Plants Cangro upside down

One thousand cans originally destined for landfills have been given an unusual new life – as containers for upside down gardens, in a flourishing new business called Cangro.

Diane Kramer of Johannesburg, initially came across the upside down concept in September 2011 whilst travelling abroad and immediately recognized the potential for this idea to sprout in South Africa. Kramer however wanted it to be more environmentally friendly – namely to use an alternative to plastic containers. She finally found a large tin manufacturer holding some 30 000 redundant paint cans. That is when her idea became a reality.

Having sourced the housing for the plants, her next challenge was finding the best way to cut a hole in base of the can and formulating a method of holding the soil and plant in place. The final product is streamlined and easy to care for. This edible indoor garden looks and tastes good too.

Filing a patent was another important step towards her ultimate goal of distributing Cangro gardens in disadvantaged communities through Corporate Social Investment (CSI) initiatives. Kramer hopes this will promote employment and entrepreneurship as well as educate the public about recycling and sustainability.

Schools have been quick to identify the potential as a teaching and educational tool. Most people will remember planting beans at school, now imagine planting tomatoes, basil, origanum, etc, upside down and in a recycled paint can.

“The can disrupts thinking from both young and old and has a way of bringing out the creative child in all of us,” says Kramer. “[In November], we took the concept to the Irene Market [in Centurion], to see if anyone would even like the product. We were absolutely delighted with the response. We sold out within two hours of being there and the rush since then has not stopped.”

Cangro is also sold at the Neighbourgoods market in Braamfontein (every Saturday till 3pm).

Cangro: www.cangro.co.za

Image 1: Environmentally friendly packaging
Image 2: Dianne’s brother selling Cangro at the Neighbourgoods market in Braamfontein
Image 3: Hanging edible gardens
Image 4: Cangro explainedImages courtesy of Cangro

Click to enlarge