Category: Lawn & Garden

Categories
Lawn & Garden

6 Garden Herbs With Great Heath Benefits

lavender-herb-garden-medicinal-properties

Caring for your own little garden can be a very rewarding experience. It’s fun, it’s relaxing and you can literally see the fruits of your labor grow before your eyes. What’s even better, if you choose the right plants, you can make this hobby useful as well. Some people choose to grow culinary herbs to save money and gain flavor in the kitchen. But you can also grow herbs with health benefits to keep yourself and your family in top shape in a completely natural way.

aloe-vera-plant-medicinal-properties

1. Aloe Vera

Aloe Vera is known for its many benefits relating to skin care. It is great to treat sunburns, cold sores and even psoriasis. All you need to do is cut open one of its fleshy leaves and topically apply the gel inside it as a soothing balm. Besides, Aloe Vera is a very easy to care plant that can be really resilient, so it’s ideal if you live in a hot and dry area.

2. Basil

Fresh basil is an easy way to instantly kick your dishes up a notch. But this herb is not only delicious, it can help you cure your stomach as well. Basil leaves can be eaten to treat stomach pain, loss of appetite and even gas. Simply add the leaves to a salad and you are good to go. You can also apply the leaves directly on top of insect bites to reduce inflammation and help them heal.

3. Coneflower

Echinacea or coneflowers are pretty little purple flowers that are closely related to daisies. But they do much more than look pretty and add color to your garden. They are believed to have anti-inflammatory properties that can soothe symptoms related to the flu, cold and other respiratory ailments. You can take advantage of its health properties by making coneflower tea.

4. Lavender

Another popular herb, lavender is known for its distinctive smell and bright purple color. Lavender looks great in any garden (and you can even grow it in a pot inside, to naturally add a touch of color to your living room. This pretty flower has relaxing properties that will help you reduce stress and anxiety and even sleep better. You can make tea out of its dried flowers or simmer them in a hot pot of water to inundate the room with its powerful and calming scent.

5. Calendula

These bright orange flowers look very similar to marigolds, but they have a bunch of health properties that make them a perfect addition to your medicinal garden. A tea made from its flowers will soothe stomach ailments and a Calendula salve applied to the skin with reduce irritation and even make hemorrhoids hurt less. Besides, this flower can even slow-down bleeding when applied topically, so it’s a good plant to have around in case of an accident.

6. Mint

No herb garden would be complete without some mint. It smells great, it can freshen your breath and it’s easy to grow. What more could you want? You can use its leaves to make tea and drink it to treat nausea. Mint leaf tea will also soothe tension headaches. Besides this herb’s powerful smell can clear your sinuses and even make it easier for you to focus or keep yourself awake.

 

Categories
Eco Tips Lawn & Garden

How To Use Less Water During Summer

save-water-drought-desert-summer

Certain regions of the US are going through a pretty severe period of drought right now. And even if that wasn’t the case, summer is the time of the year when we all get a little careless with our water consumption. If you want to reduce your environmental impact all year round, here are some great was to save water during summer.

faucet-hand-save-water

1. Pick the car wash – Nothing wrong with wanting a clean and sparkly car, but you need to be smart when you wash it. Before taking out the buckets and sponges, consider that washing your car by hand uses around three times more water than the automatic wash. Even better, the automatic car wash is quicker and easier too, so it’s a win-win.

2. Pay attention to your toilet – Faulty toilet tanks can silently leak water into the bowl without anyone noticing. To check for this, open the tank and pour a few drops of food coloring in the water. Wait an hour and check the water in the bowl. If it’s dyed, you have a faulty tank and you need to fix it. Never use the toilet as a trash can, tissues, q-tips and every other waste should go to the bin, as they can ruin the pipes.

3. Cut down your showers – Most people know that taking a shower is much more efficient than taking a bath when it comes to water consumption. But did you know that you can save up to 150 gallons of water per month by cutting your showers by only two minutes? Two minutes won’t make a difference for your shower routine, but they sure will make a difference for the planet.

4. Green Laundry – Only wash full loads to avoid water waste and avoid the “permanent press” setting, as it uses more water during the rinse cycle. Check the hose and pipes behind the machine to make sure they are not leaking or about to burst open.

5. Get a reusable water bottle – You probably know that getting a reusable water bottle cuts down waste by reducing the amount of plastic disposable bottles that get thrown away. But did you know that it takes three to five times more water to make a plastic bottle than the amount you are drinking?

