Organic Gardening

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Save and reuse your water

September 14, 2009 in Water by Jennifer | No comments

Conserving and reusing water is essential. Water is not a never ending resource, even though it may seem like it. In reality, water is not technically becoming more scarce, but we are using more and more of it than ever before. As the demand goes up, there’s always a chance supplies could dwindle. For example, now when various areas experience a drought, the effects are more easily felt than when a drought occurred in the past.

You can save water easily by…

  • Pouring your cooking water into a jar – say you steam veggies – save that water.
  • Installing a rain barrel.
  • Placing a tub into the shower with you and letting it fill as you wash. Just don’t trip on the tub!

You can reuse water for all sorts of things such as…

  • Watering the garden or houseplants or lawn.
  • Washing a car.
  • Mopping the floors.
  • Cleaning windows.
  • Filling the kiddie pool – use the shower water for this one.
  • Cleaning off tools in the garage or muddy boots in the fall.
  • And more.

Hyper Caffeinated Organic Yard Care

August 18, 2009 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | 2 comments

You may LOVE coffee but you know who else does? Ok, yeah it’s me, but your yard also adores caffeine, or at least the grounds left over from your morning brew.

Why amp up your yard with coffee grounds?

  • Plants REALLY love nitrogen. Nitrogen is part of what makes your plants ultra healthy and coffee grounds release a ton of it along with other substances that promote healthy plant growth.
  • Coffee grounds are trouble free. You don’t have to compost the ground before you use them; although you can if you like – the grounds will just distribute through your compost mixture. However, if you don’t compost you can simply spread the grounds around evenly among your plants or til your grounds into the soil pre-planting.
  • Coffee grounds can detour pests from your garden. Slugs, snails and cats are just some of the garden pests who hate coffee grounds.
  • Coffee grounds, especially organic grounds don’t contain the same toxic stuff as many commercial plant foods.
  • If you drink coffee it’s a free bonus!
  • Bonus tip – if you’ve got some old beans that you don’t want to drink, keep them ungrounded and use them as mulch. You can sprinkle them among plants and the effect is pretty cool – like small glossy and fragrant pebbles.

Not a coffee drinker?

Visit your local coffee shop and see if you can score some used grounds. Ask your friends who may be willing to save some for you. If you can’t find used grounds it may be worth it to your tomatoes to buy some beans and brew some coffee anyhow. You can use the coffee (cooled) to water your plants then use the grounds in the garden.

Green Lawn Watering for Summer

June 5, 2009 in Organic Gardening, Water by Jennifer | 2 comments

The other day I was at a friend’s apartment and all the ground sprinklers were running. It was bad news city. For one thing it was midday and secondly, almost all the sprinklers were running water not only in the grass but all over the sidewalks and street. Wow, what a good use of water! Not.

In any case, if you live in an apartment complex, let your manager know if this is an issue. There’s no reason to water the street – trust me, it’s not growing any faster. If you live in a house, make sure you follow these rules for eco-minded summer lawn watering:

  • Many lawns only need about one inch of water per week to thrive and in areas that see more rain (i.e. the Pacific NW) your lawn may need even less. Check with your local nursery or your local Cooperative Extension Office to learn about lawn water requirements in your area.
  • To make sure you are only watering your lawns as much as they need and not more, place a can or bowl in your yard, with an inch (or other level) marked off with a waterproof pen. Turn the sprinklers on, and see how long it takes to fill the can or bowl to the line. Now you know how long to water per session.
  • Timed sprinklers can help you water less and more efficiently.
  • Water in the morning, late afternoon, or in the evening. If you water midday, most of the water is evaporated by the hot sun, and can’t actually do its job. You’ll need more water for a healthy lawn.
  • Don’t water the streets and sidewalks. Set your sprinklers up to cover actual vegetation areas.
  • Use recycled water – easy if you have a rain barrel.
  • Use a hose or watering can for smaller areas vs. a sprinkler. When doing this water slowly which helps the roots to get the water they need.
  • Create an earth-friendly rain garden.
  • Water less by planting native plants and by eliminating lawn areas where possible.

Create an earth-friendly rain garden

May 26, 2009 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | 3 comments

First of all a rain garden is not that much different from a traditional garden, it’s just a far more efficient garden. Rain gardens use rain and stormwater runoff to their advantage and contain smart plant selections.

