Container Gardening Success with GROW Duo

In our connected, virtual world, it was only a matter of time before digital would meet gardening. A love of cooking with fresh veggies and herbs inspired Idan Cohen and Andrew​​Wanliss-Orlebar to create GROW Duo. The outdoor connected self-watering planter allows you to easily and successfully grow a wide variety of homegrown, organic produce.

GROW Duo features sensors that monitor environmental conditions so the system knows when to water itself. An app provides you with tailored, data-driven growing guidance and recommendations. Cohen is CEO and co-founder of GROW. He was inspired to create a foolproof way to grow homegrown produce when he moved into an apartment in New York City a few years ago. “As an enthusiastic cook, I was always in pursuit of the best ingredients,” says Cohen. “My apartment had a large rooftop, and I was inspired to grow some of the varieties of vegetables and herbs that I missed from my childhood in Israel. I wanted to build a garden, but quickly realized it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. I decided to create a product that would address the needs of an aspirational gardener.” Soon after his “green” epiphany, Cohen met Wanliss-Orlebar. The duo then set out to create an easy-to-use outdoor home gardening system. The fact that the resulting product is virtually connected was a natural development. “While humans have grown their own food for thousands of years, these days we’re much more likely to shop for food (even online) than grow our own,” says Cohen. “That’s why we built the GROW Duo. The system provides an easy way for digital natives, technology enthusiasts and food lovers of all ages to get back in touch with this age-old process.” The GROW Duo gives you step-by-step guidance for learning how to grow your own organic produce, including herbs and leafy greens. The system is self-watering, and the app is full of growing advice and recommendations. Julie Bawden-Davis is a garden writer and master gardener, who since 1985 has written for publications such as Organic Gardening, The American Gardener, Wildflower, Better Homes and Gardens and The Los Angeles Times. She is the author of 10 books, including Reader’s Digest Flower Gardening, Fairy Gardening, The Strawberry Story Series, and Indoor Gardening the Organic Way, and is the founder of HealthyHouseplants.com. Her backyard is a Certified Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.