6. Smart lawn sprinklers – If you use sprinklers to water your lawn and garden, make sure they are positioned correctly. They should only be watering your grass and plants, not your walls, cobbled path, driveway or sidewalk. Install a rain sensor on your automatic system, as it will detect when it’s raining and shut down. Finally, only water your plants early in the morning or after the sun goes down, so the water doesn’t evaporate as fast and it can be better absorbed.

Categories
Lawn & Garden

Turn That Small Space Into A Garden

tiny-garden-small-pot-plants

If you’ve always loved plants but never had any because you don’t have enough space for a garden, think again, because you absolutely do. You don’t need a huge backyard to start growing your own plants. A little creativity goes a ling way.

planters-garden-hanging-cute

Use your vertical space – Hang your planters. You can find some very pretty decorative planters to hang from the ceiling or make some yourself. And you don’t even have to settle for a hue macrame pot, depending on the plants you want, smaller, cuter containers can work just as well. And you can use recycled materials to make them too! And your vertical space doesn’t end with your ceiling. Your walls are a great place to hang pots and planters too. Let your creativity flow and organize your planters in a stylish way to make your tiny garden part of your living room decoration.

Recycle water bottles to make planters – Instead of wasting valuable space with planters that require big trays at the bottom, make your own recycled self-watering planters out of old water bottles. You need a 2-liter water bottle, cut it in half and puncture three little holes near the top of the bottle, just below the neck. Insert a couple of 4” strips of wicking fabric in the neck and turn that part upside down. Fill it almost all of the way up with soil-less potting mix and organic fertilizer, and make sure is damp. Now plant your seeds, add some water to the base of the bottle and insert the other half, neck down into the base.

Use your bathroom – We never think of bathrooms as a place to keep our plants, but there’s no reason not to do it. Some indoor plants like bamboo, spider plants and ferns are perfect for bathrooms, since they love humid places. You will enjoy some green on your morning routine and even a tiny bathroom will feel cozier with a plant.

Get some vines – Indoors or outdoor, vines are perfect plants for small spaces, since they grow up and only spread to the space they have available. They will dress up your walls, add some much needed green to your life and, if you decide to let it grow indoors, it will be the most eco-friendly decoration and a conversation starter.

Make a terrarium – You don’t even need a huge container to make a terrarium, it just has to be clear. Mason jars are perfect for this. They look super cute, they don’t take up a lot of space and they already have lids, so you can keep pests away from your precious plants. Mason jars are a big trend in interior decorating and because of their small size, you can place them on your desk, and any other well-lit spot, to bring some green to every room in your house.

Categories
Lawn & Garden

These Are The Coolest Backyard Projects To Do With The Kids

fairy-garden-project-backyard

One of the best things about summer is to be able to spend time outside. Warm air, sunshine and longer days are perfect to start outdoorsy projects that will keep your children entertained and make them love the outdoors as much as you do. You don’t need to be Martha Stewart to make something beautiful, you just need to be creative and think outside of the box. So roll up your sleeves and take note of these cool backyard projects to do with the kids.

butterfly-feeder-fruit-garden

Make a butterfly feeder

Who doesn’t love butterflies? They are pretty and colorful and bring life to any garden. Attract them to your backyard with this easy project that even the youngest children can do. The easiest “butterfly food” to make is overripe fruit. Moths and butterflies love it and all you have to do is wait a bit for those bananas and strawberries at home to turn a bit mushy and soft. Get a ceramic or glass plate or a terra cotta plant saucer, any dish with a sloping rim will do. Ask your kids to decorate it however they want with paint or gluing pieces of ceramics in it to create colorful designs. The brighter the better and if they feel like gluing silk flowers to the rim, that’s great too. Now suspend it using flower pot hangers or a macrame holder, hanging it from a tree to keep it under the shade. It’s better if you can easily see it from your house or your patio chairs and it will work best if you hang it a little bit higher than your tallest flowers. Place the slices of overripe fruit on it and wait. If it’s dry out, sprinkle them with water or fruit juice. Replace the fruit when it’s too dry or it becomes moldy.

