Archive - Jun 8, 2008

What a great bunch of articles this month! I'm excited about the turn out and look forward to reading them all. Have a good time reading them, and be sure to make useful comments on the sites that allow it. That always makes us bloggers feel good!

Lawns

We had a lot of lawn posts this month. It must be the right time of year for working on them! I for one am very grateful as I am working on my lawn this year and hope to get it in order. Although I prefer edible plantings, I need space for my daughter and dog to play.

Amy L. talks about some of the advantages of organic pesticides in her Organic Pesticides For A Safe Lawn post at Housekeeping Tips.

How to Care for Your Lawn posted at Home Life Weekly has some great tips. Although the article mentions some non organic supplies, there are many useful tips and we can just replace the herbicides and pesticides with organic methods.

Raimondo Solari talks about how our lawns suck up so much water. There has to be ways that we can still get a good looking lawn without wasting the precious resource water is becoming. Check out the tips at Inexpensive, Eco-Friendly Green Lawn Care posted at Garden Gab.

Sarah at Lawn Care Tips had a lot to tell us about helping our lawns along. Sarah will tell us what we need to know:

Organic Weed Control Methods And Herbicides | Spring Lawn Care - Lawn Care Tips - Organic methods to keep those pesky weeds from ruining your lawn.
Managing Lawn Care During A Drought | Spring Lawn Care - Lawn Care Tips - What to do about your lawn during a drought!
Why Is Proper Lawn Clipping Height So Important? | Spring Lawn Care - Lawn Care Tips - The importance of the clipping height of your lawn
Using Organic Fertilizers For A Healthy Lawn | Spring Lawn Care - Lawn Care Tips posted at Lawn Care Tips - Many people want to have a beautiful lawn without all of the harmful effects of synthetic fertilizers.

Sustainability

Melanie Rimmer uses a great parable to explain the meaning of sustainability. A must read story that makes it crystal clear what we are talking about. Check out Bean Sprouts: I Believe... posted at Bean-Sprouts.

valereee always gives us great posts. This month she tells us How to shop at a farmers' market on Cincinnati Locavore, saying, "Shopping at the farmers' market is a great way to eat sustainably!"
She also talks about eating locally. I've blogged some about the 100 mile diet, but she does a great job of talking to some of the pros and cons of it. Time, Money, Recipes: Experience is the answer posted at Cincinnati Locavore.

Ever wonder what happens to your trash once it is sent off with the garbage hauler? Well Samir Bharadwaj tells us in The Yellow Rubber Ducks Now Live Down On the Farm at Samir Bharadwaj dot Com.

Hilary Green gives us some information about hybrids on her post, Hybrid Cars Q&A at The Green Motorist.

Gardening

If you have any pets, Vera Lang wants to talk with you about Deadly And Dangerous Plants Your Pet May Find Appetizing posted at Fine Pet Care .com. Before you add a new plant to your house, be sure you know how it might effect your pet if it gets ahold of the plant.

Sonja Stewart presents A Child's Vegetable Garden: Cultivating Fun, Learning, and Responsibility posted at Parenting Squad. I love gardening with Emma, and I highly recommend every parent put together a garden with their child. This article gives some great tips.

Woman Tribune gives us a guide to Planning Your Own Vegetable Garden posted at Woman Tribune. Yes guys, I know it is a woman's site, but the article can still be used by us testosterone driven set. Read the comments too, some people have added to the conversation very nicely.

Brenda Emmett presents Planning Your Flower Garden posted at Her Gardening Blog. She said it well, so I'll let her "Planting a flower garden should be more than just throwing a few flowers into the ground and hoping they will grow. A beautiful flower garden takes a little preparation and planning in advance. There are several things to take into consideration when you are planning your flower garden."

Sam talks to us about our friendly pollinators in The Secret Lives of Bees. Honey, Health and Harvests ! Surfer Sam posted at Surfer Sam and Friends, saying, "The Secret Lives of Bees. About one-third of the human food supply depends on bee pollination. We also use honey and bee pollen as natural food products to promote wellness. Bees are beneficial for everyone. Bees, we can't do without them."

Jamie McIntosh mentions Cutworm Control at Suite101: Organic Gardens blog. Cutworms can devastate your garden, learn some good tips on controlling them.

Tip Diva always has good information for us. Today she is talking to our inner cheap scate. Mine is always taking control, so I'm always glad to find new ways to keep cheap. Top Ten Tips - Cheap Gardening is posted at Tip Diva.

