charlotte dieckmann + nils ferber: parasite farm

the ‘parasite farm’ by charlotte dieckmann and nils ferber is an indoor compost system that can be easily integrated into your current living environment. the device consists of illuminated plant boxes which fit into shelving units and a larger compost container which can simply be hung from your kitchen table that has an integrated chopping board.

all photos by alexander giesemann

charlotte dieckmann and nils ferber own words:

today 88% of germany’s population lives in cities and only 5.8% of the country’s cultivated land is farmed ecologically. while most fruits and vegetables have become available all year round we are loosing touch with how it was grown, harvested and transported. the expensive, highly compacted urban area doesn’t leave much room for agricultural practices and not everybody has access to a balcony or garden. our answer to that question 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! to integrate with your interior and your habits both the vermicompost system and the plant boxes use existing furniture as infrastructure. 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.

the cutting board can be slid aside to easily shove food scraps into the vermicompost-container

to harvest some humus soil you simply shake the grate a bit and pull out the drawer underneath

the water contained in fresh vegetables or fruit scraps runs through the drawer and is stored in a translucent tank

the nutrient-rich humus soil provides the base for growing vegetables and herbs in your bookshelf a built-in fly trap prevents fruit flies from escaping into your kitchen