It is important to gain control over what goes into your mouth. Understanding where your food comes from is great for your body and the health of the environment, but starting another container tomato plant or a itty-bitty herb garden in your kitchen window can start to get old after a while. If you’re sick of sprouting greens and eager to try your green thumb at something new, the wonderful world of mushrooms might be calling your name.

Cast off your concerns that all homegrown mushrooms are poisonous. That’s something mothers tell young children to prevent them from chomping on a death cap in the backyard. In truth, there are dozens of mushroom varieties that you can grow right at home, all without putting your health at risk. Best of all, homegrown mushrooms are incredibly tasty and versatile. Rich in flavor and easy to toss into any recipe, homegrown mushrooms infuse an earthy taste into every dish you add them to, all for far less cost than buying them at the store.

What is a Mushroom, Anyways?

Not a plant or a vegetable, mushrooms are in their own fungal family. Often called saprophytes or organisms that extract nutrients from decomposing plants and animals, mushrooms get their nutrients by breaking down tree stumps, leaves and other material on the forest floor. Scientists estimate that there are over 140,000 species of mushrooms in the world today, though less than 10% have been fully studied at this time. However, the ones that have withstood scientific scrutiny are nothing less than impressive. Ranging in color, texture, shape and toxicity, mushrooms open an entire world of culinary adventures, though only a small number of edible mushrooms actually make it to the supermarket shelves.

Benefits Of Eating Mushrooms

No other food can quite compare to the health benefits of mushrooms. Not only can regular consumption help reduce your risk of developing breast cancer and diabetes, but mushrooms also naturally lower bad cholesterol levels and fill you up with protein, vitamins, antioxidants and more. Mushrooms are full of valuable substances like riboflavin, pantothenic acid, folate, thiamine, and niacin. As they are the only naturally vegan dietary source of vitamin D, mushrooms can naturally help inhibit the growth of cancer cells. One cup of stir fried shiitake mushrooms provides 3 grams of fiber, which helps you feel full for longer after your meal. Because most varieties are almost 90% water, mushrooms are extremely low in calories but still make for a top rate meat substitute that will leave you feeling satisfied.

Top Reasons to Grow Your Own Mushrooms

Your mushroom experiences have been stunted if you haven’t branched out beyond boring portabello mushrooms. Despite what you might think, growing your own mushrooms doesn’t require acres of farmland or specialized knowledge. All you need to get started is a little knowledge, the right spores, and motivation. The techniques for mushroom cultivation tend to be very basic, meaning that a little experience will take you a long way towards becoming self-sufficient and sustainable with your fungi consumption.

Top Three Types to Grow Yourself

Risotto fans, rejoice! Growing your own mushrooms is a simple way to enjoy the benefits of these fascinating fungi, and there are dozens of delicious mushroom varieties that are simple for the beginner to grow. Once you start growing one of these three mushroom varieties, you will soon start branching out into ever fancier varieties to grow. But be warned; mushroom cultivation is addictive, and once you start, it’s too hard to stop.

Pearl Oyster Mushrooms

You don’t need lots of yard space to grow these guys. With the smallest amount of effort, homegrown pearl oyster mushrooms can be yours to enjoy. All it takes is a plastic container full of something you throw away every day without thinking: coffee grounds.

To make these mushrooms work, you’ll need to collect more than two gallons of coffee grounds. If your caffeine consumption can’t quite handle that rate, simply visit your local coffee shop and see what kinds of grounds they have to spare. You’ll be sure to come home with more than you need.

Once you have enough grounds to get started, add them to a two-gallon bucket and blend pre-bought mushroom spores into the top inch of coffee grounds. Use a spray bottle to keep the spore-soaked grounds moist, and cover the bucket with plastic wrap. Punch six or more holes into the plastic wrap. For an even better effect, you can also drill holes in the bucket just a few inches above the top of the grounds so that CO2 from growing mushrooms can escape with ease. Put the bucket in a warm, dark place and spray it down twice a day to keep it moist. In a matter of weeks, small mushrooms will start to appear that can be easily harvested and eaten. Once your bucket seems to slow down its production, you can swap out those grounds and get started with fresh ones.