Build a fairy house or garden

Bring some magic right to your garden by building a house (or a tiny village!) for fairies. The best part about this project is that you can be as creative as you want to use the space around your garden. If you have a big tree with flowers around it, for example, you can add a tiny wooden door to the base and put up tiny windows or decorations of any sort. You can turn rocks into fairy houses and even create a tiny village from scratch on a patch of your garden. Tree stumps are fantastic fairy buildings and old bird feeders can be filled with soil, small plants and colorful rocks to make a fairy garden as well. You can make it as detailed as you want and you enlist the help of your older children to make a surprise for the younger ones. It is really difficult to stop believing in magic when confronted with a whimsical miniature village right outside of your home.

Categories
Lawn & Garden Recycling

Recycle Your Furniture For Your Dream Garden

piano-garden-fountain-flowers

Looking for a way to revitalize your garden? Try furniture. And I don’t mean your typical patio chairs and plastic table. Oh no! Instead of throwing away old furniture (or sell it for 89 cents at your next garage sale which is hardly a deal), recycle it and give it new life in your garden!

Continue reading “Recycle Your Furniture For Your Dream Garden”
Categories
Lawn & Garden

Green Pest Control For Your Garden

plants-pest-insects-caterpillar

We all know that traditional pesticides are incredibly harmful for the environment and best avoided by everyone. However, when your beautiful garden is being ravaged by insects and other pests, those horrible chemicals almost start to look appealing again. Don’t worry, here are some tips for ultra-green pest control.

Ants

Nothing worse than ants chewing away at your precious plants. Find some cedar oil and spray it around the problem area, as it is a non-toxic insect repellent that can get rid of ants as well as mosquitoes, fleas and even cockroaches. Another way to get rid of ants is to use bitter cucumber peels, ground coffee or garlic cloves. Spread them around among your plants as many ants have aversion to those items. You can also plant mint in your garden and most ant species will leave the rest of your plants alone. Finally, diatomaceous earth (a soft siliceous type of soil) will repel ants and most other insects.

snail-flower-garden-cute

Slugs and snails

Slimy, slow, disgusting and incredibly destructive, snails and slugs can completely ruin your plants in one night. Place a couple of shallow dishes with beer among the plants that you want to protect. Slugs really love beer so they will go straight to the plate, fall down and drown. Crushed eggshells sprinkled among the plants are another great way to dissuade these slimy pests. Snails and slugs try not to cross a hard sharp barrier that will damage their soft bodies.

Other bugs

One of the best (and greenest) ways to get rid of bugs is to introduce their natural predators, as long as you do your research. Find out the best beneficial insects that will eat the pests without damaging your plants and buy them on eBay. You can also attract birds to your garden as they will not only fill your house with music, but they will also eat bugs. Get a bird bath and keep it filled with fresh water, hang bird feeders and houses, try to keep a quiet environment and don’t disturb the birds. They will do the dirty work for you.

Mammals and other animals

There are solar powered pest control products that collect energy from the sunlight and shake periodically. These products work by producing vibrations that disturb small animals and scare them away. If you want to avoid racoons and skunks, make sure your garbage cans are tightly closed with a well-fitting lid. If you are really having a problem with animals, you can try no-kill traps to deal with them in a humane way. Do your research and safely release the animals back into the wild, far away from your garden. If you are using glue traps for snakes, vegetable oil is a safe way to loosen the glue without hurting the animal.

Categories
Eco Tips Lawn & Garden Recycling

Composting 101: Start A Compost Pile At Home

compost-pile-hands-soil-organic

Every house with a garden or a backyard should have its own compost pile. Why? Because organic materials make up 30 percent of what we throw away. If you compost them, we turn them into precious nutrients for your plants and vegetables. If you don’t, then they end up as trash and take up space in landfills, where they also release greenhouse gases.

woman-compost-pile-bin-garden

Basically, composting is an essential way to reduce your carbon footprint significantly. Not only does it reduce methane emissions from landfills, it also enriches your soil, to help your plants grow stronger. You will need to use less chemical fertilizers (or none at all), and, since it suppresses plant diseases and pests, you will use less pesticides as well. So why isn’t everyone composting yet?

It’s not difficult to start your own compost pile at home. You already have all the ingredients, you just have to create a new routine, instead of throwing them away, you add them to your compost pile. Compost has three basic ingredients: Browns, which include branches, twigs and dead leaves. Greens, which include vegetable waste, fruit scraps, coffee grounds and grass clippings. And water, that will help break down the other materials and turn them into compost.

