Fig Tree Café Gets A Plant-Filled Makeover

| August 9, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilic Design, Case Studies, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
Good Earth Plant Company enjoyed giving the original Fig Tree Cafe in Pacific Beach a well deserved refresh. Photo: Jim Mumford Good Earth Plant Company
We love working with new clients at Good Earth Plant Company. When Rise & Shine Hospitality Group Chief Operating Officer Cesar Garcia needed to remodel the original Pacific Beach location of Fig Tree Café, he started the same place most of us do: Google. Good Earth Plant Company is so glad he did! If you aren’t familiar with Fig Tree Café, it opened its first location in Pacific Beach in 2008 with a simple mission rooted in the creation of an inviting and genuine dining experience. Since then, CEO and founder Johan Engman opened in Liberty Station in 2013, and recently in East Village.… Read More

Top Trends at Cultivate 22: Color and Creativity

| July 20, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilic Design, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
This three dimentional "grotto wall" using moss and living plants was my favorite display at Cultivate 22. I can't wait to build one myself! Photo: Jim Mumford
We’ve just wrapped up one of my favorite workplace greenery and horticulture conferences – the annual Cultivate 22 held in Columbus, Ohio, by American Hort, our national organization supporting and promoting the horticulture industry. We were back last year post-pandemic, but we were all still feeling the many effects of what we’d all gone through. This year, the energy, collaboration, and creativity were truly back. I could tell immediately from the bright-colored plant and floral displays in downtown Columbus. They were missing last year. More than 650 exhibitors and 10,000 industry professionals like me attend this show to see all the latest products and plants and talk with colleagues to share and learn about the latest trends and solutions for our clients.… Read More

Plants Can Save The World – It’s Science

| July 13, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilia, Environment, Indoor Plants, Nature and Wellbeing, Plantscaping
Get busy, Eco-Warriors. Plants can save the world. We just have to lend a hand. Photo: Anna Shvets
In my spare time, I read science articles. Doesn’t everyone? In this case, the headline got my attention: “Plants aren’t good at photosynthesis. We can do it better.” This didn’t make sense to me. The reason plants grow and thrive is photosynthesis. It’s life and death for plants. The article was written by Dr. Raffael Jovine, a scientist who is the author of the new book “How Light Makes Life: The Hidden Wonders and World-Saving Powers of Photosynthesis.” I read more and thankfully, Dr. Jovine isn’t a hater. Far from it. His book explores how photosynthesis was first discovered and understood by humans, how it works, our planet’s reliance on photosynthesis for nearly all life, the economic value of photosynthesis, and how we can use photosynthesis and plants to save our environment and solve many other complex problems like hunger, healthcare, and equity.… Read More

Christmas In July At Good Earth Plant Company: Get Into The Holiday Spirit With Us

| July 5, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Case Studies, Plantscaping
We're excited to offer Good Earth Plant Company clients the chance to work with a holiday decor specialist this year - Whinnery Designs. Photo: Courtesy Whinnery Designs
We’ve just wrapped up our Fourth of July fun, and a lot of it involved getting outdoors. Picnics, parades, fireworks, and vacation time. More sun, less screens (but not less sunscreen, that’s a different thing). Now you might return to those screens and see – Santa? Christmas trees? Holiday gift sales? Maybe you aren’t ready for Christmas in July, but it’s here. It might seem like a marketing grab, but there’s a real story behind Christmas in July. Christmas In July Has North Carolina Roots Christmas in July was started 89 years ago at Keystone Camp in Brevard, North Carolina. It’s a girls’ only camp still open today.… Read More

Go Green To Recruit Tech Talent

| June 22, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilic Design, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
Our first moss wall project in 2022 for one of the GAMAM companies. Photo: Good Earth Plant Company sustainability must
Before the pandemic, technology employees loved their free meals, foosball, and office happy hour. Post-pandemic, it’s going to take more than booze to bring tech workers back into the office. Good Earth Plant Company has a hot tip for tech employers: Go green at work. Many of the big tech companies including the Big Five known as GAMAM (Google, Apple, Meta [Facebook], Amazon, and Microsoft) or FAANG (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google) announced they would bring back their workers into the office. Their employees said, “Umm, not so fast.” Recent surveys found nearly three-quarters of tech employees plan to quit their jobs this year in part because of lack of flexibility with the post-pandemic return to the office push and toxic workplace culture.… Read More

