GardeningNude

Get Yo’ Green On Tuesday – Use a Rain Barrel to Save Money and Water Plus Help Our Stormwater Systems!

One of the most fantastic ways to practice conservation, save money, AND water is to use a rain barrel! Clean Air Gardening sells some of the best and easiest to install. Above you see an instructional video showing the basics for one of the rain barrels I have from Clean Air Gardening (and how it works with a rain diverter).

During the summer months, residential water use increases approximately 40% – most of it centered around outdoor water use. A rain barrel collects and stores rainwater from rooftops, preventing less strain on our stormwater systems. This water is non-potable, which means not-drinkable. It is stored and can be used later for watering your lawn or garden, washing your car, cleaning tools, and any other purpose you can come up with.

Typically, water from your roof flows through roof gutter downspouts and becomes stormwater runoff, ultimately moving onto paved surfaces and eventually into a storm drain. Many of our stormwater systems are over taxed. All the water from stormwater systems eventually ends up in the ocean. Stormwater runoff is the leading type of residential non-point source pollution and is a large concern for those monitoring our earth’s oceans and water systems.

Water conservation with rain barrels is important. Although it is a small percentage of water saved, every little bit counts. Instead of sending water to the ocean, we should be trying to replace the water in the water aquifer, thereby keeping our water in a more natural state of replenishment while simultaneously reducing stormwater system usage.  

Here are some easy steps for installation of a rain barrel:

1. Find an area under a downspout on your home that is flat and level.

2. Place cement blocks or a stand of some sort on the level ground where your rain barrel will sit. Keep in mind, most rain barrels weigh 400 + pounds when full. By raising up the rain barrel, it will allow a watering can to fit below the spigot and will also have more “gravity” pressure.

3. Place your empty barrel on the blocks and measure where you need to cut your downspout to allow for an elbow or a diverter to drain water into the top of the rain barrel.

4. Place the barrel aside and cut the downspout with a hack saw where you drew your line.

5. Slide an elbow or diverter over the downspout that will allow the water to drain into your barrel.

6. Remove the old downspout and save it for winter. You will need to replace it during winter since you cannot use the rain barrel during harsh winter temperatures.

7. Attach a short hose to the top overflow spigot and direct the hose away from your foundation. A hose can be attached to the bottom spigot too, however, I leave this as an option since I like to fill watering cans by using the bottom spigot.

8. Slide your barrel under the newly reconfigured downspout and you are done.

To order the rain barrel and diverter used in the video, please go to www.cleanairgardening.com. Below you can see the rain barrel and down spout system as it rests today. I love my rain barrel - it has been an awesome tool to help water the front yard vegetable garden I am growing this season.

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Taste of Chicago - Why Are People Pigs? Stop Being Inconsiderate and Make a Difference For Your Community!

Above you see a photo of my oldest daughter at the Taste of Chicago ‘09. An event which draws millions of attendees and presents Chicago with an opportunity for a lot of positive financial revenue – a desperately needed commodity right now in our difficult economy.

Note the look on my girls’ face. It is not happy. Behind her is row after row of trash and recyclables lined up in some twisted scene – an art display gone desperately wrong.

After researching the Taste of Chicago’s newest and most exciting announcements, I have learned that more than 450 tons of garbage is expected to be produced at this year's Taste of Chicago alone. Staggering.

That’s a LOT of garbage. To encourage recycling, Taste of Chicago organizers will have 65 dual recycle and trash bins available across the Grant Park grounds. Yet from what I see in the photo above, that is simply NOT enough. My daughter said she saw very few recycling areas for the 3.5 million attending the Taste this year.

According to Allied Waste, the new bins have one 30-gallon opening for trash and another 30-gallon opening for recyclables. Yet if they are not conveniently located, what is the use of providing them?

This mess is the fault of the consumers who should be holding their cups, plastic, and cans until they can find a recycling bin to dispose of their trash and recycling properly. However, if 3.5 million people are expected to attend this event, is it truly realistic to expect only 65 recycling bins to do the trick?