Lion’s Mane Mushrooms

If you want to grow something that truly stands out, lion’s mane mushrooms might be the variety for you. These softball-sized clusters of white fungi grow with long, white spines down the sides that look like the long hairs made famous on the King of the Savannah. Not only do lion’s mane mushrooms taste amazing when sauteed with other vegetables, they also have been shown to have plenty of neurotropic capabilities and are excellent brain boosters, especially for people suffering from Alzheimer’s and dementia. grow bagAll you need to get started is a grow bag. Mushroom grow bags come with roughly 5lbs of sterilized spawn that have been inoculated into a substrate. When kept in ideal growing conditions, most bags can produce

A grow bag is all you need to get started. Mushroom grow bags come with roughly 5lbs of sterilized spawn that have been inoculated into a substrate. When kept in ideal growing conditions, most bags can produce more than a pound of stunning lion’s mane mushrooms.

Keep your bag unopened until you’re ready to fruit it (refrigerators work best). Once you start to see white mycelium starting to form throughout the bag it is ready to fruit. At this time, set the bag on a dinner plate or shallow container and keep it somewhere where it will get light and consistent humidity. Make a small slit in a place where the white fungus is extra thick, being careful not to cut into the block. Next, roll down the top of the bag so that it’s tight against the block and pull a piece of fabric over the bag to keep it in the dark. Keep the fabric wet by misting it with a spray bottle a few times a day, checking it repeatedly to see if the mushrooms have grown (this usually takes a few weeks).

Once you start to see a large mushroom growing out of the slit, you can harvest it by twisting and pulling it out of the block. Don’t use a knife, as it might contaminate the block. It’s easy to enjoy your giant mushroom in your favorite dish. If you keep the block moist for several more weeks, you should get additional mushrooms to form through the same hole.

Shiitake Mushrooms

Popular in Asian cooking, shiitake mushrooms are full of flavor and have a highly distinctive, almost meat-like texture. They are delicious when sauteed or baked, and tend to be big successes at farmers markets or natural food stores because they are simple to dry out and can be re-hydrated in a matter of minutes to restore the full flavor. Though shiitake mushrooms are well suited for a small mushroom business, they are also an ideal mushroom for first-time growers to start with if they want to learn how mushroom logs work.

Like many mushroom types, shiitakes need to be grown on hardwood logs that stay moist, well shaded, and out of the way of fierce winds. While oak wood tends to work best, any hardwood can work in a pinch. The best time to cut down mushroom logs is in the late winter in order to allow them plenty of time to set before getting inoculated in the early spring. Logs that are between 3-8 inches are ideal, and each log shouldn’t be longer than 3-4 feet. Make sure to choose logs with intact bark, as gaps provide perfect openings for wild spores to get inside and compromise your mushrooms.

In order to inoculate your logs, a high-speed drill is necessary to drill holes that are one inch deep, 5/16 inches in diameter, and spaced six inches apart. After drilling, you can fill each whole with a mix of sawdust and shiitake spores, and then seal the mixture in place by covering the top with melted cheese wax.

Once the logs are inoculated, they need between six months to a year for the spores to fully spread throughout the log in a thread-like network called the spawn run. Throughout these months, the mushroom logs need to be stacked in piles that allow for good air flow while still being protected from wind and rain. The best strategy is to shoot for 35-45 percent moisture content at all times and keep the logs off the bare ground in order to prevent contamination from strains of wild fungi.

After the spawn run is complete, the shiitake mushrooms will start to pop up from the log every few days. Once the caps are just about completely open they are ready to be harvested. It’s easy for mushrooms to go from almost ready to overripe in a matter of hours, so make sure to check your logs often to ensure they are being harvested enough. Once harvested, shiitakes can be stored for many months so long as you keep them in well-ventilated containers or dry them out before storage. After the harvest of most of the logs fruiting bodies, it’s best to let it rest for the next few months in order to give the mycelium in the logs time to regain their energy in order to bloom again. When taken care of in this way, most shiitake mushroom logs can fruit for 2-8 years with no problems.

In Summary

The wild and wonderful world of mushroom cultivation is not to be underestimated. If your only experience with mushrooms has been the boring button varieties at grocery stores, the time has come to branch out. Start out with one of these three simple strategies for cultivating your own mushrooms, and you’ll soon be a fungi fanatic who can’t leave them alone.

