Our rooftop garden project known as 'The Plot' is based around the idea of urban gardening mixed with a splash of digital technology which utilises social networking to its full and most exciting potential. Ever wondered how your cabbage is getting on whilst you're on your summer holiday? “I wonder if the hosepipe ban is affecting the growth of my chrysanthemums?”. 

Harnessing the wonderful (and self proclaimed 'geeky') technology of Arduino, our vegetables will now Tweet us with varying degrees of information. So, if our mint leaves are in a morbid state of dehydration they can now inform us that they need watering (“Water me please i'm thirsty!”). If there is a severe lack of light or the temperature drops, an instant message can be forwarded to a personal computer, smart phone or whichever new device has cropped up on the market.
 

So, why are we doing this? Well, the project is a collaboration between FACT and the Merseycare NHS Trust Early Intervention Team and with 2010 being Liverpool's Year of Health and Wellbeing, what better time to jump aboard the urban gardening bandwagon with a refreshing and inventive approach?
 

Participants have been working alongside artists Jackie Passmore and Ross Dalziel to create a roof-top haven of greenery and growth, whilst also dabbling in a variety of digital media techniques. Ever tried to connect a potato to a mixing desk and see what sound it makes? Well we will! The results are being documented and will be displayed for your pleasure (or displeasure depending on how you feel about potatoes).
 

In the meantime all at FACT and the participants who meet weekly will be working hard getting grubby in the plant pots, building up a healthy appetite for what should be one hell of a vegetarian curry!