Gayle Lynn Falkenthal

New Living Moss Walls Change the Living Wall Landscape

| October 24, 2018 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Living Walls, Moss Walls
One of the new living moss walls which will soon be available to our clients at Good Earth Plant Company.
During my 40 plus years bringing nature into workplaces, homes, and many other places, there have only been a handful of game changer type products or concepts. Even though I came around more recently to building green roofs (2007) and living walls, (2009), their origins go back thousands of years. The modern versions of  green roofs were developed in Germany in the 1960s, and living walls in France in the late 1970s. Since then, they have spread to most countries. This changed a few years ago when “moss walls” came along. Four years ago, we installed our first moss wall using preserved lichen (the same material used in model train sets) and they have caught fire with our clients and the rest of the world.… Read More

Plants Can Be Funny, But the Benefits Are No Joke

| October 17, 2018 | Categories: Biophilia, Case Studies, Environment, Indoor Plants, Nature and Wellbeing, Plantscaping
I never get tired of talking to people about the many benefits of plants and nature in the places we live, work, and play. But I admit it’s sometimes a challenge to figure out new ways to help people get the message! The nonprofit organization Green Plants for Green Buildings has been thinking about this, too. My fellow board members and I put our heads together and we have something new to show you that I’m excited about. Have you ever seen one of those technology product launch videos? Or maybe the demonstrations by Steve Jobs of new products for Apple?… Read More

How Long Do Plants Live?

| October 10, 2018 | Categories: Gardening, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
I’ve read several times recently that Millennials are filling up their lives with plants as substitutes for traditional pets like dogs and cats, and even kids! It’s true that plant sales have increased since 2016. This is great news for us at Good Earth Plant Company. We’re working every day to enrich people’s lives with plants. This caused me to think about house plants as pets. We love our dogs, our cats, our birds, and other pets, and it hurts when we lose them to old age. It comes so fast. What about plants? Do house plants have a predetermined, predictable lifespan?… Read More

Revive Your Dying Indoor Plant: 6 Ways Before It’s Too Late

| October 4, 2018 | Categories: Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Indoor Plants, Nature and Wellbeing, Plantscaping
Wet plant
Revive your dying indoor plants before it’s too late! Good Earth Plants is in the business of not only supplying residential, commercial, office & hospitality spaces with plants, but it’s also our job to keep them alive. Houseplants and office plants are enjoying a new surge in popularity. We could not be happier about this. It’s been our mission for more than 40 years to encourage people to incorporate nature into the places they work, live, and play through the addition of plants due to their many benefits to your wellbeing. Despite giving indoor plants love and attention, you’re always going to run into an indoor plant enemy that’s tough to battle.… Read More

Replica Plants Are Plantscaping Rock Stars

| September 26, 2018 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Indoor Plants, Plantscaping
Being in business for 40-plus years means a lot of changes, nearly always for the better. Looking back on some of our projects is a little like looking back through photos of yourself and cringing at some of the clothes you were wearing. They seemed SO cool at the time. Although my famous mullet haircut still has a whole lot of fans. Artificial plants fall in this category. If you’re old enough, or you’ve binge watched a few good 1980s situation comedies, remember the artificial silk plants and flowers that used to be popular? People used to stuff the fake plants on top of their kitchen cabinets in the space between the cabinet top and the ceiling.… Read More

You Deserve a Biophilic Break Today

| September 17, 2018 | Categories: Biophilia, Biophilic Design, Environment, Green Roofs, Nature and Wellbeing
When I was 12, I played Pop Warner football. One of the kids on the team had an agent and was asked to pick five kids from the team to help do a special part of a McDonald’s TV commercial. They divided the entire team in half, gave us different colored jerseys, and created the White Jersey Team vs. the Black Jersey Team. The score was Black 12, White 7 with only seconds to go. Ronald McDonald showed up in the huddle to save the day and was both quarterback and receiver – throwing himself a pass down field (trick photography) and scoring the winning touchdown as time ran out.… Read More

Trees Are Nature’s Super Heroes

| September 12, 2018 | Categories: Environment, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Nature and Wellbeing, Plantscaping, Sustainable Living
In a previous life, I must have been some kind of animal that lives in a tree. I love all things trees. I always have. One of the very first blog posts I ever wrote was about the magic of tree houses in September 2013. Trees are at the top of my consciousness right now following my vacation trip to the Pantanal region of Brazil. It’s such a different experience being immersed in dense forests of trees, especially the amazing and unusual types of trees we saw in Brazil. Back at home in San Diego, I’ve been thinking just how valuable trees are to us in our hot, dry Mediterranean climate.… Read More

Making The Home Office Productive and Healthier

| September 6, 2018 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilia, Biophilic Design, Case Studies, Indoor Plants, Nature and Wellbeing, Plantscaping
Our horticulture technicians at Good Earth Plant Company visit some of San Diego’s largest and most visible employers every day. We love creating healthier and more productive workspaces by introducing nature and natural elements through interior Plantscaping. Sometimes it’s living plants, and sometimes it’s through built-in structures like living walls and moss walls. Employees tell us they love working in these spaces, and we love helping them be successful while improving their wellbeing. But there are a whole lot of people we aren’t seeing. It’s the growing percentage of the workforce that doesn’t work in a traditional office setting. You might be surprised how big this group is.… Read More

The 10 Best Movies About Nature

| August 30, 2018 | Categories: Case Studies, Environment, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Nature and Wellbeing
The dog days of summer are nearly over. But we won’t be clear of warm temperatures for a while, especially in San Diego. One of the best ways to beat the heat but still enjoy the outdoors is to watch a nature movie. Because of the work we do bringing nature into the places we work and live, we pay special attention to movies depicting the natural world around us. We’re not especially big fans of the “man versus nature” type movie. Think Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Revenant.” Nature can be harsh and threatening to human beings. What we are much more interested in seeing is the awe-inspiring scenery, science, and creatures, and the ways people relate to them.… Read More

Shhhh – Enjoy the Silence

| August 15, 2018 | Categories: Biophilia, Biophilic Design, Nature and Wellbeing, Sustainable Living
For the first half of August, my son Ted and I have been exploring the Pantanal, the world’s largest tropical wetlands located in western Brazil. It is home to hundreds of species of birds, exotic animals including jaguars, capybaras, and caimans. My father Bob Mumford was supposed to accompany us, but he injured himself on a nature photography trip earlier this year to Mongolia. We held out hope, but my dad’s injury hadn’t healed enough to allow him to travel again. We miss you, Dad! You can see his work on his website. We had been planning this three generation trip to the Pantanal for nearly two years.… Read More