Landscape Fabric Blues

I am hereby convinced that landscape fabric is too much of a hassle to even bother with.  It works only until there is enough humus (hew-mus, not hum-es.  The latter is a delicious chickpea dip!)on top of it and then weeds start sprouting and their roots go into the fabric and it's all a mess.  I learned this while trying to weed a garden bed that was left unattended for, who knows how long.  The hardest part was trying to pierce this fabric to allow a few annuals to grow.  PAIN  IN ASS!

Landscape fabric is more or less intended to give certain plants room to grow, and then they would take up the mantle of weed fighting.  Upon reading Lasagna Gardening (got it for .99..sooooo worth it anyway) I learned about using newspaper!  Sweet!  A cheap, biodegradable weed barrier that will break down and feed the soil! It works too!

Simply start saving newspapers.  Place them around the bed in layers 5 pages thick.  TADAA!!  It's a bit trickier to work with until you get either mulch or water to hold it down, and it doesnt come in nice big sheets like other fabrics do.  If you were doing this for a large bed you could purchase the end rolls of newspaper from a newspaper printer, and just put down 5 layers of it.


Look it up!  Check it out!

MMT

www.marcandangel.com/2010/12/27/101-short-stories-that-will-leave-you-smiling-crying-and-thinking/


Today, in the cutest voice, my 8-year-old daughter asked me to start recycling. I chuckled and asked, “Why?” She replied, “So you can help me save the planet.” I chuckled again and asked, “And why do you want to save the planet?” “Because that’s where I keep all my stuff,” she said.

Recycled Gardening

I never seem to have much money.  I'm also just cheap.  I hate buying things when I can make something cheaper and weirder.  Here are a few pictures, ideas I thought were pretty cool!

Planters

Coffee cans
Maybe it is because they are such a happy colour against a brick wall, but I loooove these!

Simply poke holes in the bottom for drainage, scuff up the can with sandpaper and paint with a metal paint.


Outgrown rain boots.

These are very colourful, cheerful, and a good way to recycle worn and and outgrown boots.
Just add holes, dirt and hang.




These, I just think are funny/clever

Decor

Glass Chandelier
WantWantWantWant!!  This one is made with glass yogurt bottles, beaded chain and a circular cooling rack.  It looks like you tie the chain to the jars then to the rack.  Add super fine pebbles and tea lights.




Mirrors

This is really a nice touch.  Mirrors can make any garden (or room) appear larger.  Perhaps you should add a ledge to them so birds can admire themselves.

Piano keys
I added this because my fiance is a music nerd.  :)

Effective way of fighting litter

Toilet Paper Seed Pots

I actually did this today.  Super easy and it makes you less unhappy when your spouse/kids forget to change the roll.

Simply cut a TP roll in half length-wise and cut 4-1/2" tabs on the bottom and fold in like you would for a box.

Fill them up with a germination mix and when you start getting true leaves just plant the whole tube into the ground or pot or wherever.

These are bio-degradable and as they de-grade they'll eventually feed the soil for the next year!


There are probably many sites with different ways of doing it and with pictures, but I found it at this website.

Facebook

I admit it, I love Facebook.  I usually live under a rock or just in my head, so it's hard to keep up on things, people, and jokes.  I seriously spend more time on it looking at the funny memes.
Anyway, today I'm loving it because of the news I get.  I've been more active in signing petitions, sharing hopes and failures in the political and natural, as well as, well, being an active member of society.

Today I want to share some happy things I found in my feed.  The small things we do ALWAYS help!


Minneapolis zoning changes would expand gardening options

When I saw this article I seriously thought it was about climate zoning.  They are changing the zones so any food you grow on your property, within city limits, can be sold.

By Karen Boros | 02/29/12

If one of your dreams has been to leave city life behind and move to the country where you could have a serious garden, I have good news. Country living could be coming to your backyard in Minneapolis.
The gardening options under consideration include everything from keeping honeybees to establishing urban farms that include community gardens, composting, farm stands, hoop houses and market gardens.
Minneapolis now prohibits growing food as a business in a city yard, but that would change with a series of proposed new zoning rules.
“I would like to see someday where somebody is getting their livelihood off this,” said Council Member Cam Gordon, who, along with his staff, spent the winter talking to gardeners about what they need to be more productive in an urban setting.

continue to article...

The Pedal-A-Watt Stationary Bike Power Generator

Apparently this little device was shown during the Super Bowl.  Using a regular bike in good condition and the calorie-burning power of perpetual motion you can now charge a 400 watt/35 volt generator.  This is enough to power small appliances.

The Pedal-A-Watt bicycle stand keeps the user fit while creating power that may be used to power lights and/or other small appliances.
Any bicycle that is in good shape will work with the Pedal-a-Watt Stand as the stand adjusts to fit any wheel size including children's bikes.
The average rider will produce between 125 and 300 watts using the Pedal-a-Watt. While this may not seem like much power, many pieces of equipment draw very little power and can be powered for long spans of time with small amounts of power. For example, a laptop only draws 70 watts so one 20 minute workout could run the laptop for over an hour.

Price seems a bit steep to me ($339.00), but I have no idea how much such things cost.  It's worth a look-see.                                                     continue to article...

Recycle for Rainforests

The Minneosta Zoo is offering free admission for the price of a used cell phone.  March 1-16 get in for free by donating your old unused cellphone that day.  This is useful to keep hazardous material from our landfills, and you can go see the monkeys... awesome deal!

for more info about free admission

Recycle for Rainforests' site

I don't know about you, but I'm hoping to do this for my birthday!