Related products:

• Mushrooms (Nutritional)

Related Reading:

• Medicinal Mushrooms
• The Unique Mushroom that Balances Hormones
• Mushrooms Boost Your Immunity
• Shiitake Mushrooms Can Help Prevent Cervical Cancer, Study Finds
• How To Kill Candida, Fungi, Yeast in the Body
• 10 Most Profitable Vegetables To Grow

Sources:

• Health Benefits of Mushrooms – Organic Facts
• Vitamin D Health Benefits – Mercola
• How to Grow Pearl Oyster Mushrooms – Everything Mushrooms
• How To Grow Lion’s Mane in a Grow Bag – Sow True Seeds
• Getting Started With Shiitake Mushrooms – Living Echo

Living a life that’s light on the planet is important to you. Why else would you be on this site? You probably buy organic whenever possible and reject gas-guzzling SUVs in favor of eco-friendly engine options. Perhaps you only permit planet-safe products to join you in the shower by choosing natural body washes. However, one glaring area of the American lifestyle has been grotesquely missed by the natural living trend. If you’re like most people, there’s a really good chance you don’t think twice about the chemicals your clothes keep close to your skin every day.

Few possessions are more intimately used than the clothes on your body. Doesn’t it make sense to keep toxic chemicals far away from them?

Laundry Detergent? It Can’t Be THAT Bad… Can It?

Oh, but it can. Take the time to read the ingredients list on your regular detergent sometime. How many terms do you recognize? While smart sounding scientific names aren’t always a sign that a product is loaded with toxins, in the case of most detergents this isn’t far from the truth.

In fact, research has shown that the laundry room is usually one of the most polluted rooms in your entire house. Detergents are to blame. These prettily packaged products are filled with as many as 25 volatile organic compounds- seven of which have been shown to be toxic to breathe in. For this reason, the EPA considers the air inside your home to be as much as five times more polluted than the great outdoors. Yikes.

Detergent’s Cost to the Natural World

The danger in detergents comes from their scents. Far removed from their natural-sounding names, most laundry fragrances are actually a cocktail of chemicals designed to degrade as slowly as possible to give you a “just been cleaned” feeling all day long.

Your mind might associate these scents with pleasant vistas and spring fed streams, but the truth is that these chemicals are actually actively destroying the places they make you reminisce about. The status quo for the EPA is to let the vast majority of these chemicals pass through the cracks of their testing every year, assuming that the majority of their chemical creations are “safe until proven otherwise”. This makes the detergent-buying population into non-consenting guinea pigs happy to smell like a mountain spring, unaware of the damage they are unintentionally doing to these same sacred wild spaces.

When you do a load of laundry, you are fouling our limited water supply with toxic chemicals that eventually make their way into rivers and ponds. The soap in detergents actually “cleans off” the natural mucous on fish scales, making it easy for fish to absorb any of the 80,000 different chemicals used commercially in the United States directly through their skin. These chemicals have a range of impacts, from reducing the effectiveness of breeding to killing fish eggs and even causing widespread deaths throughout vast swatches of water. Worst of all, this chemical damage works its way right up the food chain and stricken seabirds, larger fish, and even the humans who eat them.

The Sinister Effects For Your Health

Unbeknownst to most people, skin is your body’s biggest organ. This stretchy layer of cells actually operates as a semi-permeable barrier that lets plenty of microscopic substances shift in and out. This is great news for aromatherapy adherents and smokers relying on nicotine patches, but not so good if you look too closely at your detergent label. Each of these chemicals, 4-dioxane, benzoxazolyl, polyalkylene quaternium-15:, can be found in most detergents. They are a big cause for concern if you care about your reproductive health, staving off allergic reactions, and staying cancer free.

Worst of all, these chemicals aren’t something you are exposed to only on laundry day. Instead, they come with you wherever your clothes go. Traces of these chemicals create fumes you constantly breathe in, and even tiny amounts can agitate your breathing and cause headaches, neurological problems, and allergy flare-ups.

If that’s not enough to scare you off, keep in mind that the long-term effects of these combinations of chemicals are almost completely unknown.

Sustainable Alternatives to Commercial Detergents

Unless you shed your layers and opt to join a nudist colony instead, washing your clothes is probably not optional. However, you have plenty of control over the kinds of chemicals you expose your cotton to. Below are some of my all-time favorite detergent alternatives that will keep your clothes clean without putting your health or the environment at risk.

Toss aside your dreadful detergent bottle and try one (or all) of these clothes cleaning methods instead! Trust me, you won’t be going back.

Soap Nuts

Why use detergent at all? In truth, soap nuts are an out of the box way to clean your clothes that still manages to be shockingly effective. As the fruits of the Mukorossi tree, soap “nuts” are native to the Himalayas, though they are grown in arid climates around the world. The Mukorossi tree’s gift to the world is that its berries are filled with a natural surfactant called saponin that naturally interacts with water in a way that agitates dirt off clothing, binds dirt particles to soap molecules, and makes it simple to wash these particles directly down the drain.

Besides their effectiveness for keeping clothes clean, there’s a lot to like about soap nuts. Not only do they thrive in areas ill-suited for other kinds of agriculture, they also prevent erosion on the steep mountain slopes where they grow best. They are a perfect option for gray water systems because the nuts are 100% biodegradable and actually act as a natural form of fertilizer wherever they end up. Best of all, soap nuts require minimal packaging and often come in eco-friendly boxes that are a cinch to recycle.

At first glance, these nuts may seem confusing to use, but in truth, the process couldn’t be simpler. All you need to do is place five nuts in a drawstring bag (normally included with your nut purchase) and toss it into the washing machine. No need to fret about pulling the nuts about before the start of the rinse cycle; they can stay right in until the very end! You can also say goodbye to fabric softeners and other detergents, as these simple nuts will do it all. In most cases, you can get five to ten washes out of your nuts before they become papery thin and translucent. At this point, it’s time to toss them in the compost bin and start again.

Looking to buy some soap nuts? They can be found online through many organic distributors like Eco Nuts.

Homemade Detergents

If you’re looking to stick with cleaning solutions a little more familiar, there are plenty of ways to make your own homemade detergents that get your clothes as clean as any chemical-laden commercial product. Not only will you be making your health a priority, you’ll also be saving money and becoming more self-sufficient in the process.

Here are some simple tips to make eco-friendly swaps in your laundry routine.

Switch out your fabric softener and add a ½ cup white vinegar to the rinse cycle.

Baking soda is a great way to scrub away stains and brighten colors. Just make a simple pre-treatment with baking soda, water, and washing soda to get a deep cleanse for your clothes.

Ditch your dryer sheets by making your own. All it takes is a few drops of essential oil added to a damp rag that’s thrown right in with your sodden laundry. You can also use recycled wool dryer balls to fluff up your clothes while reducing static.

Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent

This simple recipe is so easy it will quickly replace all your commercial detergent needs. Best of all, you can change the scent based on what type of soap you choose to use.

All you need to do is combine one bar of grated soap with 2 quarts water, and slowly heat the mix until the soap has fully dissolved. Next, add 4.5 gallons of piping hot tap water to a five-gallon bucket, and stir in 2 cups each of washing soda and borax. Pour in your stove top soap mixture and stir everything together. Cover the container and let it sit overnight before pouring it into easy to use containers. To use, all you need to do is add a half cup per medium load and your clothes will soon be clean and fresh.

If you have trouble finding washing soda at the store, you can make your own.

Homemade Laundry Powder

Why rely on liquids when powdered detergents are so much simpler to use? Not only are they easier to store, they also don’t need any preservation agents to keep them safe. You can make your own top quality laundry detergent by mixing three cups of Borax with two cups each of washing soda, grated, all natural soap (like Ivory Soap) and baking soda. Blend everything together and store it in an airtight container. To use, all you need to do is measure out two tablespoons for a medium sized load.

Homemade All-In-One Laundry Pods

If you can’t help your preference for convenient laundry solutions, you don’t have to forgo your favorite laundry pods if you’re committed to natural solutions. Instead, you can make your own single-use laundry pods with ease by following these instructions. Simply blend 1 ½ cups washing soda with a grated bar of natural soap and 2 Tbsp Epsom salts. After thoroughly mixing, and 3 Tbsp of hydrogen peroxide and ¼ cup vinegar. When mixed, add 15-20 drops of your favorite essential oil.