People, please stop being pigs and dispose of your trash properly. Not only does it make the city – your community – look like an embarrassing mess, it also presents a health hazard. STOP IT! Take responsibility and do the right thing – take care of your trash and recycling the right way.

Make a difference NOW! Make a difference TODAY! It is YOU who are responsible!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Why Butter Bell Bowls Are A Cool Idea – Try It - Plus a green BOOK GIVEAWAY!

 

Allergies are torture for me. I am allergic to everything from dogs to dust to trees to soy beans. No kidding. If allowed, my allergies will keep me in a perpetual state of stuffiness, sinus infections, and bronchitis.

Learning to control my mold and soy allergies have been particularly difficult. No bread, no wine, no cheese, no beer, no mushrooms, no chinese food. Sometimes I have no choice but to eat an allergen food as there is nothing else available. Mostly, I sacrifice.

Because of the lack of spreadability issue, I have rarely used real butter – I always use margarine. Recently I discovered that most margarine’s are made of soy beans. There is also a lot of controversy over margarine versus butter due to the trans fat content levels.

Therefore, I have decided to try a technique for storing real butter which leaves it soft and useable inspired by Vanessa Farquharson, author of Sleeping Naked is Green. This was a really interesting green read. Vanessa decides to make one serious green change to her life every day for a year. She learns how to turn off her refrigerator, lower the temp on her water heater, stop wasteful practices, and so much more. Part of her change of using no refrigerator was to utilize butter from a butter bell bowl.

While I am green, I am not green to the extreme. Like everyone else, I prefer taking easy, simple, baby-steps. However, this butter bowl idea holds weight because it could allow me to break my margarine addiction and possibly take my allergies down a notch. Anything to get our family healthier and feeling awesome. Besides – my mouth starts watering every time I remember the fresh taste of butter on a hot tortilla right off the griddle!

After careful research, I decided to purchase my butter bowl at Williams-Sonoma. It is surprisingly easy to use. If you look at the top photo on this page you will see butter inside the “lid” of the butter bowl.

All you have to do is turn the lid over and spoon the butter in.

Put a small amount of water in the bottom of the bowl – it acts as a seal for the butter so it will not go bad while sitting out without refrigeration. Be sure to change the water every couple of days or so.

Then turn the lid upside down and place it on the bowl with the water just covering the lid’s opening. Easy!

Without a doubt, this butter bowl has been an awesome kitchen gadget which I will now keep FOREVER. Fresh butter which is easy to spread and helps my allergies. Love it!

Three copies of Sleeping Naked is Green is sitting on my office desk right now and I will give away all three copies randomly chosen from whoever leaves a comment listing a good idea for going green in the kitchen.

Please leave a comment below before next Friday – July 3, 2009. Then follow me on Twitter (@shawnacoronado) to qualify and good luck!

THE CONTEST WINNERS HAVE BEEN RANDOMLY SELECTED FROM THE AWESOME IDEAS IN THE COMMENT AREA BELOW. AND THE WINNERS ARE – MARIANNE, KRISTA, AND GAYLA - - - CONGRATULATIONS AND THANKS FOR THE AWESOME IDEAS!! 

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

 

Make At Home Iced Latte Coffee Treat – Cheap and Green

Ninety degrees in the shade, with a heat index of 105 and your family is melting hot!  Everyone hops in the car, turns the air-conditioning on high, then you drive three miles over to the local coffee shop where you spend over $20 of your hard earned money on iced latte’s for a family of four.

Say what?

Hold on people, let’s not get hasty – it seems to me you could save those carbon emissions and gallons of gas for something more important, right?

While a homemade iced latte still takes energy to make, it is a whole lot greener and a whole lot cheaper than driving several miles to your local coffee shop.

My favorite treat is an iced latte and I make it at home with my very inexpensive latte machine I bought at Target for $30 several years ago.

