Our Greener Life

Growing your own vegetables is a very satisfying, eco-friendly, and money-saving venture. So why not try it? Perhaps you are limited in space, or don’t have the tools to break up the ground for a garden, or the sunny spots on your property do not correspond with the best soil. A vegetable box can help remedy these problems and give you fresh produce.

While you can make your planter any size, or even make a series of small ones, if you are going to grow vegetables it will need to be at least 8 inches deep. Here is how to build a basic vegetable planter that is 6′ x 2′.

What you’ll need:

1. Four pieces of lumber, 6 feet long, 4 inches wide, and 2 inches thick (6-foot long 2×4)
2. Four pieces of lumber, 2 feet long, 4 inches wide, and 2 inches thick (3-foot long 2×4)
3. Four pieces of lumber, 8 inches long, 4 inches wide, and 4 inches thick (8-inch long 4×4)
4. Galvanized nails or screws, at least 4 inches long
5. Power drill (if using screws)
6. Hammer (if using nails)
7. Shovel or tiller
8. 8 bricks

Directions:
1. Lay two of your long pieces of lumber on the ground (you don’t have to build the box where you will be using it- you can build it on your driveway, patio, garage, etc. and then transport it). Make sure the two pieces of lumber are flush all along their lengths and sides.

2. Using the screws or nails, attach two of the 8-inch 4×4 pieces of lumber to the short ends of the long pieces of lumber, one 8-inch piece per short end.

3. Repeat step 2 with the remaining two 6-foot pieces of lumber and two 8-inch 4×4 pieces.

4. Turn these long pieces on their sides, like two walls. Position them 2 feet apart.

5. Using the nails or screws, attach one of the 2-foot pieces of lumber across the bottom ends of the long boards, nailing/screwing it into the 4×4 pieces.

6. Repeat step 5 with another 2-foot piece of lumber on the other lower end of the long boards.

7. Attach the remaining two 2-foot pieces of lumber to each end of the box, this time on the upper ends of the long boards, flush with the other 2-foot pieces.

Now you should have a long box consisting of two pieces of lumber per side.

8. Using a shovel or tiller, clear the vegetation from a sunny, 6-foot by 3-foot area (unless you don’t mind picking out a lot of weeds that will make their way up through the soil!).

9. Position your planter box over the now-bare earth.

10. Position the bricks along the four corners of the box to stabilize it.

11. Fill box with garden soil and plant your vegetables. Check with local construction companies or builders who may be willing to give you “fill dirt” or topsoil at a good price (or even free if you haul it yourself).

While gardening itself is a “green” activity, there are ways to make it an even more eco-friendly experience. Sometimes, gardening deviates from the natural and enters the realm of the harmful. For example, some gardeners use chemical fertilizers without even realizing it, and weed killers and pesticides can be a part of even the smallest garden. So here are some tips to make your gardening ventures greener.

Compost

Perhaps the simplest and most basic thing you can do to begin the greening of your gardening efforts is to start a compost pile. You can actually make compost indoors under the right conditions – indoor compost bins are available, with or without worms. You can recycle your kitchen scraps into compost by tossing them into your outdoor pile or bin. Once it’s broken down, this compost will serve as a natural fertilizer for your garden.

Natural Pest Control

It is tempting to shoot those pesky bugs with some commercial poison from your local garden center. But before you reach for the synthetic pesticide, consider some natural alternatives.

* Natural pesticides are available commercially and are often found on the same shelves as the synthetic versions, so read labels carefully. Natural pesticides are usually soap-based or made from other natural, biodegradable substances. They usually work mechanically, not chemically.

Insecticidal soaps are usually derived from oils (saponified vegetable oil is the greenest choice). Diatomaceous earth is another example of a natural pesticide. This fine powder is made from fossilized diatoms and works by “drying up” insects, snails and slugs. Neem oil is a natural insect repellent, and is found in certain commercially available, natural pesticides.

* Home-made pesticides are inexpensive and quite effective. You can make your own insecticidal soap using a tablespoon of natural, biodegradable dish soap to one gallon of water. You can also purchase neem oil and use it in your home-made insect sprays.

* Arrange plants for natural insect repellents. For example, basil repels aphids, so plant it near tomatoes. Garlic bulbs planted around tomatoes and fruit trees can repel pests.

Go Native

Native plants have more natural disease and pest resistance, therefore requiring less chemical intervention in the form of fungicides, pesticides, or weed killers.

Eco-friendly Containers

There are pots and planters available that are made from recycled materials, such as rice hulls or scraps of glass. You can also recycle containers that your find around your home by converting them to planters. Consider unusual items such as old cooking pots, teapots, baskets, dish pans, and even milk jugs. Glass containers can be used to make terrariums.

These are just a few tips to help assure that the garden will always be greener on your side of the fence.

The green American lawn, with its well-groomed, square patch of grass, can come at an environmental price. Because a lawn that is nothing but grass (all clipped to a uniform length) is a rather unnatural thing, achieving it often means the use of gas-powered machines, pesticides, and weed killers. You can achieve a beautiful lawn, however, without damaging the environment. Here are some tips for caring for your lawn in an eco-friendly way.

1. Use a rain barrel. These handy containers are not hard to hook up – just attach one to your downspout – and you will have gallons of free rainwater to maintain your lawn. A rain barrel will fill up astonishingly fast.

2. Invest in a reel mower. Gasoline-powered lawn mowers are not only noisy; they pollute and, of course, they use fossil fuel. Reel mowers are powered by human muscle, so you’ll get a good workout and a nice lawn. Your neighbors will appreciate the quiet, too. When you do mow, keep the grass clippings on the lawn. They act as a mulch, reducing the need for water.

