I think this is a perfect day to talk about some simple ideas for helping the earth! I would have to say that I am more aware of trying to do things better since I started gardening and after I went to a garbage dump – that was an eye opener and very stinky! I took my ideas from last year and added some new ones!
Garden Ideas: Â
I use organic plant food.
We save used coffee grounds to use as plant food.
I try to buy organic seeds as much as possible.
We compost our vegetable, fruit, herb and flower scraps.
We use fall leaves in our garden – leaf mold is priceless!
Over the years, we have planted seven trees in our yard.  Also, many funeral homes are taking donations for planting trees in honor of a loved one. Trees are great for the environment!
Reduce Plastic and Other Types of Waste
We drink tap water (Pittsburgh’s finest) out of reusable bottles instead of single use plastic bottled water.
For any soda pop purchases, we are getting it in cans, not plastic bottles.
I have a couple of bird feeders made from recycled plastic.
I was previously using plastic gloves so my hands didn’t get too dirty while gardening. The thin plastic would last a few days before I had to throw them away. I found some awesome reusable gloves several years ago at Lowes which I love!
With the pandemic, I made and bought some reusable cloth masks. I can’t imagine how many people outside of hospital workers used disposable or single use masks.
I use reusable plastic containers for short term storage.
We use longer lasting LED lights.
Garbage and Recycling:
We have two large garbage cans, we use one for garbage and one for excess grass clippings and sticks that we just put in the can without a bag. If you don’t have a recycling program in your community, then put cardboard and paper products directly in the garbage can too.  They will decompose faster that way!Â
When our community stopped recycling glass, we found a recycling company that would take donations.
If you have too many plastic take out containers with lids, donate them to a food bank.
This year we called our dry cleaner to see if they needed some of the metal hangers that we accumulated over the years which they eagerly took!
Since we had quite a few glass vases, I called my local florist up and they were excited to take them off my hands!