Here’s the recipe just for you --

HOMEMADE ICED LATTE

STEP ONE -   

Brew one serving of espresso and add any sweeteners you like to the bottom of your glass. Hum a few bars of “Summertime” or another appropriate summery musical tune.

STEP TWO -

Pour espresso serving into the bottom of your glass and stir by swirling the glass a couple times. Continue humming.

STEP THREE -

Add ice until it reaches the top of the glass. Shake your booty while humming – it helps the mood.

STEP FOUR -

Add your favorite milk. Finish your tune with a grand finale that

includes sucking down the latte in an amazingly cool and restful sip.

Welcome to nirvana! And guess what? It cost your family pennies instead of $20. That makes it even tastier, right?

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Get Yo’ Healthy On – Exercising in a Nature Bootcamp – I Survived Weeks 4, 5, & 6

 

Jeremy Glasgow of Underground Core Fitness [seen above in the yellow shirt] is leading a group of dedicated exercisers (including me) into health via his all-outdoor-in-nature boot camp. Neither rain, nor sleet, nor gloom of night will keep we boot campers from our appointed rounds – above you see our group exercising on an outdoor basketball court in Warrenville, Illinois. In the photo it is so foggy out my shot reflects tiny water droplets hanging in the air.

Three times a week at 5:30 AM - rain, sleet, snow, or fog - we meet at an outdoor park to exercise together. We do this for four weeks, then have a week for a break so our muscles “forget” and have to be retrained during the next four week session.

Jeremy is patient and encouraging. In my first weeks I struggled to simply make it to the end of class without throwing up. My body would ache for days – Ibuprofin is my friend - and I thought I would not be able to get past sore muscles and my complete and utter lack of grace compared to the other campers.

We boot camp members have varying personal and professional lives. Indeed, we are opposites in many ways. However, we have one thing that really holds us together and helps us get through Jeremy’s workouts; the belief that being outdoors exercising in nature is helping us become truly healthier people.

It is hard work to do the type of interval training Jeremy puts us through. We call him “Jeremy the Torturer” in jest. Although it is a real physical challenge to get through the workouts, it is also amazingly invigorating. When his class ends I feel proud that we have all given our best. Tired, but happy – both physically and emotionally.

Finally, after the third week, my muscles began to acclimate and now they do not hurt as much after a work out as they did initially. Instead of putting myself through pain, I now feel as if I have put my body through something good and challenging.

All those weeks of my chanting “I think I can! I think I can! I think I can!” has really paid off. Being in nature, breathing fresh air, smiling, laughing, exercising - - it is good! Now I am more determined than ever to keep going.

I know I can do this for myself. I know you can do it too!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Kids - Recycle Your Jeans and Turn Them Into Green Home Insulation

Today Gardening Nude welcomes a guest blogger, Christine Escobar, founder and editor for Green Parent Chicago.

If you have jeans that your children have outgrown, pairs that are too worn, ripped, stained or damaged to swap, consider having them recycled into green home insulation and help set a world record too.

National Geographic Kids is hoping to set a Guinness World Record of largest collection of clothes to recycle. So far, they claim to have collected over 16,000 pairs of jeans, which will be recycled through Cotton Inc.'s From Blue to Green initiative into home insulation. The insulation called Ultra Touch, is manufactured by Bonded Logic and contains 85% post-industrial recycled natural fibers. In addition, Ultra Touch appears to be safer to install and handle than traditional fiberglass home insulation. 

To participate in the recycling record, just follow these rules to send in your denim:

1. Select as many denim jeans or denim clothing as you like. (Any denim clothing is OK.)
2. The denim must be used.
3. The denim can be any brand.
4. The denim can be any color or size but must have been worn by a human (no doll clothes!).
5. Please print out this form and include it with each package!
6. Send as many jeans or denim items as you wish to:

NG Kids / Set a Guinness World Record
P.O. Box 98001
Washington, D.C. 20090-8001

For shipments that cannot be delivered to a P.O. box:
NG Kids / Set a Guinness World Record
1145 17th St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20036

All denim and jeans must be received by June 30, 2009.