Once everything is blended together, it should resemble wet sand and clump well together. Cover a cookie pan with parchment paper and measure out rounded tablespoons of the mix, tapping them against the side of the bowl to ensure they clump together. Let these pods dry for eight hours before storing them in airtight containers. When it’s time to do a load, simple toss a pod right in with your clothes.

So, What Did We Learn?

If you’ve been thoughtless with your laundry habits in the past, the time has come to make a change for the better. Commercial detergents may make your clothing squeaky clean, but they come at a significant cost to health for you and the planet.

A better option? Turn towards sustainable laundry solutions and try out soap nuts or some homemade detergents to keep your clothes clean. You’ll save money, reduce the amount of obnoxious packaging ending up in landfills, and keep the planet in better shape for future generations to enjoy.

Clearly, swapping out your commercial detergent for a more sustainable solution is a change well worth making.

Recommended Reading:

• The Toxic Toothpaste Ingredients That You Need To Avoid For Good Oral Health
• How to Use Vinegar and Baking Soda to Clean Your Home
• Detox Cheap and Easy Without Fasting – Recipes Included
• How to Detoxify and Heal the Lymphatic System
• Holistic Guide to Healing the Endocrine System and Balancing Our Hormones

Sources:

• The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality – Consumer Product Safety Commission
  Introduction to Indoor Air Quality – EPA
• Detergents occurring in freshwater – Lenntech
• Ingredient Watch List: Polysorbate 20—It May Be Contaminated with Carcinogenic 1,4-Dioxane – Annmarie
• Ingredient Watch List: Quats, the Preservatives that May Release Formaldehyde and Exacerbate Asthma – Annmarie

I enjoy a lifelong love affair with books. My collection had grown to a formidable size before my last three moves. Knowing each living situation would be temporary, I culled my library down to its bare bones—the best of the best. I now have another favorite to add to my smaller, more selective collection that will accompany me wherever I go.

A Wilder Life: A Season-by-Season Guide to Getting in Touch with Nature by Celestine Maddy with Abbye Churchill is a beautiful, informative, thoughtful compilation of facts, recipes, DIY instructions, and more – a book designed to put you a little more in touch with nature and a lot more in touch with yourself.

Celestine Maddy takes you on a season-by-season journey under the headings: Growing, Cooking, Home & Self-Reliance, Beauty & Healing, and Wilderness. The Growing sections include a seasonal growing checklist along with plant profiles and numerous educational articles about various aspects of gardening. Do you want to learn how to make cheese or a simple homemade tomato sauce? How about sauerkraut or the basics of canning? If so, check out the Cooking sections. The Home & Self-Reliance Sections, the Beauty & Healing Sections, and the Wilderness sections read like a cross between the Foxfire books, modern prepper guides, and Mother Earth News with a little bit of whimsy thrown in for good measure. You can choose from how to find water in the wilderness and foraging for edible plants to making a tincture, a perfume, or a healing balm. The following is a recipe from the spring Cooking section:

Make a Simple Ricotta

Ricotta is an Italian form of fresh cheese usually made with sheep’s milk. Here we’ve substituted fresh cow’s milk and used vinegar as our acid. Experiment with using lemon juice and citric acid in place of vinegar to see how that affects the flavor.

Makes 1 cup

Ingredients

• 6 cups whole milk (unpasteurized if possible or not processed using ultra-high temperatures)
• 2 cups cream
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

Equipment

• Strainer
• Cheesecloth
• 4-quart pot

Directions

1. Line a strainer with damp cheesecloth and place over the sink.
2. In a 4-quart pot, combine the milk, cream, vinegar, and salt and bring the ingredients to a simmer (but do not let the mixture come to a boil , as this will burn your milk). After about 3 minutes, you should begin to see curds form and separate from the whey. Turn off the heat and remove the pot from the heat.
3. Pour the curds and the whey into the cheesecloth, allowing the whey to pass through the cloth. Let the mixture drain for 15 minutes.
4. Remove the cheesecloth from the strainer and twist the top closed to capture the curds in one ball. Gently but firmly squeeze the curds. You don’t want to remove all of the whey, just the majority of it.
5. The ricotta is now ready to eat or to incorporate into a recipe and will keep refrigerated for 1 to 2 days.

I highly recommend this book. Buy one for yourself and add it to your list of thoughtful gifts for others.