Plants Add Finishing Touch To Luxury Living In La Jolla

| June 15, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilic Design, Case Studies, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
Good Earth Plant Company works most often on larger commercial projects in office buildings, hotels, restaurants, technology and biotech properties, shopping centers, and retail businesses. When we get the opportunity to work on a residential project, it’s a treat and a special responsibility. We recently completed our second project for luxury homebuilder Blue Heron Homes. Even their name tells you something about this Las Vegas-based builder. It chose Blue Heron because it “represents something beautiful and unexpected, yet organic and naturally occurring.” Blue Heron designs home in harmony with the environment. Blue Heron called on us for plantscaping design services adding plants to a brand-new oceanfront home in La Jolla.… Read More

Keep Our Trees Green and Growing in Drought

| June 8, 2022 | Categories: Agriculture and Farming, Gardening, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Nature and Wellbeing, Water and Water Conservation
San Diego's trees add to the beauty it is known for worldwide. Photo: City of San Diego keep our trees green
Several years ago, I encouraged blog readers to plant trees for the well-being of our planet. If you followed my advice, you have some shade to sit in while enjoying your beverage of choice! Now in the midst of the worst drought Southern California has experienced in our lifetime, the most important thing you can do now is to use the precious water available to keep our trees thriving. Put trees first in line for water Southern California officials are issuing new restrictions on outdoor water use amid the worsening drought. It’s fine for lawns to go brown – and it’s even better if we replace them.… Read More

Get High On World Green Roof Day 2022

| June 1, 2022 | Categories: Environment, Green Roofs, Sustainable Living
Join Good Earth Plant Company and celebrate World Green Roof Day on Monday, June 6, 2022.
When we first installed our green roof at Good Earth Plant Company fifteen years ago in 2007, all the information about the long-term impact came from Europe. There weren’t many green roofs in the United States, just a few in the northern United States and southern Canada. There were very few studies conducted on them, none in our Southern California region. Times change, and we are much more enlightened about the positive impact of green roofs on the immediate environment and their contribution overall. We love green roofs and everything they stand for at Good Earth Plant Company. We have now built several green roofs in the decade since then, from private homes in Del Mar, Encinitas, and Santa Monica, to the “Fallen Star” art installation at UCSD, to the spectacular green roof at Sharp Memorial Hospital in Kearny Mesa.… Read More

Even Black Thumbs Can Grow Orchids

| May 18, 2022 | Categories: Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
Yes, you can grow orchids! Good Earth Plant Company tells you our secrets to grow orchids. Photo: Pixabayv
During the pandemic, many people learned about the benefits of adding plants to your indoor environment at home and work. This isn’t a news flash for our regular readers. Study after study confirms plants help clean your indoor air of toxins, raise the humidity to healthier levels, contribute to an increase in oxygen levels, buffer noise, calm your nerves and help you focus. We’ll stop there. Good Earth Plant Company works with many clients who like fresh cut flowers in addition to green indoor plants in their workspaces. Who isn’t impressed by a gorgeous display of flowers in a lobby or meeting room?… Read More

Need Some Energy? Count On Indoor Plants Instead of Caffeine

| May 11, 2022 | Categories: Environment, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
We love the indoor plants added to the collaborative work spaces at the American Assets Trust office in Del Mar Heights. Photo: Good Earth Plant Company
We have all been through two difficult years. The coronavirus pandemic changed our way of life, and it’s not quite over yet. You may have struggled with health challenges, job challenges, family challenges, and we lost out on a lot of fun. Some of the changes have been for the better. But learning new routines can be stressful, and it takes a lot of energy. Human nature takes over, and we do what we’ve gotta do: binging on streaming shows, baking bread, and starting happy hour at 2 pm. Now we’ve integrated our old routines with our new routines. You might be going back to the office full time or just some of the time.… Read More