Sustainable Swag? Living Jewels – UBCM 2023

<<< Join our mailing list to stay informed >>>

“Living Jewels”: The best give-away at UBCM (in our humble opinion)  

GRIN (Green Roof Infrastructure Network) is pleased to be at UBCM 2023  (booth 213). As a new non-profit passionate about sustainability, we put some thought into the give-aways we wanted to offer at our table. We wanted to avoid excess use of paper or plastic, in particular. What could we offer that would be memorable, fun, and environmentally enriching?

A spontaneous brainstorming session with our friend, Michael Wiebe (The Well Strategies) led to the idea of Sedum brooches, which we’re calling “living jewels”. At the bottom of this post, you’ll find instructions on how to care for your Sedum brooch (whether you choose to wear, store or plant it).

Sedum is a succulent genus that is associated with extensive green roofs because many Sedum species are low-growing, shallow-rooting, drought-tolerant, and economical. Indeed, green roofs can be very economically vegetated by spreading Sedum cuttings (which can be harvested when maintaining other green roofs!). The cuttings put down “adventitious roots” and become established very quickly.

Many thanks to NATS Nursery Ltd. for donating Sedum cuttings for this project. The cuttings used for the Living Jewel pins were taken from what was available after NATS’ last production on LiveRoof modules. For colour and texture, we went with three forms of Sedum reflexum, as this species holds its form even when starting to dry out. Following are some images from a recent LiveRoof project in Port Hardy BC, with some explanation on design, intent, and plant information. 

The owner was looking for something unique and, as much as possible, a reflection of his passion for the outdoors, nature and sailing. NATS was given full freedom for the design from layout, products used, plant assemblage and inspiration. 

The design is broken into 4 colour sections symbolizing the elements, where blue = water; red = fire, green = earth and yellow = sky. Green earth is represented with evergreen Sedum along with Fragaria (chiloensis & vesca) as the main accent. Yellow sky is represented with sedum for the sun and Aquilegia, growing tall and delicately, reaching for the sky. Red fire is represented with predominantly red sedum along with Arctostaphylos uva-ursi. Blue water is represented with blue/ grey Sedum and a mix of Alliums. The wavey ‘X’ pavers (RoofStone ) represent waves and starfish, as well as the 4 points of a compass.

In total, this roof features 23 Sedum varieties and 11 native accents. Every plant selected supports nature and the environment, either supporting pollinators or providing food, with each blend having at least 1 edible plant or fruit bearing plant.

Back to the Living Jewels, many thanks to board member, Goya Ngan, for designing and hand-crafting each unique pin! It’s also fun to note that Goya added to the plant material using Sedum cuttings (S. spurium) from her sister’s green roof “which needed a haircut anyway”. Ecological, educational, elegant and hilarious, all at once! 

HELP AMPLIFY THE GRIN GOODNESS!

If you enjoyed this post, please help grow GRIN and our vision for a greener future by sharing this post. Amplify us on social media with (hash)tags:

Twitter/ X: Please tag @GRINBC, @greenroofs and @GRHCna

LinkedIn: Tag/ follow @GRIN.BC

Instagram: Tag/ follow @GRIN.BC

Hashtags: #GreenRoofs #GreenInfrastrucutre #ClimateSolutions.

INSTRUCTIONS for LIVING JEWEL PINS 

Congratulations on your Living Jewel pin, which was carefully hand-crafted by GRIN board member, Goya Ngan. If you picked up a Living Jewel pin at UBCM, we’d love to see photos of you with it, whether wearing it now or caring for it in the future. Please share your images on social media and tag GRIN.BC, using the hashtags given above.

WEAR IT

They can be worn any way you want. If you have a lapel, simply pin it on from behind. To attach it to a shirt, you can bunch up the fabric and push the pin through, then over the tape/stems, and then back through a pinch in the fabric.

STORE IT

If you wish to continue wearing your Living Jewel pin after the conference has ended, the best way to store it is on a moist piece of paper towel. Keep it cool, either in the fridge or in a cool shady spot outside. Mist it occasionally. The Sedum cuttings may start to develop roots, which means they would likely establish if you were to plant them. 

PLANT IT

Your Living Jewel pin consists of viable Sedum cuttings that can be grown into plants! After removing the pin and tape, place the cuttings on gritty, well-drained soil. They can be left outside in a sunny or part-shade location.

You can help the plant establish quicker by placing a flattish stone or similar object on the cutting (as above). Sedum stems produce adventitious roots when in contact with soil. 

HELP AMPLIFY THE GRIN GOODNESS!

If you enjoyed this post, please help grow GRIN and our vision for a greener future by sharing this post. Amplify us on social media with (hash)tags:

Twitter/ X: Please tag @GRINBC, @greenroofs and @GRHCna

LinkedIn: Tag/ follow @GRIN.BC

Instagram: Tag/ follow @GRIN.BC

Hashtags: #GreenRoofs #GreenInfrastrucutre #ClimateSolutions.