Find it on Amazon,  Barnes and Noble, and other sites.

Cleaning your oven with baking soda and vinegar will leave it sparkling clean and shiny, without you having to rely on dangerous chemicals. It is easy and very effective! All you will need is baking soda and white vinegar, some spare time, and a few home cleaning tools to do the job. Follow this step-by-step guide:

• Remove the interior items. Before you proceed with actual cleaning, you will need to remove oven racks, thermometer, pizza stone, etc.  Clean each of these as it is likely they have accumulated a lot of spills, too.
• Prepare your solution. You are going to need half a cup of baking soda and some water to create a paste-like mix. The goal is to add enough water to turn the soda into a spreadable paste that you are going to use instead of the usual commercial cleaning products.
• Coat the oven interior with the paste. Don some gloves and spread the baking soda/water paste on the interior of your oven. Try to be as thorough as possible, and don’t forget to coat the oven door as well.
• Let the paste sit overnight. Now that you have coated the oven interior, it is time to let the baking soda do its job. Let it sit overnight before you proceed with further cleaning.
• Wipe the baking soda paste. Now that the solution has had enough time to do its job, you must wipe it from the interior of your oven. Use a damp cloth for the job. Start with the door, as you might want to lean inside to get to the interior areas. Use a spatula to gently pick off baking soda that is hard to remove with the cloth.
• Spray with vinegar. After you have cleaned most of the baking soda, continue by spraying the interior with white vinegar. This will react with the leftover soda, making it easy to remove. Additionally, it will further sanitise your oven.
• Take your time to enjoy a restored oven. After you wipe the vinegar, you will notice the brand new shine of your oven.

For more eco-friendly cleaning methods be sure to check out the Tidy Up Blog.

Further Reading:

• How to Use Vinegar and Baking Soda to Clean Your Home
• Three Homemade Toothpaste Recipes – Better Oral Health for Less Cost
• Health Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar & How to Make Your Own
• Baking Soda: A Lot More Than Just a Baking Staple

When it comes to cleaning your home, how do you choose products? Marketing companies try to convince us that scrubbing bubbles or a bald genie will do all the work. These advertisements may entice much of the population to purchase these products, but chances are most of us choose cleaning products by habit. Many of us probably use buy the same household cleaners our parents used.

The problem is, these conventional cleaners are made with chemicals. They pollute our water, they pollute our homes, and they pollute our bodies. We come in contact with these toxic chemicals through our skin and we breathe in the fumes, long after we have finished using them.

In this toxic world, we are exposed to so many chemicals, why would we want to go to the store, buy more chemical solutions, and expose ourselves to a daily dose for the sake of cleaning? Is a toxic home a clean home? No! Of course not!

It’s time we skip a generation or two and learn how to clean from our grandparents or great grandparents. Two of their best-kept secrets were vinegar and baking soda.

Use Vinegar to Clean

Vinegar, plain white vinegar, is a great non-toxic cleaner. It removes odors and is great for lifting dirt. And don’t worry, the smell of vinegar does not last.

• Add a cup of vinegar to a bucket of warm water to clean wood, linoleum, and tile floors. (Do NOT use on stone floors.)
• Mix equal parts of vinegar to water in a spray bottle to clean mirrors, windows, countertops, refrigerators, walls, and more. (Do not use on granite or marble counters or tables.)
• Mix with an equal amount of olive oil to use as a furniture polish and to remove glass rings from wooden furniture.
• Freeze vinegar in an ice cube tray – use to clean disposals.
• Use full strength to disinfect cutting boards.
• Use full strength to clean mildew in showers or on patio furniture.
• Add one cup of vinegar to final laundry rinse for soft soap-residue free laundry. (Use with Dr. Bronners liquid soap to wash your clothes. Works great!)
• Soak rusted tools or nut and bolts in full strength vinegar for several days. Takes dried paint out of paintbrushes, too.
• Remove glued on tags and stickers with full strength vinegar.
• Add 1-2 cups to the bottom of the dishwasher to make dishes and glasses shine. (Use in a regular cycle along with your soap).
• A mixture of 1 part vinegar, 1 part lemon juice, and 2 parts water was able to eliminate 99.9% of E.coli, Listeria and Staphylococcus bacteria from surfaces. The acidic nature of vinegar makes it a good disinfectant that is also effective against mold.
• Equal parts salt, vinegar, and borax makes a great stain remover for carpets and fabrics.