The first step is to select a dry, shady spot for your pile or bin. If you don’t have space outside, you can use an indoor compost bin that you can find in any hardware store. Don’t worry, a properly-made compost pile will not smell nor attract pests. If you decide to do an outdoor pile, place it on bare ground, so worms and other organisms can enter your pile and help it along.

The second step is to add to the pile. Try to keep an equal ratio of green and brown ingredients, and make sure your pile is always damp. However, keep in mind that there are ingredients you should never compost, such as oils, meat products, milk, eggs, manure from meat-eating animals and plant clippings that have been treated with chemicals or diseased.

Once you have your compost pile going, you’ll want to keep it covered to retain moisture. You should also turn the material every too weeks at least, to help speed up the decomposing process. Use a pitchfork, a shovel or any tool you think will help, and mix and invert your pile. If you consider it seems a little bit dry, you can spray it a bit with a hose as you are turning it, to keep your pile moist. When the material at the bottom is dark and rich in color, with a texture similar to soil, then it will be ready to use. The time it takes depends on the size of your pile and the materials you add but it usually takes from a couple of weeks to months.

Categories
Eco Tips Lawn & Garden

You Should Be Growing Your Own Aromatic Herbs And Here’s Why

aromatic-herbs-indoors-pots

Have some extra space in your garden? Some empty pots you want to put to good use? Start growing aromatic herbs if you are not doing it already. And if you are, keep doing it. And maybe grow some more. There are a million reasons why having your own little herb garden, but I will list only a few of them. You will find your own reasons to love your herb garden, I can promise you that.

1. Taking care of plants if therapeutic

It’s been scientifically proven that gardening is very relaxing. Taking time out of your day to pause and care for your plants can help you reduce stress and anxiety. Using your hands and clearing your head for a few minutes a day will make you feel renewed and energized, and it will improve your mood for the rest of the day.

2. Growing plants that you can use is rewarding

There is no feeling as satisfying as knowing your hobbies are both fun and useful. Sure, all plants look nice, but when your plants look nice and are a great addition to your cooking, it’s clear who the real winner is. An aromatic herb garden can give you a sense of accomplishment every time you cook, knowing you are using something you grew with your own hands.

cooking-herb-veggies-vegetables

3. Fresh herbs taste a lot better than the dried stuff

It doesn’t matter if you are a fantastic chef or if the kitchen is a new and mysterious land for you. Any dish can be improved with fresh herbs. Basil, parsley, thyme, mint, bay and oregano can add a lot of flavor, and take your meals from “okay” to “amazing”. You can even experiment with different flavors to see which addition works best with every dish.

4. They just smell good

 Aromatic herbs are, well, aromatic. They smell fantastic without being overwhelming. A lot of flowers smell nice, of course, but they can be overly sweet for some people. And flowers bloom only for a while. Herbs, on the other hand, always smell fresh, and they keep their smell all year round. Basil, mint and lavender are especially good for this, especially if you are growing them indoors. They mask unpleasant smells and keep the room smelling fresh and clean.

 5. You can save money

 If you normally use herbs and spices in your cooking, they can add up in your budget, especially if you choose to use fresh leaves as opposed to dried ones. With your own little herb garden, you can scratch that item off your grocery list indefinitely.

Categories
Eco Tips Lawn & Garden

Get Rid Of Pests The Eco-Friendly Way

Scotts-Nature-Answer-Natural-Pest-Control

pest-control-eco-friendly-wayNow that spring has come and all of the flowers have blossomed in some areas and the grass has grown, be ready for the pest parade. Bugs, ants, caterpillars, spiders, roaches, worms, water bugs, and you name it, the pest is around. Don’t you just hate it when they invade your garden and/or your home? I know I do. Now that you are living the eco-life I think you should go about getting rid of them. No, do not stomp them, or eat them. Find eco-friendlier ways of getting rid of pests.

Here are some ways to get rid of pests the eco-friendly way and I hope you do try them.

