If you follow 3D printing news and haven’t heard about Cubify yet, then you must have had your head buried in the sand. Cubify is a 3D Systems company that features printers, scanners, software, and printable fashion, housewares/home décor, kids’ stuff, entertainment, and “mancave” options as well. One of the Cubify printers, the EKOCYCLE Cube, has received much media attention due to its celebrity representative, Will.i.am, and its mission is to promote printing with recycled materials. With such a wide spectrum of services and items available, a perusal of the company website will have your mind spinning with all kinds of possibilities for 3D printing.
To help you narrow your choices down, think seasonally. It’s springtime, and high time that you consider exactly how you plan to grow some more indoor or outdoor plants. What? You said you don’t have much space? Well, Cubify has solved this by offering charming and functional 3D printable vertical garden planting cubes — and bird accessories — through the Fresh Fiber line of home décor.
Vertical gardening has been gaining more traction as urbanites seek ways to maximize whatever indoor or outdoor space they have access to through creative means–including vertical growing. Cubify’s FreshFiber home décor line offers free downloads of different sized cubes that can be mounted on walls if you have limited space issues but still have a green thumb. These planting cubes are imminently practical, coming in two sizes–4″ and 2″ cubes–with an attached saucer option for good drainage. The cubes also have a wooden/bamboo texture with holes included for easy hanging, and can be printed in whatever color you see fit for your own surroundings. Personally, I would just as likely use these planters indoors as outdoors, as a wall of plants is not only a pleasant sight, but it also cleans your breathing air.
Cubify’s Vertical Garden collection also acknowledges that gardening is for the birds. In fact, it includes more bird-related items than plant-related items, and the only thing missing is a 3D printable, matching hummingbird feeder. 
(That would be an excellent addition to the collection!) But, otherwise, Cubify has covered its bases with a bird house, bird feeder, and bird bath included in the collection. Bird feeders have become rather intricate, but since Cubify wants design continuity between items in the collection, this bird house is rather simple: it is larger than the 4″ planter, and has a hole in the front.
The Bird Feeder is a cube, with a lid, that you can fill with all the goodies known to attract your local bird population. While size dimensions are not available on the website, it appears to be roughly the same size as the feeder. If you are going to house and feed local birds, remember that you also need to provide them some bathing space as well. The minimalist bird bath comes in a smooth texture with a bird emblazoned over a dish that you would keep filled with water so they have somewhere to chill — a mini bird pool.
Whether you live in a tight space with little room or want to add more charm to your already sprawling outdoor garden, Cubify’s 3D printable Vertical Garden collection offers something for everyone to help enjoy what nature has to offer this spring.
Let us know if you’ll be creating your own nature wall over in the Cubify 3D Printed Vertical Garden forum thread at 3DPB.com.
