TheGoGreenBlog.com

Buying organic products from your local farmer’s market should be a no brainer. It helps both the environment and is better for your health all at the same time.

That’s because organic produce is farmed without pesticides or herbicides. So, there are no nasty chemicals or toxics on your yummy fruits & veggies. OSHA, or Occupational Safety & Health Administration, warns that “(pesticides) are an industry hazard because they can irritate the skin, affect the nervous and reproductive systems, and cause cancer.”

Plus buying from local farmers means your food travels less distance, using less gas, and in turn produces less carbon dioxide emissions.

To help find local farmer’s markets in your area, check out Local Harvest or Farmer’s Market.

Like soup? What about all those cans? Keep those tin cans out of the landfill by reusing.

Here are the top 5 ways to reuse tin cans:
1- Pots for Plants: Punch a few holes in the bottom for drainage and fill with dirt & a small plant.
2- Tealight Candles Holders: Punch some holes in the sides & place a small soy candle at the bottom. This works best with smaller cans.
3- Pen, Pencil, Marker Holder: Decorate your can holders to match any office or studio decor.
4- Workshop Organizer: Drop all your extra nuts, bolts & screws in different cans and label them for easy finding.
5- Telephone: Punch a hole at the bottom of 2 cans, string together with string & presto! You got yourself a telephone toy.

Earth Day is this week, April 22 to be exact, which is a perfect time to learn about our planet & how to take care of it. Creating a compost pile in your garden is a great activity for Earth Day.

Composting is basically mixing raw food scraps from your kitchen with leaves & other yard waste, plus water. This will not only reduce your trash sent to the landfill but it will also create one killer fertilizer for all those home grown veggies.

If you don’t already compost at home, go green and start this Tuesday - Earth Day!

When it comes to watering your gardens, flowers or veggies, the eco-gardener choses to use a drip hose over a traditional sprinkler.

Drip hoses work by allowing water to slowly seep out of small holes that target the roots of the plants, where they actually need the water, as opposed to the leaves, flowers, sidewalk, and all passing cars on the street.

Make that green thumb a bit greener this year by using a drip hose to irrigate your gardens instead of those water wasting sprinklers.

Most families go through at least one gallon of milk a week. Even if you recycle each container, that’s still a lot of waste! Keep those plastic milk jugs out of the landfill by reusing.

Here are 5 ways to reuse plastic gallon & 1/2 gallon milk jugs:

1- Painting: Cut the front, top quarter off, keeping the bottom and handle in tact. Fill with paint for a portable, easy to hold bucket.

2- Piggy Bank: Cut a 1/4 inch slit near the top of the milk jug & drop all your extra spare change into the jug. Before you know it, it will be full and time to go to the bank to cash in. You can also decorate your new penny saver to match any decor.

3- Scoop: This works best with a 1/2 gallon jug, having the handle as the top of your scoop. Cut diagonally around the jug until you have a nice scoop shape. For a bit of a lip to your scoop, keep a little bit of the bottom of the jug intact. This is super useful for things like birdseed, fertilizer, dog food and potting soil.

4- Lantern: Cut of the top of the gallon jug, fill the container with sand and a votive candle. If you have several, you can line a walkway or driveway to welcome guests.

5- Plant Markers: Cut the jug into strips, write plant varieties in permanent marker, and stick it in the dirt for easy reference.

As the holidays come to an end, and the clean up begins, the big question is how to dispose of your Christmas tree. Natural Christmas trees have a few eco-friendly afterlife options…

1- Compost
Real trees are 100 percent biodegradable, and can be added to your compost pile. There is a tad bit of work included here as you can’t just throw a whole Christmas tree onto a compost heap. You will need to reduce the tree into compost-friendly shavings, either by hand or with a shredder.

2- Mulch
You can recycle your tree into mulch for hiking trails in gardens or parks. Most communities offer a program where you either drop off your tree to a designated drop-off site or some cities offer curbside pick up. Check with local resources for more information.

3- Shelter
Real tress can also be converted into shelters for birds, chipmunks and other small wildlife by placing it in your backyard and adding a few snacks like breadcrumbs or birdseed.

4- Erosion Prevention
In some cities they have recycled Christmas trees into barriers for shoreline stabilization and beach front erosion prevention. Check with local resources for more information.

5- Fuel
If you have fireplace or a wood burning stove consider chopping up your tree to use as firewood to heat your home.

For more information:
To find out more information on your community Christmas tree recycling program, you can contact either the local parks and recreation department, public works department, the mayor’s office, National Christmas Tree Association, or Earth 911.

Add some plants to your daytime environment to boost the oxygenation. Plants not only produce oxygen during daylight hours, they also act as a great natural air purifier for our stale indoor air by absorbing carbon dioxide, pollutants and other toxins.

Some great air cleaning houseplants are: Chinese Evergreen, Bamboo Palm, Aloe Vera, Spider Plants, Mums, Dumbcane, Golden Pothos, Ficus, Gerbera Daisy, English Ivy, Heart leaf philodendron, Janet Craig, and Peace Lily.

As a rule of thumb, allow one houseplant per 100 square feet of living area. The more vigorous the plant, the more air it can filter. Keep in mind that plants will not do much to alleviate tobacco smoke or dust in the air.

The pumpkin is one of the most eco-friendly holiday decorations out there. It is 100% natural, yet a majority of the nature gets thrown out once you’ve carved them. This autumn, don’t just throw away the flesh from your pumpkin…compost it. This simple solution to use the whole pumpkin will not only decrease the amount of material that you send to the landfill, it can also help turn your organic waste into a landscape asset.

The folks over at Earth 911 have put together one of the most extensive composting resources out there, where you can find more information on what composting means and its benefits.

If you don’t already compost at home, go green and start today!