The Garden Tower Project on KickStarter opens with "Composting + 50 Plants = Fresh Food Anywhere".
Not to be confused with the Tower Garden, the Garden Tower uses compost as the growing medium, where the Tower Garden uses an aeroponic system (air and water as the growing medium). A compost tube runs p the center of the Garden Tower. From the Garden Tower FAQ page:
"The compost tube is a 6-inch diameter cylinder running down the center of the Garden Tower. The tube has holes running down the entire length that allow red wiggler worms to travel between the compost tube and the soil. The worms feed on the kitchen scraps and leave rich worm castings behind. As you water the soil, this water collects vital nutrients as it passes through compost-worm castings and collects and drains at the bottom of the unit. "
That's right, the Garden Tower uses worms to help compost and and keep the soil healthy (although they aren't necessary).
Current dimension are 35" tall by 25" wide (shipping dimensions), 32lbs.; 45" tall by 27" wide fully assembled.
On the Garden Tower KickStarter page, they say the purpose is to raise money to help manufacturer a new Garden Tower with smaller shipping dimensions:
"For eight months we've been shipping Garden Towers around the country to hundreds of very happy customers. However, our Garden Towers are two and half inches too tall for cost-effective shipping. Our cost on average is $87 to ship each Garden Tower, and these excessive shipping fees prohibit many people outside our local area from owning a Garden Tower. Moreover, these high shipping costs cut deeply into our ability to reinvest in the growth of the project and fund the project’s mission."
The new shipping dimensions will be:
"Shipping dimensions: 33" tall by 25" wide, 32lbs
Assembled dimensions: 42" tall by 27" wide fully assembled
We suggest it is well characterized as a "patio farm." "
