Louise Burr is no stranger to problem-solving and leadership. The busy Mum of three was the only woman to graduate as a civil engineer from the Australian Defence Force Academy in 2001, with her research thesis on sustainable road solutions winning a national prize.

Later, she would become the first female chief engineer of the Middle East region, followed by sponsoring the largest Government infrastructure project since World War II for Australia’s new fighter jet, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

As a STEM mentor and keynote speaker, Louise won Engineer of the Year in the prestigious “Women in Defence Awards” across the Defence Force and Defence industry in 2021. After a 25-year career as an Air Force Officer, with a special interest in interior design and decorating, she’s turned her attention to solving an age-old problem – watering houseplants.

“I developed a love of plants throughout my twenties and thirties, but once I had children and a hectic work-life balance, caring for them became a real burden,” Ms Burr said. “The guesswork around over or underwatering led to many plant fails such as annoying puddles, dying plants and fungus gnat infestations.”

By the time she’d worked out the delicate balance of watering her plants, she was faced with another issue. “Many of my plants were big and heavy. If I was short on time, I’d underwater them to avoid leaky messes. But, if I could manage it, I preferred to fully saturate them to ensure they thrived – but that meant moving them outside or to a sink,” she said.

“However, carrying my plants was backbreaking, and then remembering to bring them inside once they’d stopped dripping was difficult with my busy schedule. Poor drainage, clogged drainage holes, vacuuming and floor stains were just a few of the other hassles. They were meant to bring me joy but wound up being a bit of a burden!” Ms Burr said.

Louise spent more than a decade thinking about the idea of a mess and stress-free plant pot, and when no one filled the gap in the market, she did it herself. PerkyPod is a patent pending plant pot, with a unique internal drainage, filtration, and water catchment system. It’s the world’s first self-draining planter.

Plant owners can thoroughly soak their plants without having to relocate them, and the excess water drains away into a water catchment drawer. This drawer can be emptied at any time and recycled onto another plant, making it essentially impossible to overwater your plants and creating a healthy soil ecosystem for plants to thrive.

PerkyPod also has optional castor wheels to make moving large plants around the house a breeze and is designed with aesthetics in mind so it will complement any décor.

And now PerkyPod has just won the 2024 Australian Good Design for Homewares, announced at a gala awards night at the International Convention Centre, Darling Harbour, on 20 September.

A self-professed nature lover, environmental responsibility is at the core of Louise’s creation, and she was recently selected for participation in the NSW Government ‘Making Circular’ program as a regional circular economy start-up business.

PerkyPod features recycled composites, promotes responsible use of water, prevents plants from dying, reduces the need for artificial plants and is made of premium UV-stabilised materials to ensure long-lasting durability.

“I want to make indoor and outdoor plants accessible for everyone no matter their greenthumb status, age, physical ability, busyness, or type of dwelling and office. Above all, I want to help people to stop killing their plants,” Ms Burr said.

“PerkyPod will also make it much easier to grow your own herbs, fruit and vegetables. The wheels allow you to move plants to optimise the daily hours of sunshine, and no puddles means it’s easier to keep balconies tidy while complying with body corporate regulations by avoiding drips and overflow.”