3. Do more things manually. Americans are trying to get in shape by joining health clubs, but you can work off a lot of calories by raking, sweeping, and clipping by hand. And you will use much less fossil fuel and electricity that way.

4. Think beyond grass. If you have to make a lot of artificial adjustments to grow grass, maybe grass isn’t the right lawn plant for you. Clover, moss, and other interesting plants – particularly native plants – make excellent and beautiful lawn cover. If you plant the right herbage for your area, it will be much easier to maintain, too. Investing in native plants is one way to cut down on invasive species that can dominate and destroy local ecosystems.

5. Consider planting a garden, especially an informal, “English” garden that is meant to look a bit unkempt. You could also be even more eco-friendly and plant a vegetable garden where your lawn used to be.

6. Re-think the weed. Do you battle dandelions, ground ivy, clover, plantain, or other plants considered “weeds”? Take a moment and research some of these tenacious plants and you will probably be impressed with their usefulness.

Plantain, for example, makes a superior treatment for insect bites; dandelions have edible, nutritious greens and beautiful, fragrant flowers that can be used to make wine. Dandelion roots can even be roasted, ground, and drunk like coffee. Once you learn some of the uses for these plants, you may find yourself treasuring them rather than trying to eradicate them!

7. Use natural pesticides and herbicides if you feel the need to eradicate pests or certain weeds. These are generally available even in mainstream garden centers, or you can make your own.

With Spring rapidly approaching, you may be starting to get things cleaned up for the season. Check out these helpful tips for dealing with garden waste.

When garden waste is composted, it decomposes aerobically – that is, using oxygen. Unlike landfills, which decompose waste anaerobically (without oxygen), garden composting produces few greenhouse gases. And when you recycle your garden waste, you are providing yourself with useful, organic compost, thus eliminating the need for synthetic fertilizers.

Here are some ideas for how you can recycle your garden waste:

* Grass clippings can be left on your lawn after mowing. They will act as mulch, helping to hold in moisture. As the grass clippings rot, they will enrich the soil of your lawn. Rotting grass clippings contain nitrogen, which is an important fertilizer for your yard and garden.

You can also rake up your grass clippings and pile them up where they will rot. You can add bits of this rotting matter to your compost, or even sow seeds into the grass clipping pile. Squash and pumpkins are possibilities for plants that will grow this way, as long as the clipping pile receives enough sunlight.

* Prunings and trimmings from brush, trees, garden plants, etc. can be added to your compost pile. If they are large or woody pieces, you will need to chop them up a bit before adding them to the pile. If you have a flower garden, compost the pinched-off blooms and cut stems. If you have a vegetable garden, compost peelings, rinds, and leaf and stem prunings.

* Fallen leaves can be piled onto your compost, or composted alone to make something called leaf mold. This is a kind of compost that is high in nutrients. You can use it for mulch or fertilizer, depending on how you decompose it. Just chopping or shredding leaves produces mulch that you can use immediately, and it will enrich the soil as it breaks down.

To make leaf mold, you must let the leaves rot much longer, from 6 months to 1 year. If you do not chop the leaves first, making leaf mold may take 2 years. Simply compost the leaves in a pile, bin, or other container that allows for ample air circulation and turning.

* Biodegradable bags can be used for yard and garden waste if you have trimmings from weeds or other materials you do not want to recycle. Some communities will gather garden waste and return it as mulch or fertilizer.

* Creative uses for branches and twigs include home-made herb-drying racks, natural fences, or crafts. Use natural twine to lash the branches together and reinforce with nails if necessary.

Every year, thousand of chemicals are poured into the environment and millions of gallons of water are needlessly wasted.  How? By growing plants. Sure, most of this is done by large agricultural producers, but some of it is still done in personal gardens. And that means that you can make a difference by changing your gardening practices. There are many agricultural producers who have done it, and you can use the same tricks to help your own garden, and the planet.

Pick appropriate plants.
Not all plants are appropriate for the area you live in. While you might be able to control the temperature, humidity, and rain conditions inside your house, you can’t do it out in the garden. If you pick appropriate plants for your area, you may be able to avoid using fertilizers and saving on water too. Research, what plants are native to your surrounding areas and try planting them in your own garden. Wildflowers, are just that, they can pretty much be left alone and will thrive in most areas.

Pick natural repelling plants.
You don’t need to rely on poisons to keep away garden ruining pests. Many plants produce chemicals that repel these animals naturally. By putting them in or around you garden, you can keep your garden safe with little effort and no chemicals. Plus, you can pick parts of these plants and use them to make products to keep them away from you too.

If you don’t want to plant natural repellents in your garden, you can use them to spray your plants without harming them or adding artificial chemicals to your garden. Many herbs like hot pepper, vanilla, and lavender can help repel insects from your garden.

Pull weeds.
We’re all looking for a quick and easy way to safely get rid of weeds without chemicals, but the good old fashioned way is still very effective.  It you take time every day to pull the weeds you can find, you’ll only take a few minutes so it doesn’t seem like a lot of work.  You can even get the kids involved, just be sure to do it properly so you don’t spread the seeds around.  There are even some common weeds that are edible, just make sure there are no pesticides that could have gotten on them.

Crop rotation.
Farmers all over the world use crop rotation to naturally fertilize plants. The concept is to change what crop you’re putting in a certain field each year. Plants use different nutrients and put other nutrients back into the soil. If you rotate crops that replace the nutrients the other plants use, you will have to fertilize the soil less.

You can use this same concept in your garden by planting different plants every year, or just rotating where you put specific plants in the garden.

So, you’ve made all these changes and are using a low-water, chemical free garden?  Well, you still haven’t done the most important thing: pass it on! One garden can make a dent, but more can make a bigger difference. Tell your friends, teach your kids, you can even visit their school and teach your kids friends! Every little bit helps make a better world.