Teri gives us the basics of Saving Small Lots of Dry Seed using calendula as an example on her site, Teri's Organic Garden.

Stefanie Hutson gives us some strange and beautiful pictures in Strange Plants: Plants Too Strange for Grandma's Garden posted at Vat19.com slash Blog.

If you need some compost, but don't have any on hand, talk to Condo Blues and learn How to Make Quickie Compost posted at Condo Blues.

Fun

Garden sheds can be used for so much more than holding your tools. You can write a novel, read one, or write a blog while sitting in one. Andy Boyd presents 20 Creatively Hacked Urban Garden Shed Offices posted at The News In Print, saying, "The garden shed can serve as a way for the telecommuting employee to maintain better boundaries between work and home because it's a separate space away from the rest of the house. It can also be a way to set up an office space that is functional and yet peaceful."

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Electricity is a concern for many. In some areas coal is still used to produce power. Coal is a leading producer of green house gases. Nuclear energy is common around the globe, which is clean running, but has the dangerous waste product tat has to be taken care of and we know about Chernobyl and Three Mile Island. Hydro power is much cleaner and safer, but the dams block salmon runs and cause other problems for the habitats around the plant. Wind and solar power are great, but there are complaints about the landscape being damaged by these power sources.

The power lines used to run the electricity to your home makes a nice run for squirrels and birds, but also can be shorted by our little friends. When this happens, we loose power and so does the critter. Again, these lines are damaging to the view, when they need to cut down trees to put them in their place. They are also expensive to build and maintain. While there is no proof, many believe that they can cause cancer. With communities near high voltage lines having higher rates of cancer, this is quite possible.

There are a lot of reasons for cutting back on power usage, but how can we do it. Knowing that there is a problem is one thing, but it can be just painful to know you are contributing to a problem and not knowing what you can do to help. Below are some ideas that might help. If you have some more ideas, please add them in the comments.

Use natural gas

Natural gas is more efficient for heating, drying clothes, cooking and heating water. Even though it is more efficient, it is still expensive, and contributes to green house gases, so use it sparingly as well. It is, however, better to use gas than electrical power.

Turn off the lights

Do you really need the lights on in the living room while your in the kitchen? Do you really want the light on when you leave the house? Many people think

In many parts of the world, water is literally running out. In lots of places the sewer system is pushed to its limits, even overflowing raw sewage directly into our rivers and streams. Even in areas where water and sewage are properly taken care of, sewage treatment is expensive and not exactly environmentally friendly.

The average American uses 60-100 gallons of water a day. That all goes into the sewer, unless we do something different. The larges use of water is flushing the toilet, followed by showers. Watering the yard, washing clothes, and doing the dishes also contribute.

How can we help? That is a good question, my friends. There are a lot of ways we can help, and starting small is the best way to start. Let's take a look at some. You can add in other ideas in the comments.

Put a brick in it (good)

If you put a brick, rocks, or some other filler into your toilet tank, it will not fill up with as much water, so will not use as much.

Get a low flow toilet (gooder)

Low flow toilets use less water. They have not always been good, but there are some very good ones out now.

Install a composting toilet (goodest)

Most composting toilets use no water. They are more trouble to use, but will allowing you to cut your water usage and the amount you send to the sewer signigicantly.

Use the dishwasher

When washing the dishes, use the dishwasher. Modern dishwasher use less water and get your dishes cleaner than you can by hand. Don't pre-wash the dishes. Modern dishwashers will get your dishes plenty clean without you cleaning them first. You should scrape off the majority of it, and might need to wipe off some, but there is no need to leave the water running over them till they are clean, and then wash them again. Do the dishes right away. If you leave them to get a dried on mess, they may need a little srubbing to make sure they get clean, especially if you have an older dishwasher. The sooner you clean them, the less scrubing they will need, so the less water.

Turn off the water

When brushing your teeth, hand washing dishes, or taking a shower, turn the water off unless you are using it, right then. Turn the water on for just a moment to wet your tooth brush, turn it off, then when you are done brushing, turn it on again to rinse your brush and teeth. Do the same any time you use water. This may seem small, but it can save gallons of water at a use.

Ditch the disposal

You use a lot of water and electricity to run that noisey contraption. Much of the waste that goes into your disposal can go into the compost anyway. They rest should go into the trash. Yes, I realize this goes to the landfill, which we don't want, but the wasted water is greater.