Other key rain garden tips:

  • Rain gardens fare better when small rather than large.
  • Garden sites are usually located close to runoff sources.
  • Rain gardens are designed to withstand moisture extremes and can hold up even when exposed to nitrogen (found in runoff water). See a cool pdf poster that explains rain garden design.
  • There are two basic rain gardens – under-drained and self-contained.
  • Rain gardens are slightly depressed into the earth so that rain water may be better soaked up when it rains or storms.
  • Water-friendly plants, or at least plants that can stand a bit more water tend to be used.
  • Water in a rain garden is stored via design. I.e. your rain garden will save water from a storm and use it over a few days.
  • It helps to have slope to your land/yard for a proper rain garden, but it’s not a necessity. You can also make changes to your land plot.

To learn more about rain gardens see the following links:

Read an excellent FREE rain garden how-to guide and booklet. The previous guide is very good, but your local community extension office may have a booklet on rain gardens especially for your area, so I’d check.

Getting your kids into organic gardening

May 19, 2009 in Children & Babies, Organic Gardening by Jennifer | No comments

Most kids will naturally take to gardening if you introduce them to the experience while they’re young. Even small toddlers can help in the garden. Organic gardening with your little ones won’t just yield a better harvest but will also teach your kids important lessons about ecology, green methods, organic cooking, composting, sustainable agriculture, creativity, and self-sufficiency. It’s also eco-friendly to garden with tots because you, the adult will be less likely to use chemicals in the garden if you know your kids will be around them.

Following are some tips that can help you help your kids make the most of their organic gardening experience:

Give them their own little plot. Help them out of course, but allowing them to have their own little space makes them feel independent and important.

Plan for easy and fast growing plants. Kids hate to wait. Make sure some of the plants you and your little choose will sprout and grow quickly. Carrots, marigolds, and many herbs are great choices.

Get them their own little gardening tools. Small tools made especially for kiddos make gardening tasks easier and more fun.

Plan for some fun themed gardens. You can grow a sunflower house, a pizza garden, or a cool moonlit garden. See more at: 10 Fun Organic Gardening Projects for Kids.

Go for annuals that come up again and again with less fuss.

If you don’t have garden space outside your kids can still have an organic gardening experience growing up. Look into a cute eco-friendly indoor garden, grow plants and smaller veggies in pots, or find a community garden to participate in.

Most of all have fun. Don’t pressure kids to participate. Some kids are slower to warm up to messy stuff like gardening. My son, for example hated getting his hands dirty as a toddler, but now is fine with it and loves to garden.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

If you need tips that can help you learn about organic gardening so you can pass it on to the kiddos, read the following:

Green Spring Cleaning Tips – Clean Green and Healthy

March 9, 2009 in Green Cleaning by Jennifer | 1 comment

Spring cleaning is coming up asap, so it’s time to start considering your options. Of course many of us will partake in a little spring cleaning at least, but that doesn’t mean we need to scour our homes with toxic chemical cleaners.

For spring cleaning this year try the following…

Learn how to find non-toxic and natural cleaners over chemical laden toxic junk. If you’re going to buy cleaners from the store make sure you figure out first if the product is an actual earth-friendly cleaning choice.

Reconsider your cleaning tools. You can make better choices than typical non-eco-friendly sponges. You can purchase spray bottles to reuse over and over again (fill with homemade cleaners) vs. buying plastic toss away bottles, and you can even purchase an eco-friendly broom.

Experiment with some of your own homemade air fresheners or simply push those windows open. Fresh air is actually the best natural way to scent your air (ah, crispy).

During spring cleaning start new healthy home habits such as in-kitchen composting to use your scraps, not wearing shoes in the house or if god forbid you smoke inside, stop it!

Plan some easy and earth-friendly DIY home projects designed to save you money and green your home.

Don’t stop inside. Get out and green audit that yard and garden. For tips read…

Learn more:

Are you doing any spring cleaning this year, or better yet, planning any cool green home projects? Let me know in the comments…

Early Organic Gardening Planning – Fast Green Gardens

February 16, 2009 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | No comments

If you’re planning an organic garden for spring, I hope you’ve been gathering ideas for non-toxic, healthy landscaping. If not here are a few eco-garden starter ideas.

Make your own non-toxic weed killer: Mix 1 ounce orange oil and 1 teaspoon liquid soap (I’d use natural) with 1 gallon of 10% white vinegar. Put some in a spray bottle and use it to spot spray weeds that pop up. Shake well before use.

Start collecting egg cartons: Use these for seed starting vs. plastic cups. You can also try composting or biodegradable seed starting pots.

Plan for crop rotation: Crop rotation is important for an organic garden. This keeps soil at a fertile level and inhibits disease and insects. So, if you’ve been planting your lettuce and carrots in the same places year after year, this season, sit down with a notepad and sketch out a new planting plan.

Save your coffee grounds: During the planting season you can sprinkle used organic coffee grounds into the soil to both enrich the soil content and keep pests like slugs and snails away. You can use non-organic, but organic is better due to the rich mineral content.

Get a better bag for leaves and debris: Snag some 100% biodegradable cornstarch-based leaf bags to gather the leaves and other debris from your yard then toss it straight into the compost bin.

Need more organic garden ideas?

Choose the Greenest Plants for Home Landscaping

February 3, 2009 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | 4 comments

You can plant almost anything when it comes to landscaping – BUT that doesn’t mean you should plant any old thing. Part of using environmental landscaping for your home means focusing on plants that make sense for your location and site. Right now is a great time to consider which plants to choose – before you buy organic seeds or plant starts.

Why bother choosing the correct plants?

  • Your landscape and garden environment is more likely to thrive on its own. This cuts down on evasive care and nurturing.
  • You’ll reduce fertilizer, water, and pesticide use if you choose plants that naturally thrive in your specific environment.
  • Your plants will attract the helpful bugs, birds, and butterflies you want in in your garden and eliminate the pests you don’t want around. Native plants are much better at this task than weird non-site specific plants.

Tips for choosing the right plants:

I suggest starting at your local nursery. The folks at a local site know the area, know the weather, and know the water. A pro can help you find the best native plants and flowers.

Read Heat-Zone Gardening: How to Choose Plants That Thrive in Your Region’s Warmest Weather. This book will help you choose plants that will thrive in your area and is not only handy for warm weather regions but everywhere.

Better Homes & Gardens has an extensive regional gardening section, as does the National Gardening Association, and Gardenplace.com. You can also use basic Plant Hardiness Maps. All of the above resources allow you to make smart plant decisions – i.e find the best plants for your landscaping needs that cause the lowest eco-impact.

Tree Planting Where You Live can help you decide which trees to include in your landscaping plans.

What’s your gardening region? Does your region make it harder to plant what you like?

Organic Gardening Planning – Helpful Tools for Organic Seeds

January 12, 2009 in Uncategorized by Jennifer | No comments

In the last post we looked at getting a jump on your organic gardening with organic seeds. Here are some more helpful tools…

Organic Seedstarting Mix: 100% Organic Germinating Mix with sphagnum peat and perlite for a fine texture, and the addition of compost, protein meal and trace minerals for healthy growth.

Garden Starter System: Reusable vs. plastic seed starter bins. Other ways to start seeds include recycled egg cartons, yogurt cups (cut a hole in the bottom), or real planters that later will hold flowers.

Sun-Mar Continuous-Use Auto Flow 200 Composter: If you don’t have a composter yet, it’s time to get going with that. You still have time to start recycling your food scraps into healthy soil for the summer gardening season.

Grab a great organic gardening book: Read the rest of this entry »

Organic Garden Planning – Pick Up Organic Garden Seeds Now

January 12, 2009 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | No comments

It’s early to consider gardening, I know. However, right now, all the seed shops have great deals, and you can get a jump start by planning and shopping early for a beautiful and hopefully bountiful organic garden later this year.

Why organic seeds are the way to go:

  • Obviously, if you want an organic garden, why would you buy conventional seeds?
  • Organic seeds are GMO-free (i.e. not genetically modified)
  • There are no chemicals added to organic seeds.
  • Buying organic seeds from companies or farms supports the organic movement as a whole. If you can purchase seeds locally, even better.
  • Many organic seed companies have are introducing organic seeds that have been specifically bred to grow well in organic soil conditions.

Where to find organic seeds: Read the rest of this entry »

Planting Trees for Your Home and the Planet

October 5, 2008 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | No comments

I always hear green skeptics say things like – “You tree huggers, always talking about planting trees!” Which of course is far from true, there are plenty of green actions you can take that have nothing to do with tree planting.

