Counting Down to Earth Day 2013: 4.12.13

This is the third day of my Counting Down to Earth Day 2013 Series.

Today’s Tip: GROW SOMETHING

Any gardener will tell you that there are few things in life more rewarding than harvesting something you grew yourself.

My friend Pam's garlic scapes in a photo taken by her husband John.

You don’t have to start with seeds.

You can transplant a plant,

or two.

Don’t worry if things don’t turn out exactly as they appear in the seed packet photo.

If you have plenty of sun [All vegetables need quite a bit of sunlight — ideally 8-10 hours of direct sunlight a day.  Some leafy vegetables will tolerate partial shade, but even they will not thrive in less than six hours of direct sunlight.]…   

adequate space [even a large container or two]…

and the time, patience, and commitment to water and nurture your plants…

you have all you need.

If you are planting directly into the ground, test your soil before you start, especially if you live in the city, or if your lot was once an orchard. You could have high levels of lead.

For inspiration, visit my friend Rachel’s blog.

Rachel was my master gardening mentor. For weeks she has been busy. Inside she has been planting seeds, growing the plants under lights, and experimenting with grafting, explaining all she’s been doing along the way. She began sowing outside in late March.  The air temperature was in the 40°s, but the temperature in the soil was 50° the day she started. How did she know it was time to plant her seeds? You will have to read her blog to find out. 

Rachel used a soil thermometer.

My advice? Start small. You can always do more later in the season. Have fun getting dirty!

Come back tomorrow for a new tip as we count down to Earth Day on April 22.

Love Your Mother (Earth). Pass it on. Together we can make a difference. Yes, we can!

Counting Down to Earth Day 2013: 4.11.13

Yesterday’s tip was: Repurpose something old instead of buying something new.

Do you know what the objects are?

The answer ?: A Pair of Repurposed Shower Heads

We replaced these shower heads, durable objects of chrome and brass, not because they failed to work, but because they WASTED WATER. They likely date from 1929, when bathrooms were first installed in our post-Civil War row house. We soon discovered that they used so much water that two simultaneous showers would totally drain the 30 gallon oil-fired hot water heater! 

My husband recognized their potential as candlesticks. We shined them up with a little Bon Ami, turned them on end, tightened them up where they swivel, and added an elegant pair of deep red beeswax candles for the upcoming winter holidays. 

More importantly, we replaced them with low-flow shower heads. 

Today’s Tip: USE LESS WATER

According to water.org., 780 million people lack access to clean water — more than-2 1/2 times the population of the United States. Water.org also reports that 3.4 million people die each year from a water related disease.

What can you do in your own home to preserve this precious resource?

• First, the EPA suggests that you shower rather than bathe, and that you limit your shower to 5 minutes. The EPA states that a full bathtub requires 70 gallons of water, but a five-minute shower uses 10 to 25 gallons (depending on the shower head).
• Second, install a water efficient shower head. Search for low flow shower head, and you will get an astounding nearly 12,000 results, including a simple device in the $4 price range. You can find a number of options in any home improvement store. Energy.gov has an excellent resource page for guiding you in your selection. 

For more tips on Using Water Efficiently, check out this page from the EPA and this one from Energy.gov. Most of these ideas are very easy to implement.

If you are interested in finding out more about the work of water.org, click here. This organization has a high ranking on Charity Navigator. Another group  working to bring clean, safe drinking water to developing countries is charitywater.org, which also has an excellent Charity Navigator Rating. 

Come back tomorrow for a new tip as we count down to Earth Day on April 22.

Love Your Mother (Earth). Pass it on. Together we can make a difference. Yes, we can!

Counting Down to Earth Day 2013

On April 22 it will be 43 years since the very first Earth Day was observed.

Planet Earth has changed a great deal since 1970.

The world seems smaller thanks to the internet, cell phones, and jet planes.

• But the population of the world has grown from 3,706,618,163 in 1970 to 6,848,932,929 in 2010! 
• So has the number of cars, from 250 million in 1970 to one billion in 2010. 
• We buy bottled water, currently 167 plastic bottles per person in the US annually! 
• The amount of CO₂ in the earth’s atmosphere is currently at 392 parts per million. We need to be at 350 for the health of the planet.

On the plus side:

• We no longer use DDT. It was banned in the US on December 31, 1972. 
• The water is cleaner (in the US anyway). 
• And so is the air.

But there is still much work to do, at home, and all over the world.

My good friend Henry Dynia, the Director of Design and Construction at Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven, recently posted a blog entry titled: Earth Day? Why Bother? Henry wrote, “Although the impact of our choices may be tiny in relation to the problems, it is important to take advantage of the choices that are available to us to reduce our personal impacts. One by one, those impacts and better choices will add up to make a difference…”

As we count down to Earth Day 2013, I invite each of you to take one step a day to make the world a better place 

TODAY'S TIP:

Repurpose something old instead of buying something new.

Can you guess what these elegant candlesticks once were? 

Come back tomorrow to learn their story.

Love Your Mother (Earth). Pass it on. Together we can make a difference. Yes, we can!