Recent Articles
Sustainability & Consumption: Shopping At The Big Box Store
I live in a small town of 10,000 people, and the entire county has 30,000 residents. It’s rural, and life is simple. We don’t have a Super Big Box Store, even though one corporation has tried to put one here for years. We have driven them away successfully so far. I shop … Read More
Green Travel Tips: Reducing Waste and Consumption At Your Hotel
There is nothing like a trip out of town to see how much waste is generated in the world. Over the last several years, I’ve been traveling to visit my two daughters away at school. Vacations are wasteful! Are we doomed by unsustainable traveling? I create more garbage than … Read More
Green Living, Your Space, and Your Respiratory Health
I’m a renter, and I'm getting closer and closer to moving, and the more I look at ads, the more I realize there’s a lot to be concerned about with moving and environmental sensitivities. In my younger, keener days, I would see an ad with “updates, new carpet” and other … Read More
Drought Tolerant Plants and Sustainable Gardening
I don’t know about where you live, but here in the US desert southwest, we are in a severe drought. Instead of the Rio Grande rushing from snow melt creating rapids for rafters, there are boulders and sandbars exposed from the low water levels. The river should be high, and … Read More
Green Building Barriers and Motivations
We've talked an awful lot about how eco-friendly living impacts every day lives of home owners and consumers in a changing culture. But, what about the building industry? Do leaders in the industry have the same concerns as we individual 21st century citizens do? Well, we … Read More
Organic Gardening – Strawbale Gardens and Coldframes
My new favorite gardening material is the strawbale. Strawbales are used for people housing, animal bedding, animal housing, mulch and now in an even bigger way in the garden. The strawbales used to build homes have high insulating properties. Aside from their thickness, the … Read More
Organic Gardening – Container Gardening for Beginners
If you are a new gardener, consider using containers first. Get your feet wet and hands dirty this way before you till up half an acre and overwhelm yourself. A container can be anything that holds soil, water and plants. Its only requirement is that there are drainage holes … Read More
Alternative Energy For A Better World
In America, a strange myth perpetuates that solar power “isn’t enough”, but forward-thinking engineering-heavy nations like Germany, who are further north and more climate-challenged than most of the USA prove this misleading belief wrong. According to Slate, “On a … Read More
Organic Gardening – Easy Perennial Flowers for Beginners
Aside from early spring flowering bulbs, perennials are a sure sign of the end of winter and hope for warm weather and a new growing season. They put out green growth as soon as the soil is warm enough, so plants in sunny areas will come first even in a late spring snow. Perennials, … Read More
Organic Gardening – Easy Annual Flowers
A series on organic gardening for beginners would not be complete without a list of flowers – food for the soul. I love growing flowers. I probably grow better flowers than food! Flowers add color, beauty and fragrance to a garden of lush foliage or to a vegetable garden … Read More
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