  • Try natural planting. Why? It is more likely to attract pests that are beneficial to your plants instead of pests that will harm them.
  • Do not be squeamish. Slugs have a bad habit of roaming around and eating everything in sight. Slug it! Pick them up with your own hands and throw them out. You can also just stomp on them as you scream in fear.
  • Beer traps work well in killing slugs and roaches. Just put small containers full of beer in the ground. The next day you should have some surprises.
  • Protect your plants, fruits, and veggies with plant netting. They are great for keeping unwanted pests out of your hard work.
  • Any child would love to have an ant farm. Just make sure the ones you pick from the yard are not the red ones. The last thing you want is too have red ants running loose around the house because little Joe accidently tip the ant farm over.
  • Scott’s Nature’s Answer Natural Pest Control spray is a natural insecticide and fungicide. You can use is on flowers, fruits, and vegetables. It helps get rid of caterpillars, red spider mites, and black flies. Use is outdoors and indoors.

Scotts-Nature-Answer-Natural-Pest-Control

  • Add some color to your garden. Plant some wild flowers. Why? They attract bees and bees scare off other pests because they are bee-otches!
  • Diatomaceous earth can be used on many pests. Keep it handy.
  • When it comes to spiders…KILL THEM WITH WHATEVER IS NEAR YOU!
  • Trick those pesky pests. How? Trick them by planting strategically of course. If you are planting cabbages and want to avoid cabbage flies then plant chives or onions next to the cabbage. It will confuse them and you will be cabbage fly free.
  • Shoe fly don’t bother me! Put mint in small satchels around the house. It will repel the flies.
  • I especially hate the pests that visit when the lights are off. ROACHES! Spray them with some soapy water. Use Boric acid on the top of your cabinets. Be careful when handling the acid. These tricks also help get rid of ants too.
  • The eco-friendliest way is to have a clean home that the pests do not want to visit. I recommend not leaving your garden unattended for more than two days.

Now that you know some eco-friendly ways to getting rid of pests please try them. Leave the Raid cans at the store. The smell is deadly to the air and you. So next time you see an insect in the garden try not to scream and try getting rid of it if it needs to be. Remember that some pests are good for your garden like ground beetles, lacewings, butterflies and lady beetles.

Categories
Eco Eats Eco Tips Lawn & Garden

Food Gone Wild: Super Usefull Foraging Tips

foraging-plants-lavender-weeds-hands

forage-food-edible-guy-picking-plantsThere will come a day when you are lost in the forest, or even worst, the wild, and you have nothing to eat. Well you have your fingertips, but that is just disgusting, and also a bad habit. Anyway, if you are afraid of finding yourself truly lost and starving then you need to learn about foraging for food. I mean if squirrels can do it…so can you. Let Mother Nature feed you her essence. Why start foraging? Well…food costs are rising, edible plants in nature are free, they give you nutrients, and some are used for medicinal purposes.

Here are some beginner tips on foraging.

  • Tip 1: Do not eat everything that you see. Curiosity killed the dumb brat for a reason. Some plants can be poisonous.
  • Tip 2: Know what environment you are going to end up hiking. Suit up properly too. Gloves are your friends.
  • Tip 3: Bring a bag. Use it to keep your foraging finds.
  • Tip 4: Before you eat the plants, test them out to see if they do not upset your stomach and make you plant one in the toilet.
  • Tip 5: No seconds, my dear. Let the area you picked plants from have a chance to grow back.
  • Tip 6: Stay away from highway, nuclear, and landfill plants.
  • Tip 7: Read twice, pick once. That is the foraging motto…for me. Some plants can fool you, so read the books twice and cross-reference it with other plants to make sure you are eating the right one.
  • Tip 8: Make sure you are not allergic to specific plants. Rub a bit of it on a small area of your arm and then some on your lips. If you are not dead, then go ahead.
  • Tip 9: Be thoughtful. There are some endangered species of plants. Read up and find out which ones they are. The last thing you want is to eat the last one of its kind.
  • Tip 10: Do not make a mess. Littering is frowned upon.
  • Tip 11: Mushrooms are great to eat, but some can kill you on the spot. Always have a picture book of edible plants or food.
  • Tip 12: If you do not know if something is edible then do not collect it.
  • Tip 13: Make it a daily routine. Explore different areas to forage for new items.
  • Tip 14: Bring a camera to take pictures of plants, fruits, herds, weed, etc. that you find to keep track of what is in your environment.
  • Tip 15: Say thank you to Earth for giving you great natural nutrients.

So when you are out and foraging for your food, make sure to follow these tips. Remember that just because Mother Nature is giving you free food; it does not mean that you cannot repay her back. Plant some new seeds or throw some seeds in the wind and let nature take its course.