Christine S. Escobar is a Chicago based writer and the founder of Green Parent Chicago, the online destination for eco-friendly, off the mainstream green living and natural family living news in Chicago. She is also a loving parent who realized her skills in writing should be applied to something reflecting the idea of being good to one another and living a healthier life.

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! http://www.thecasualgardener.com/, The Green Blog - http://www.gardeningnude.com/, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com/

Happy Father’s Day from Harry the Pug

Happy Father’s Day from Harry the Pug. Follow his example all you Dad’s out there – lay around and lounge the rest of today – slow down and enjoy life and your family!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

BE AWARE - - Wash Produce With Soap and Water - - How Many Pesticides Do YOU Consume Every Day?

At a recent green conference I was handed a little magnetic guide for my refrigerator. It listed which fruits and veggies have tested the highest in pesticides straight off the shelf and which ones are the lowest. Awesome!

This guide is created and distributed through the Environmental Working Group (EWG) which is a truly amazing not-for-profit organization that is educating and protecting public health. Most specifically, the EWG wants to eliminate toxic foods and toxic living.

According to EWG’s website, “EWG research has found that people who eat the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables consume an average of 10 pesticides a day. Those who eat the 15 least contaminated conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables ingest fewer than 2 pesticides daily.”

Discovering the “Shopper’s Guide To Pesticides” is an enormous assist for those of us who want to keep toxic products away from our families. EWG analysts utilized data from almost 87,000 residual pesticide tests in produce. This data was collected by the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Food and Drug Administration between 2000 and 2007.

The Guide helps consumers make informed choices to lower their dietary pesticide load. Remember that simply rinsing your produce does NOT eliminate pesticides completely. Washing with soap AND water helps the most. Some pesticides also remain inside the produce as it is taken in during growth.

Contact the Environmental Working Group (EWG) for further information and education on how pesticide’s touch your family directly.

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Get Yo’ Green On Tuesday – Food Waste Is A Serious Problem – Do Something About It At Home

This is what I saw several weeks ago when I went to clean up breakfast. Wasted food. I am sure you are wondering why six or seven bites of bread crumbs really makes a difference, right? It makes a difference when you understand that a few bites of bread is just the beginning of a giant problem we have here in the United States: food waste!

According to Food Production Daily (FPD), Timothy Jones, an anthropologist at the UA Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology and an expert on food loss, says that American households waste nearly 14 percent of their food purchases.

FPD goes on to say, “Fifteen per cent of that [waste] includes products still within their expiration date but never opened. Jones estimates an average family of four currently tosses out $590 per year, just in meat, fruits, vegetables and grain products.”

Amazingly, FPD says, “household food waste alone adds up to $43 billion.” Imagine how eliminating as much food waste as you can might help our environmental problems. “Jones estimates that reducing food waste by half could reduce adverse environmental impacts by 25 percent through reduced landfill use, soil depletion and applications of fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides.”

With our economy in the dumps, it makes more sense than ever to SAVE MONEY as well as save food waste. It makes more sense than ever that parents must take on the firm responsibility to educate children about how to live more conservatively. They will learn good habits and maybe when they grow up they will be able to support themselves through difficult times because they have this knowledge.

My eight year old and I had a little talk about her bread crust plate and she agreed to only take what she can eat on to her plate and promised not to waste food in the future. Is it perfect? No. I waste, she wastes, we all are relearning that there is a better way to live which saves money and the earth. At least we are trying one small step at a time.

Help your children understand food waste and sustainability – a lesson learned at home with family will last a lifetime!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Buy Local: Be Green and Strengthen Your Community

  

Yesterday I went to the Warrenville, Illinois Farmer’s Market. It was a joy to see so many people I know and love buying wonderfully fresh foods and homemade products. Instead of the normal anonymous mall shopping that usually happens out in the world, I was gifted with hugs and laughter at every corner from friends and fans in the community. It was a smiling experience.

