[Greenbuilding] Sprouting Floor?

[Michael O'Brien]

Hi, Frank--

We built a cob wall inside our house and the straw sprouted green shoots for a week or so. I assume it was the moisture and clay that allowed the seeds to sprout. 

I love Andy Goldsworthy's work and learned from his clay walls that people have used a variety of additives to give clay tensile strength, including pig hair and human hair. I prefer straw and shoots myself!

Best,

Mike O'Brien

On Jan 12, 2011, at 12:02 PM, Frank Cetera wrote:

> Any more details?  Would love to know if they figured out why the grass sprouted.  Has this happened to anyone else?
> 
> ~Frank Cetera
> www.alchemicalnursery.org  
> 
> 
> ------------------------------
> 
> Message: 6
> Date: Tue, 11 Jan 2011 16:16:51 -0600
> From: "Doug Kalmer" <dougkalmer at gmail.com>
> To: <greenbuilding at lists.bioenergylists.org>
> Subject: [Greenbuilding] earthen floor
> Message-ID: <7DFB4C7413984E5E9303B738656FCC7B at XYZPC>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> 
> I know of a local "eco-architect" who built a SB house for a guy, and made a earthen floor from local clay. It sprouted grass. Doug
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Tue, 11 Jan 2011 10:31:50 -0500
> From: Frank Cetera <alchemicalfranklen at gmail.com>
> To: greenbuilding at lists.bioenergylists.org
> Subject: Re: [Greenbuilding] That Natural Feeling
> Message-ID:
>       <AANLkTin4XBTWucN35_HXvWdK2HiuEsWkJCnQgyOisRyU at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> 
> Love your website and your work philosophy Gennaro.  The earthen floor photo
> essay was interesting, as I am planning on putting in an earthen floor in
> the kitchen of a home I am renovating this coming summer.
> 
> I wanted to ask for further examples of how you plan on counteracting the
> need for new building materials when you do your work as you say one of your
> goals is zero new materials.
> 
> How for instance would you insulate an attic?  Or fulfill modern codes
> relating to foundation work or electrical work?  Or is the zero new
> materials idea more of an ideal than a reality?
> 
> ~ Frank Cetera
> www.alchemicalnursery.org
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