds or stalks into the compost bin where they are naturally processed into fertilizer. The system was designed in response to the lack of ecologically cultivated land in the designers’ native Germany.
Discussing the need for indoor gardens, the designers say that highly compacted urban areas don’t leave much room for agricultural practices. As balcony or garden access can be rare, their answer is “the ‘Parasite Farm’ – a system that enables you to compost your biological waste, produce humus soil and to grow your own vegetables and herbs – all within your apartment!”
The designers go on to say: “The parasitic objects are fed by your food scraps and provide you – in turn – with fresh vegetables. We hope that this small-scale nutrient cycle makes people discover the fascination of growing you own food and evokes questions about the current industrial food production and possible alternatives.”
Images by Alexander Giesemann
Awesome concept! I Love it and perhaps a better German to English translation would be a personal “Sponge” Farm from ‘Schmarotzer’, a synonym of Parasite in German. This would shift the connotation to a personal farming system that effectively draws upon available nutrients to grow food… which is a bit more positive to say the least, either way, the name is quite unforgettable… and that could be very effective for marketing.
Great idea, I can see how this product streamlines the removal and transformation of your scrap foods into very usable vermicast/compost. The name Parasite Farm is not a great promoter of the product (maybe the real meaning has been lost in the translation from German to English?).
A parasite is a creature that lives off another living creature; like a blood sucking leech. Worms and soil microbes that break down organic matter into humus feed off the scrap products not other living organisms.
Also if these microbes are to survive in the Parasite Farm they also need to be provided a balance of moisture and oxygen, has there been provision made for that in the bin design. The last thing cooks want in their kitchen is a foul death odour reeking out from under the work bench.