When you buy from an independent, locally owned business, instead of the large “box” stores or nationally owned businesses, more of your money is used to make purchases from other local businesses, service providers, and farms – improving and strengthening the economic base of your community.

If everyone could help build a strong local economy, then our national economy would begin to improve in positive ways as well. By purchasing from local businesses you will be doing your small part to help America get back on its feet.

One of the best places to do that is at Farmer’s Markets. Most locally owned businesses that work through farmer’s markets require less transportation and utilize less resources and energy to maintain – that makes it a “green” experience as well. They often hire local-living employees with a better understanding of the customer base, so can offer better service. Local businesses, in general, are owned by people who live in the community, are less likely to leave, and are more invested in the community’s future.

Buy local today, through farmers markets and locally owned businesses of all kinds, and make a difference for your community!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Get Yo’ Green On Tuesday – Save Landscape Waste From the Landfill

Today I am taking you with me on a field trip to help save some landscaping and gardening materials. Why, you ask? Because this is an easy way to make a difference and I wanted to show you how you can do it too.

Due to overfilled landfills, most states have banned or are beginning to ban “green wastes” such as landscaping waste, yet many states still allow this type of wasteful dumping. In the past, when a landscaping company pulled out tulip bulbs or plant materials and bushes, it went straight to the garbage dump. Currently, many communities are using ordinances requiring construction firms to submit recycling plans for their construction and landscaping projects and to report the amount of materials disposed of and recycled.

America In Bloom (AIB) is a national organization built to help make a difference for communities. Each community has to budget their own funds and is able to do more with donations of old landscaping products. Last year I connected with a large local landscaping firm and asked them to call me the next time they were tossing out landscaping material so I could come collect it for my local AIB organization. This morning I got a phone call from the group letting me know where they had just deposited several thousand tulip bulbs for collection. You can see my little field trip in the video above.

Imagine that these bulbs were once thrown in the garbage, and I was able to save the tulips from the landfill, make a difference for my community gardens, and beautify my city with them with a fairly small effort.

You can do this too - it is one small thing you can do to make a difference for your community.

Today’s post is a “Two For Tuesday” – this blog is on both my greening blog – www.gardeningnude.com AND my gardening blog – http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com – ENJOY!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com.

Smile In The Garden – Get Out In Nature and Enjoy June!

This week my garden has produced the most beautiful flowers of June. Stepping outside I can breathe in fresh air, see humming birds busily drinking nectar, and smile simply for the joy of seeing the outer world in all it’s glory. For me, it’s health embodied.

These two photos show the view I have right outside my front door - - enjoy!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Get Yo’ Healthy On – Exercising in a Nature Bootcamp Progress – I Survived Week 2 & 3

The President’s Council on Physical Fitness says, “Obesity continues to climb among American adults. Nearly 60 million Americans are obese. More than 108 million adults are either obese or overweight. That means roughly 3 out of 5 Americans carry an unhealthy amount of excess weight.”

Whether you decide to exercise to reduce weight or to increase body strength, exercising outside in nature is a key green lifestyle choice. It increases feel good brain chemicals like serotonin which helps reduce depression. Jeremy Glasgow of Underground Core Fitness is leading me into health via his all-outdoor-in-nature boot camp. My goal is to get more energy and strengthen my back and abs. After experiencing horrible pain and sore muscles the first two weeks, I have finally settled into less pain – kind of a dull throb the day after – and the feeling that I might be able to improve in the near future.

Above, you see me exercising in nature. It looks easy, right? I mean, how difficult could it possibly be? ::eye roll:: Without a doubt, the most important discovery I have made since starting boot camp is I am not as “fit” as I thought I was AND I am a complete and utter klutz. The message here dear readers: believe me, if I can do it – you can do it too!

While other boot campers are elegantly posing in graceful yoga stances, I am wobbling like a five month old standing on my mother’s knees. While other boot campers actually make it through a set of Jeremy the Torturers cardio work-outs(photo right), I am breathing like an 80 year old man with emphysema. Joking and smiling, Jeremy continues to reassure me with his patient voice, “at least you aren’t puking yet!” 

