Living Green - Lawn & Garden

Taking care of our home inside and out is something most of us do take plenty of pride in. We want to be able to make it the very best that it can be. The landscaping outside is what everyone who drives by and who stops to visit us will see. It is important to us to be able to arrive home and to feel welcomed there by what we see.

In order to get your garden and your grass to look its very best you need to have the right tools and the right ingredients. Too many people assume this means you must use pesticides and other chemicals to kill weeds and to keep pests out. Yet you can have a lovely garden and lawn organically so you won’t be harming the environment in the process.

Fertilizer for your grass has a great deal of chemicals in it. The two main chemicals found in them that are problematic are nitrates and phosphates. Since it takes several pounds of fertilizer to complete one yard you will be exposing your family and pets to unnecessary problems.

You may not realize it but the use of such fertilizers can trigger asthma, be linked to cancers, and even cause neurological problems for your pets and young children. These chemicals also get into the soil and then run downstream into water supplies.

Instead of using this you can switch to natural compost. You can buy it or you can even make your own. The process of making your own isn’t very difficult at all. You simply get a compost container and you place food scraps, the droppings from your pets, and even the leaves from your yard into the container.

This will become the compost you get the nutrients from for your lawn and your garden. You want to save your materials all year long to make enough compost. This is because the amount you end up with will be significantly compact compared to the volume of materials that you start out with.

With healthy soil to place your grass seed on, it will be able to grow much healthier. The grass will have longer roots which will ensure its survival. At the same time you will need to offer it less water to stay green. This is going to help you cut back on your water bill as well.

With many areas being on water restriction in the summer months, you want to be able to get as much use out of the water you are allowed to use as possible. By having the soil properly prepared you can still have a lovely green lawn even when you are restrained to only allocating water for certain periods of time on specific days of the week.

To get the most out of the water you put on your grass you need to take care of it in the early morning hours. This will result in more of it getting into the soil and less being lost to the process of evaporation. Many individuals believe that they can get the same results if they water at night. However, a big problem is that this leaves your grass very susceptible to various types of fungus growing.

To ensure your garden is able to benefit from the water you provide keep the ground level. You don’t want it to all run off and therefore not offer the items in your garden the water they need to thrive. A good option to think about is to place mulch in a nice layer over the top of the soil. This will prevent the water from evaporating so your plants and flowers will get to retain more of it.

If you plan to spend a great deal of time enjoying the grass you have grown you want to do so organically. This way your family won’t be at risk of anything. Look for types of grass that tend to grow well in your area. Not all of them are universal so selecting the wrong one can result in you being disappointed with the overall look of your lawn.

You also want a grass that is going to hold up well to people walking on it and playing on it. You don’t want to have to keep everyone off of your lawn in order for it to continue looking nice. This can be a sad outlook because it will be inviting, especially under the shade trees and not being able to go out there isn’t going to make your family happy.

Some individuals immediately reach for chemicals to kill off weeds that grow in their garden or their lawn. Yet this isn’t the right solution to turn to. First, find out what type of weeds you are growing. That will tell you what the problem may be in that area. Some weeds are actually good for your lawn and you will want to leave them.

They can serve as a natural fertilizer for your yard. The rest of them you want to pull out by hand or to use tools to remove them. Make sure you get them from the roots up so they can’t regrow as easily.

It is often a thought to just run them over with a mower and be done with them but avoid doing so. There are seeds in the weeds and when you do this they will spread all over the place. That will result in your lawn having more weeds than before and in various locations spread throughout it.

You may want to consider getting a different type of lawn mower too. Those that operate with the use of gas are placing pollutants into the air. If you have a very small lawn you may want to consider using a reel type.

These are hand propelled and use sharp blades underneath to cut the grass. You can adjust the blades to accommodate how short you wish to cut the grass. They are very simple to use and don’t make much noise.

That means you can be out there using this type of lawn mower any time of the day or day of the week without bothering your neighbors. You will also get some exercise as you walk around the yard cutting it. You can find a quality reel lawn mower for about $40 - $60.

If you don’t want to put your strength into using a reel mover you can look for an electric one. Many of the older models require you to use an extension cord to reach a power supply though. That was often annoying as you had to continually move the long cord out of your way as you moved along cutting the grass. Many heavy duty extension cords were lost in this process due to being run over by the sharp blades of the lawn mower.

You will find that some significant improvements have been made to this type of lawn mower. Instead of using a cord to get the power source there is a small battery that provides it. They are extremely quiet and that helps to reduce noise pollution as well.

There are many models and sizes of electric lawn mowers that you can find. They range in price from $125 to $600 depending on how much power you want and what size you wish to buy. Take a look around to see what is going to be the perfect match for your own lawn care needs.

Living Green - Transportation

With more vehicles on the road today than ever before transportation is a huge factor with regard to pollution. Even with emissions laws in place that limit how much pollution a car can give out, the accumulative amount of it is still unbelievable. Taking the time to do your part to cut down on it will ensure everyone is healthier and breathing cleaner air.

You may be saying that you have to use your car to get around so you aren’t going to read this section. It is agreed that being able to hop into your own car and go where you wish is important. However, it is also important that you understand there are still changes that can be made to reduce the amount of emissions that take place when you do.

Many of us are very attached to our vehicle as we see it to be a life line that keeps us going where we want to be. It is convenient to have your own vehicle and it offers you a way to get to work, take care of your errands, and to do leisurely activities that you enjoy.

It is important to take proper care of your vehicle to reduce pollution. If you have a damaged exhaust system or other problem you need to get it resolved right away. You can get a complete diagnosis for it from your local mechanic. Some people are able to fix such problems on their own and that is fine too.

Even though you do need your vehicle, you may be able to use it less. Can you walk to the store or the park? Can you carpool for work or to get the kids to their various activities? This will reduce the number of vehicles on the road each day by doing so.

Place a message on the bulletin board in the work lunch room, at your child’s dance class, and other such locations. This will be to inform other driver’s that you are interested in carpooling. In order for carpooling to work though everyone involved must be committed to being ready on time and to driving at their specified times.

There are also modes of public transportation that can be used in many areas. You can commute by taking a bus, subway, or a train. This will save you wear and tear on your vehicle as well. With the cost of gas these days it can prove to be more affordable for you as well. If you have a lengthy commute you can also use that time to get some work done while travelling in both directions or to enjoy reading a good book.

There are some very good vehicles on the market that have been recognized as being environmentally friendly. Honda is a leader in this area with their model the Civic. They also have a hybrid model which we will talk more about in a moment. The Toyota Prius is also variable in a standard or hybrid model. This is one of the top selling hybrid vehicles in the world.

There are some compact cars that are very eco-friendly and at the same time you can save money on fuel. If you can be comfortable with your lifestyle in a compact vehicle then check out the Mini Cooper, Ford Focus, and Honda Fit. Knowing that the vehicle you are driving is very environmentally friendly should make you feel good each time you drive it.

The hybrid models are those that have an alternate fuel source in addition to gas. They either operate with the use of electricity or solar power. This is the fuel source that is used first before any gas is accessed. When those sources are depleted then the vehicle switches to gas.

As soon as you recharge the main energy source the use of gas is stopped and it goes back to that alternative. Even when you are relying upon gas for power to drive the car it is going to burn in a way that is very good for the environment. Hybrids can be quite expensive though so even with so much to offer many consumers have to pass them up.