That said, tree planting (not to focus on green stereotypes) is one great way to green your house, and the environment, all at the same time. Here are some benefits of planting more trees near your home…

It’s easy: Of all the green action steps you can take, tree planting has got to be one of the easiest. Anyone can plant a tree. To learn specifics visit Arbor Day (if you join you even get 10 Free Trees) or How to Plant A Tree.

Trees save energy: Using smart landscaping, the average home can save $150+ a year on energy costs. Trees add as sun and wind blockers, create natural awnings, and more. Trees also help reduce water needs on plants planted nearby. To learn about earth-friendly, energy saving landscaping read: Using Environmental Landscaping at Your House.

Trees create, restore, and promote habitats: Birds, animals, insects, and people all need trees to enjoy. As habitats are destroyed, as we fill in land with concrete, we’re making the world a less nice place to be. Planting trees helps to restore balance.

Trees promote human health and well-being: Trees are relaxing. I always feel better in say, Oregon than the middle of Albuquerque, where large trees are rare. Trees reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the air, and a newer study shows that neighborhoods with plenty of trees have reduced instances of youth asthma.

Trees protect land: Besides cleaning the air, which is great for animals and people, trees stop massive erosion and create natural shade for other shrubs and plants. In fact less mulching is needed for plants who live under trees.

Using Environmental Landscaping at Your House

September 24, 2008 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | 1 comment

Environmental landscaping is a simple concept. Eco landscaping simply means that your goal when planning home landscaping should be to make it work for your home – i.e by enhancing your home’s design, energy savings, and comfort. Another ideal would be to plan for landscaping that’s suitable to your climate and area, so you don’t use more energy and water than necessary just for landscaping.

Some basic tips for earth-friendly landscaping:

Use tree placement wisely: Trees planted in the correct spot can act as wind blockers, and or can keep out the scorching sunlight of summer.You can even plant trees to create a funnel effect which can direct cooling winds to your home in the summer.

Vine usage: You can plant climbing vines on arbors on or right near the most sun exposed side of your house which can lower cooling costs in the summer.

Less grass: The less grass you have the less watering you’ll do. If you can, plan for extra patio space or flower beds vs. grass.

Go native: It’s good eco planning to plant native to your area plants. These plants are already well-adapted to your environment, and will require less care and resources than plants from other regions.

Plant shade; Even if you don’t use trees as energy saving applications for your home, they can be used to conserve yard-care resources. Trees and shrubs create shade, which in turn helps to maintain a cooler environment and saves water (less water is evaporated from say, flowers under a tree than flowers out in the open.)

Mulch: Mulching saves water, reduces the need for chemical soil amendments, and makes weeds pull out much easier.

For more organic eco-landscaping tips read:

Quick Green Yard Tip – Push Mowers

August 30, 2008 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | No comments

Push lawn mowers are better for the planet and your waistline than gas guzzling mowers. Some people think push mowers are more work, and they are somewhat, but not THAT much more anymore.

Most modern push lawn mowers have stronger blades, and work better, so it’s not like you see in those old movies, where some poor kid can barely move the mower. You’ll also need to rake, but that’s another good workout, plus you can gather up the clippings and compost them.

Earthworms for Your Home Organic Garden

August 24, 2008 in Organic Gardening by Jennifer | No comments

If you’d like to have an organic garden at your house, the first thing you need to do is get your soil in tip-top organic shape.

girl with worm

Earthworms are key – there are other organic soil issues of course, but earthworms cost little and it takes almost no time to implement a good earthworm plan into your garden. Earthworms scurry about (ok crawl) and loosen up plus condition soil. They also leave earthworm droppings all over the place (yuck), but the droppings have some characteristics of fertilizer, so it’s a good thing.

If you already have earthworms in your soil (look around after a rain), then you’re in good shape. The presence of earthworms means one, you don’t have to purchase any, and two that your soil is likely in good shape. If you have no worms you can pick some up at a garden center. Add them to your soil and keep watch. Earthworms that don’t survive means your soil is probably lacking a vital component (i.e. organic soil amendments).

Stay tuned for more organic home gardening tips.

Quick Tip for A Green & Beautiful Yard

August 14, 2008 in Organic Gardening, Quick Green Home & Garden Tips by Jennifer | No comments

If you pull up weeds every time you see one pop up, you’ll save your yard, cut down on the need for harmful chemicals and pesticide use, and get some arm exercise. If weeds are already out of control, take one day, get rid of all that you see, and make a goal to pull right when you see them from now on.