Indeed. No puke yet. Emphasis on yet.

There is something wonderful, however, about being in nature while exercising like this. Sunshine on your back, birds singing, deep breaths filled with fresh air – even when we are really exercising hard, I feel like smiling. What a discovery – exercise makes you feel good.

Joining Jeremy’s boot camp has been a challenge, but I also see how it has been a mood-lifter and leaves me feeling good afterwards. Try exercising outdoors to experience the same thing. It works. Remember, if I can do it – you can do it too!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Get Yo’ Green On Tuesday – An Indoor Bokashi Meat and Milk Composter Review

Clean Air Gardening sells this cool Indoor Kitchen Composter which composts more than traditional veg material, it also composts meat and milk. While I have practiced outdoor composting for several years, I have never done indoor composting and was curious if this worked. You can see a video review in the above short video.

According to the package directions, composting happens directly in the 16” X 10” X 10” pail so it is perfect for apartments and condos. Bokashi composting uses a different method than outdoor composting. Essentially it pickles the waste, turning it into fertilizer using fermentation. It works in half the time of conventional  composting. Moisture released from food waste can be drained out through a spigot at the bottom of the compost bin and can be made into a compost tea for house plants.

Clean Air Gardening shipped out the composter and a 2.25 lb bag of a special Bokashi mix that enhances the microbial action of the compost and allows traditional veg material as well as meats and milks to breakdown. Bokashi is a Japanese word that means "fermented organic matter." It can also be used as a soil amendment to increase the nutrient level and microbial diversity of the soil.

According to Clean Air Gardening, here’s how to use the Indoor Kitchen Composter and Bokashi mix:

“Before putting any compost in your Indoor Kitchen Composter, start by laying down a layer of Happy Farmer Bokashi. Then, when you add fresh food waste in the Kitchen Composter it's important to add additional Bokashi on top of every layer of scraps. Once the container is filled to capacity, let the waste continue to ferment for two weeks and then transfer into your garden or planter.”

Overall, I felt this product works and is rather amazing in it’s ability to breakdown meat, bones, and milk waste. However, it can be smelly if you do not cover the food waste properly (note the look on my face in the video). It is a wonderful idea for apartment dwellers and for people who have a strong motivation to save landfill space. I do prefer traditional composting better because it is less expensive. To maintain the Indoor Kitchen Composter, you must repurchase the bokashi several times a year.

For those of you interested in really taking a bite out of the landfill space situation, I think this is a more than fabulous idea. If you are interested in purchasing this composter or others, Clean Air Gardening has a wonderful selection. Go to www.cleanairgardening.com for more information.

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com

Monday Whazzup – I Have A Bright Idea - Use A CFL - Save Money and Energy!

This fabulously glowing light bulb lives in my bedroom. It’s strength is powerful enough to light my whole room, yet this light bulb saves almost $30 over its lifetime and pays for itself in about six months. Also, it uses 75 percent less energy and lasts about 10 times longer than an incandescent bulb.

Before all the “green” terms and “green washing” and hype came about, my family was utilizing CFL’s (compact flourescent light bulbs). Not because they are “green” – but because they offer a significant money savings due to lower energy consumption.

In these difficult economic times we need to take every advantage we can to save a penny. To save electricity, turn off the lights when you leave the room and switch all your light bulbs to CFL’s as soon as you can. Both money and energy can be saved if you practice these two simple tips.

According to the Energy Star website, “If every American home replaced just one light bulb with an ENERGY STAR qualified bulb, we would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year, more than $600 million in annual energy costs, and prevent greenhouse gasses equivalent to the emissions of more than 800,000 cars.”

Make a difference today!

Shawna Coronado says Get Healthy! Get Green! Get Community! www.thecasualgardener.com, The Green Blog - www.gardeningnude.com, or The Garden Blog - http://thecasualgardener.blogspot.com