Use Baking Soda to Clean and Remove Odors

Baking soda is also an excellent cleaner and odor remover.

• Sprinkle baking soda on countertops, stovetops, or inside refrigerators. Scrub with a damp rag. Rinse with a clean wet rag.
• Make a paste with water to clean ovens. Leave on overnight. Wipe out with clean wet rag the next day. You can also make a paste with hydrogen peroxide and baking soda for really stubborn caked on food.
• Sprinkle baking soda in pans with burned on food. Add hot water and soak overnight.
• Add to wash load – you can even replace half of your laundry soap with baking soda.
• Make a paste with water to clean the bathroom sink, tub, tile, and toilet.
• Sprinkle baking soda in trashcans before and after adding trash bags.
• Sprinkle baking soda on the dog and brush.
• Soak diapers in a solution of baking soda before washing to remove odors. (Great addition to diaper pails).
• Sprinkle baking soda on carpets, let stand for 15-20 minutes and vacuum to remove odors.
• Leave an open box of baking soda in the refrigerator.
• Add to kitty litter to control odors.

Combine Baking Soda and Vinegar

It seems to be all the rage to combine these two wonderful cleaning products together, but basic chemistry puts a damper on this. One is an acid and one is a base, and the result when you mix the two is essentially water; they cancel each other out.

Have you used vinegar or baking soda in other ways to clean? If you have, please let us know.

Recommended Reading:

• Three Homemade Toothpaste Recipes – Better Oral Health for Less Cost
• Total Nutrition – Make your own Homemade Multivitamin and Mineral Formula
• 35 Things You Could Do With Coconut Oil – From Body Care to Health to Household

Resources:

• The Vinegar Institute
• 5+ Household Uses for Vinegar – RD
• 27 Ways to Clean with Baking Soda – The New Homemaker
• Do Natural Cleaners Work? – GoGreen

Christmas is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated and loved holidays of the year. It’s easy to get so carried away in the festivities you forget about the environment. If you are a true eco-friendly person or wish to become one, give each of the following tips a thought, and take the necessary steps for a beautifully green Christmas.

Christmas Trees

Have you ever wondered whether it’s better to buy an artificial Christmas rather than a real one? An artificial tree can be used year after year, but many of them are made with dangerous chemicals that add to environmental pollution during production. Besides, every eco-friendly person knows that there is nothing quite like the fresh smell of a natural Christmas tree to complement the holiday. Choose your tree from a certified farm that is sustainable and responsible, and consider a live tree you can plant after the holidays.

Christmas Cards

Send e-cards instead of paper ones. We live in a digital age, a time when people have access to the internet through smart devices and phones. If you choose eco-friendly e-cards, you can personalize each card, choosing music or animation. Considering the fact that Christmas cards usually end up in the trash, isn’t it time to consider environmentally conscience alternatives?

Christmas Presents

Pick your presents wisely. There is no need to go overboard. Buy less and buy local. This is the greenest action you can take this Christmas. Tons of products come to the U.S. from China along with a huge carbon footprint. If you buy local, you are supporting local suppliers and minimizing your environmental impact.

Christmas Decorations

Reuse decorations. You don’t really need to buy decorations every year. Instead, you can reuse the décor from last year. If you are feeling particularly creative, you can create your own decorations instead of buying them. That way you will not only save on money, but also reduce the clutter of your home.

Go through the items you are about to throw away and see if you can use anything. One great example is reusing paper from packaging into custom-made gift packets. Simply draw a shape on two layers of paper and stitch the two pieces together. All of those Christmas cards you received in previous years that are too cute to be thrown away can be glued together to make a thematic wreath to hang wherever you please. Acquire some acrylic paint and use it to turn your food jars into Christmas characters, such as Santa, snowman or a greeny elf – a fantastic addition to any Christmas décor.

It really isn’t that hard to transform your Christmas into a green one. All you need is to turn to your environmentally-cautious mind and think of what ways you can make your holiday is less taxing to nature. Be sure to check out the Handy Rubbish Blog for more information on recycling and green living topics.

