Green Living

Monday Miscellany: Monsanto Trial, Happy Honeybees, NWF Triumph and Some Awesome Contests

January 30, 2012 4 comments
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Monsanto Trial The normally non-political Margaret Roach of Martha Stewart Living fame and A Way to Garden has spoken up about the Monsanto trial that starts tomorrow. Why is this important? Because Monsanto’s been genetically engineering seeds for common crops like corn, wheat and alfalfa so that farmers can spray their rows with the herbicide [...]

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The Fiskars Momentum Reel Mower Giveaway!

August 18, 2011 301 comments
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***We’re giving away a Fiskars Momentum Reel Mower to one lucky reader – comment below to win!*** EDIT: HUGE CONGRATS TO OUR WINNER, NICKY of DIRT AND MARTINIS!! Lately, I’ve been realizing just how much I hate mowing my lawn with my old gas mower. It’s stinky, it’s noisy, and the vibrations from the mower [...]

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Ditch the Sunhat: Sun Protection Tips You Probably Haven’t Heard Of

August 5, 2011 10 comments
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Hold up, don’t report me to the Melanoma Society just yet. You probably shouldn’t actually ditch your sun hat. But if you’re like me and have never been able to get into wearing hats while gardening, here are two odd things I do to get a bit more protection than the average “slather self in [...]

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Monday Miscellany: Plants You Can’t Kill, Sprays That CAN Kill, and Assorted Other, Um, Miscellany

January 24, 2011 13 comments
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I’ll start out with the depressing bit: Despite the fact that many gardeners have a relationship of convenience with Roundup, and an “it’s not so bad” attitude about the harmful effects it has on the environment and on human health, scientists are continually discovering new ways Roundup is screwing with our bodies and our environment.

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H. Potter Wardian Case: A Study in Kitties

December 14, 2010 11 comments
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When H. Potter first sent me a Wardian case to try out, I was thinking of it as a pretty way of making small seasonal displays, and possibly a nice way of also rooting cuttings while having things look attractive. Little did I know that its highest and best use is as a kitten-safe decorating [...]

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Book Review of Energy-Wise Landscape Design by Sue Reed

December 5, 2010 3 comments
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Reading this thorough design primer is like getting to chat with a knowledgeable and friendly expert for a few hours about how to create effective windbreaks, conserve on your heating and cooling bills through landscaping, create new energy sources to reduce your dependence on the grid, and generally preserve and conserve at every step in [...]

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Fellini Baby – Local, Fair-Trade, Organic Baby Clothes

September 30, 2010 0 comments

Catherine Andrews, the owner of Fellini Baby, is a Humboldt County local, and I’ve gotten to see her fair trade, organic cotton baby collection in person. The clothes are just adorable, and are unbelievably soft. (I just bought the paprika onesie for a friend who’s about to give birth!) Since Catherine’s just up in McKinleyville, [...]

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Worm Compost: A Fictional FAQ for Vermicomposting

June 17, 2010 9 comments
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I’ve gotten a few questions lately about vermicomposting -composting in a small bin using worms. Folks seem to know that worm castings rock, and they are really expensive to buy. Other folks want worms for fishing. And still others just want a simple way of keeping their veggie scraps out of the landfill. So I [...]

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