I never expected to be a compost junky but I’ve become one. No banana peel or pear core or basket of coffee grounds goes uncomposted.
Green
Tomato Season – Bring It On!0
I can already taste them. Juicy and warm picked fresh from the vine. The hardest part is getting them to last the short trip from the garden to the kitchen.
Tomatoes are warm season lovers. They pout and throw fits if you plant them out too early with cool night temperatures and unexpected cold breezes from the north. We plan on no earlier than Memorial Day weekend but will postpone if the weekend’s overcast and cool. And it’s worth the wait to have those seedlings spring to life under the hot summer sun and bulk up quickly in preparation of yielding handfuls of fruits.
Location, location, location. Tomatoes need as much sun as they can get. South or southwest locations are best where they get about 7 hours of sun per day or more.
These sun worshippers also appreciate being well-fed. Some compost or aged manure plus a handful of low-nitrogen fertilizer mixed into the soil does the trick. The soil should be fertile and well-drained since tomatoes are big feeders and resent wet feet.
It’s also best to plant them in places where you’ve planted them in the previous three years or so to discourage problems from soil-borne diseases. Containers work well for the small space gardener where crop rotation just isn’t feasible. And you can locate these easily in the sunniest parts of your yard.
Cherries, Beefsteaks, Heirlooms, or Paste. They all top the list of my summertime favorites.
text and photos by Ann D. Travers
Jiffy-7 Peat Pellets0
I remember my father pulling out the Jiffy Peat Pellets every spring. He’d fill Mom’s large glass Pyrex baking dish with warm water and let me drop in the round disks of compressed peat moss. I loved watching them float around the dish, absorbing all the water and expanding into puffy pots ready for sowing seeds into.
A Second Chance for Building Materials0
A movement to deconstruct and reuse building materialts has been a growing trend for almost 20 years now. It’s saved thousands of tons of building scraps from being dumped into landfills. What was once considered the cheapskate’s way of renovating has become a way of doing business in the residential and commercial building industries.
Building professionals are aware of the cost-saving and environmental benefits of materials reuse. And in some parts of the country, new building codes have been adopted making reuse the law. Builders must salvage materials and use them in renovations or building projects. If salvaged materials can’t be reused, they can be processed and turned into new materials.
Retail reuse stores are great sources of recycled materials for building and renovation projects. They stock donated and reclaimed building materials making them available to consumers for purchase. Homeowners can shop from an extensive list of materials — doors, windows, bricks, sinks, bathtubs, lighting fixtures, construction grade lumber, and barn board. These stores often have lots of vintage items too, like art deco light sconces and claw foot bathtubs.
So plan ahead with your next renovation project and design with reuse building practices in mind. It’s a great way to build green.
text by Ann D. Travers
top photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/editor/4914358848/
second photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/scrap_pile/4260496891/
Mini Portable Solar Panel Battery Recharger0
Kermit might not think it’s easy to be green, but every day, more and more environmentally healthy and user-friendly devices are becoming available. And some of these are portable and easy to use.
Take this mini portable solar panel battery recharger. It’s a nifty gadget that generates 4 different voltages – 3, 6, 9, and 12 volts – using stored solar power.
You simply slide the yellow lever to select the voltage you need. For example, to charge 2 AA rechargeable batteries (1.5 volts per battery) you slide the lever to position 1 for 3 volts and pop the batteries into the compartment on the backside of the panel. To charge a 3.6 volt battery for a cell phone you’d slide the lever to the 2nd position for 6 volts and plug the connector into the phone. There are 5 different connectors plus alligator clips included.
The handle doubles as an adjustable stand which allows the panel to be positioned for maximum sunlight exposure. And it stores energy for later use.
You can charge all sorts of equipment with this little panel. Portable radios, cell phones, MP3 players, flashlights. You name it.
A great deal at around $25.00, I’m thinking this will make a great gift for my techie nephew. Fun, green and functional.
text and mini solar panel photo by Ann D. Travers
first photo via http://www.flickr.com/photos/knowmybackyard/2394376192/
Superlawn!0
Turf Scientist Jim Baird of the University of California at Riverside is attempting to bioengineer a type of grass that needs less water to proliferate.
A Garden Tool That Works!0
Shoveling dirt is hard work, and while I don’t mind hard work, I confess that I am not opposed to finding ways of making difficult jobs a bit more pleasant. I’m guilty of trying the occasional shortcut, which usually fails miserably—and teaches me a lesson in the process. But I’m also an advocate of trying out new tools, such as ToolStep—also fondly known as the TrenchFoot:
Last Day for the Giveaway!0
Today’s the last day for our Green Garden Giveaway! Leave a comment by 9 pm EST today and then cross fingers that a little orange sprouts gift card sprouts in your garden!