Further Reading:

Eco-Friendly Toys: Tips for Keeping Kids and the Planet Safe

What Do Natural, Organic, and Non-GMO Actually Mean?

Five Easy Home Improvements to Make Your Home Green and Healthy

Seven Easy Ways to Make Your Home More Energy Efficient

Sources:

The Guardian – Pollution articles

Who doesn’t love helping the environment?  We no longer want large water heaters or other expensive features. Smart buyers are looking for environmentally friendly choices. Water, specifically, is an area ripe for improvement.

The benefits of going green are twofold. First, it adds appeal and versatility to your home, offering unique value compared to other homes lacking these features. Secondly, of course, is that many of these items add actual financial value, both in terms of property value and savings on bills!

Whether you’re currently looking to sell, simply want to live a greener life, or just want to keep your options open in the future, these solutions offer fantastic benefits for everyone.

Harness The Rain

If you live in an area with plenty of rain, turn this to your advantage. Rain collectors can harness this resource for dish washing and other uses around the home, helping to cut down on water bills. However, this water isn’t entirely clean, so it can’t be used for drinking.

That being said, you can add a filter to purify the water for various home uses. This is often where the real value comes in, as it can then be used to provide free shower and tap water! Once you have an effective system set up, you’ll rarely need to use muniipal water.

Organic Gardens

A well-kept garden can do wonders for a home’s price tag, but an organic one also serves a purpose. Whether it’s a large vegetable patch or a simple raised bed, any garden can introduce organic crops. While these will improve your value, they’ll also provide tasty and healthy veggies in the meantime.

Just remember that a key to understanding property value lies in thinking like a buyer. A ready-to-go organic garden helps ease buyers into a better lifestyle and suggests at how green the wider property already is.

The Water Boiler

Even if you have an effective collection system for rainwater, every home still needs hot water. How you heat your water matters a great deal. Your average boiler uses gas or electricity, both of which are power-heavy, to heat water throughout the home.

An efficient boiler, on the other hand, helps save money and adds to the property’s value both financially and in terms of environmental awareness. It will also help improve your home’s energy efficiency, helping to create another vital selling point.

Natural Water Features

Speaking of the garden, how many homes these days feature a water feature of some sort? Most people may think of pools, but these require a lot of clean water and expensive pumps. Still, some simple landscaping can create features that use natural rain water, reducing your need for maintenance and imported water.

A fountain can recycle rainwater, for instance, while a pond serves as an aesthetically pleasing feature. Tastefully done, adding these add little touches to a well-finished garden, increases the value without added bills or running costs.

Water Usage

While cutting down on how much water you use will help keep bills low, it doesn’t influence your home’s value until you make some physical changes. Taps, pipes, and showers all use water, so determining just how much water they use is key.Eco showers speak for themselves, but what else can you do?

Tap inserts can be fitted in your kitchen and sink to ensure a full spray of water without wasting it at the same time. These little features help cut down on water without changing your lifestyle, making them easier to advertise and display if your home ends up on the market.

Similarly, for the extra passionate homeowners, a bathwater diverter can re-direct or collect used bath water into an outside container for use in the garden. If you combine this with a rainwater system, just think how effective this will be. These physical installations add instant value to your home as new buyers can easily see the savings.

Conclusion

So, there you have it – 5 effective ways to help improve your property value and save the environment. How you choose to implement these depends on your home, of course. Not everyone has space for a pond, but even the smallest organic patch will help. Your home should proudly showcase its green lifestyle, making its water-savvy features tempting for anyone looking to buy in the area.

Recommended Reading:

• Is the Water In Your Rainwater Tank Safe to Drink? – 4 Pumps
• Detox Cheap and Easy Without Fasting – Recipes Included
• Natural Cleaning Solutions For Your Home
• Zombie Foreclosures Are Bad For The Environment
• 5 Easy Home Improvements To Make Your Home Green And Healthy
• How to Save Money on Your Water Bill

Sources:

• The best domestic water-saving gadgets – The Guardian
• Six Ways To Improve Your Home Value With Water – 4 Pumps
• Gorgeous Landscaping Ideas: Trees, Lighting, and Retaining Walls –Houslogic
• Add Value to Your Investment Properties with Organic Gardens – BiggerPockets
• How it can pay to go green: The energy efficiency measures that could add 16% to your home’s value – This is MONEY