Posts Tagged ‘outdoor’

BioBags Put To The Test Tuesday, July 14th, 2009 I was very excited when my BioBag Lawn & Leaf Bags arrived in the mail.  Perfect timing as my hedges needed to be trimmed back a bit.  Usually, I use the thick, black lawn bags to collect my shrubbery trimmings.  Even with these heavy duty ones, twigs do poke through. Although on the site  they say the BioBag Lawn & Leaf bags can hold up to 33 gallons, I must say, this claim made me a bit wary: the bags felt quite delicate.  How were my thorny branches going to remain in the bag?  I decided to cut the twigs into smaller pieces than I usually do and this definitely helped.  A few poked out, but I was able to tie the bag closed. (On the website, it mentions that the bags “even come with a removable tear-strip at the top of each bag for easy tying.”  Mine didn’t have this tear strip, but I had no problem closing up the bags).    The mere fact that these bags are biodegradable is just fantastic.  Whether you have your own compost or your local waste management separately picks up lawn clippings, you can feel good that one less plastic bag will take thousands of years to decompose.   I was also privy to receive one of BioBags newer products.  It was one of their BioBag Shopping Bags.  Adorned with fresh looking apples and the BioBag logo, the double handled bag will be added to my ever-growing cloth bag collection.  The best part?  It can eventually be used to collect compostable scraps (or lawn clippings!) and tossed into the compost bin.  The BioBag Shopping Bags  can be made with your store logo and are “For supermarket chains, health-food stores, etc., who wish to contribute to a better environment as well as enhance their environmental profile, the BioShop bag is an excellent choice.” This is, no doubt, one Earth Promise I will be adding: purchase BioBags in lieu of plastic garbage bags. Tags: biobag, biodegradable, biodegradable bags, carbon footprint, change, changes, climate change, compost, decompose, earth, earth promise, earthpromise, eco-friendly, energy, environment, environmental, environmental footprint, environmental issues, global warming, green, green changes, green future, green hour, green living, green practice, green practices, green revolution, green tips, landfills, Martha Stewart, nature, Oprah, organic, outdoor, plastic bags, polyethene, reuse, whole foods Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »

Viable Alternative: Bags That Decompose Monday, June 29th, 2009 In an earlier blog post, I wrote about composting. “If you are a bit squeamish, keep in mind that compost is proven to be the best mulch and soil enrichment; it’s a fantastic way of reducing the amount of waste going to the landfills and it saves you money by reducing your fertilizer and landscaping bills.” For the neophyte composter, like myself, storing food scraps before tossing them into a compost bin is not all that enticing, (although it is the ecologically right thing to do).  Regular plastic bags are not an option since they do not decompose over time.  I came across a company, based in my old stomping ground, Palm Harbor, Florida, that manufactures the ultimate solution: BioBag Food Waste bags .   “BioBag kitchen waste bags are primarily used for the collection of food scraps and other biodegradable waste for home or community composting.”   The thin bags are made from corn and will decompose within 10-45 days once they hit the landfill or compost pile.  The bags even lessen the overbearing odor that often comes with composting.  This is perfect, then: collect your compostable food scraps in the Biobag and once it’s filled, just pitch the sealed bag into your compost bin!   BioBags has a variety of bags to choose from: • 3 gallon food waste bags • 13 gallon tall kitchen bags • 33 gallon lawn and leaf bags • Dog waste bags • Cat pan liners   You must visit the BioBags website and read about their certifications and technologies behind their products.  And kudos to BioBag: they are even recommended by Oprah and Martha Stewart! So where do you purchase BioBags?  There are many online retailers like Amazon or drugstore.com  that sell it as well as most natural food stores like Whole Foods. Although I bring my own bags to the store when I shop, I must admit, I sometimes accept the polyethylene plastic bags to use for my trash cans.  I know they can take thousands of years to degrade.  It’s a convenience issue.  Ok, then, this is my new earth promise: to use 100% biodegradable bags such as BioBags.  Not only will it will reduce the amount of plastic that goes into the landfills, but you will know you are reducing the production of these lethal polluters that contribute to air pollution and energy consumption. Tags: biodegradable, biodegradable bags, carbon footprint, change, changes, climate change, compost, decompose, earth, earth promise, earthpromise, eco-friendly, energy, environment, environmental, environmental footprint, environmental issues, global warming, green, green changes, green future, green hour, green living, green practice, green practices, green revolution, green tips, landfills, Martha Stewart, nature, Oprah, organic, outdoor, plastic bags, polyethene, reuse, whole foods Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Reuse What Mother Nature Provides Thursday, June 25th, 2009 Living in south Florida, it is the norm to have a downpour at some point during the day in the summer months.  I leave my watering cans out so they can catch the raindrops, giving me ample water to quench the thirst of my plants.  This, then, allows me to reduce my consumption of water and saves money!   Collecting rainwater  in a small bucket and/or watering can is a great example of a how a small change can make a big difference.  On a larger scale, you can attach a rain barrel and position it under a downspout.  According to Harvest H20.com, “Lawn and garden watering make up nearly 40% of total household water use during the summer. A rain barrel collects water and stores it for when you need to water plants or wash car. Rain barrels provide an ample supply of free “soft water” containing no chlorine, lime or calcium making it ideal for gardens, flower or the potted plants.” There are many varieties of rain barrels to choose from.  Listed below are some sites that I thought were worthy of sharing: • Bargain Outfitters  has a rain barrel that  hold 50 gallons of water • Green Culture sells an Eco-rain barrel that holds 55 gallons and is made from recycled food and liquid containers • Northern Tool and Equipment  offers a large variety of water collecting systems, ranging from 50 to 104 gallons Rain Barrels are realtively simple and inexpensive to construct.  If you are the home-project type, then these links are for you: • EcoGrrl Network • Southwest Florida Water Management District • DIY Life   Whether you purchase a rain barrel or make one yourself, these rain harvestors are a fantastic way to recycle what Mother Nature provides. Tags: carbon footprint, change, changes, climate change, earth, earth promise, earthpromise, eco-friendly, energy, environment, environmental, environmental footprint, environmental issues, global warming, green, green changes, green future, green hour, green living, green practice, green practices, green revolution, green tips, nature, organic, outdoor, rain, rain barrel, rain recycling, rainwater recycling, reuse, summer, summer ideas Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »

It’s Time To Reconnect With Nature Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009 Now that summer is upon us, we have a bit more leisure time….or at least our kids do.  They still may be on camp schedules, but it is important to include some un-scheduled, outdoor time.  Here are some nature related sites and articles I found worthy of reading:   • Earth Easy’s blog, Clearing a Path to Nature • Green Hour • NPR’s Morning Edition, Saving Kids from ‘Nature Deficit Disorder’ • Children and Nature Network   Here at Earth Promise, we’d love to hear about your summer plans that include and encourage children (and adults) to connect with nature.  What a great promise to make! Tags: camp, carbon footprint, change, changes, climate change, earth, earth promise, earthpromise, eco-friendly, education, energy, energy efficient, environment, environmental, environmental footprint, environmental issues, global warming, green, green changes, green future, green hour, green living, green practice, green practices, green revolution, green tips, nature, nature deficient, NPR, organic, outdoor, summer, summer ideas Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments »