How is it that people turn garden waste and kitchen scraps into “black gold” that they can use in and on the soil around their trees, flowers, shrubs, vegetables and plants? The rotting process that happens when organic materials are piled on top of one another, layered and kept moist produces the best thing in the world for things that grow: compost. Compost that is placed on the soil’s surface actually feeds the soil and helps it to drain better. It also attracts worms and causes all kinds of microbial activity, which is so healthy for plants. Here are simple steps to get started:

1. Find a spot for your pile, away from vegetation and in a somewhat sunny spot.
2. Construct a wire cage that is a least 3′ X 3′.
3. Create a base of broken twigs. This allows air flow and drainage at the bottom of the pile.
4. Add a layer of leaves. Try to mix green and brown together. Green is nitrogen-rich and brown is carbon-rich. Add kitchen scraps too (never animal products as they will attract rodents).
5. You can speed up the decomposition process by adding one cup of blood meal, or finished compost which already has all of the necessary micro-organisms and bacterias.
6. Drizzle the pile with water to keep it moist and turn it.

For more information about composting see Eartheasy.

People can make small changes in everyday life to reap the benefits of huge water savings. The Environmental Protection Agency’s experts say that not only are our drought-prone states in big trouble with water shortages, but that sooner or later the rest of the country will be affected by shortages as well. Shocking but true: the average American citizen uses 1,600 cups of water per day. To do your part to help conserve this precious resource, here are some tips.

1. To see if your toilet is leaking water, simply place a drop of food coloring into the tank. If this color shows up in your toilet without flushing, unfortunately you’ve got a leak. Fixing this leak will save you 200 gallons of water per day.
2. Installing an aerator on kitchen or bathroom faucets cuts water use all the while keeping a smooth and high-pressure flow. Or, go for the gusto and install a high-efficiency shower head.
3. Install a high-efficiency toilet. They use anywhere between 20% and 60% less water than regular toilets.
4. Install a water re-circulating pump or even a tank less water heater.
5. Upgrading to an ENERGY STAR washing machine will save you 7,000 gallons of water per year. This is enough water to fill three backyard swimming pools!
6. When doing your spring planting, choose low-water use plants as well as drought-tolerant grass, ground covers, shrubs and trees.
7. Mulching also cuts down on the need to water.
8. Install timers and rain switches/sensors on your sprinklers .
9. Consider a drip irrigation system for your garden.

If everyone in the United States installed water-efficient appliances, our country would SAVE 3 trillion gallons of water, which equates to 18 billion dollars per year!

Not only is bamboo beautiful to look at, but it is one of the most sustainable materials out there. Other harvested hardwoods are clear-cut and then need another thirty years before harvesting again. Bamboo is a fast-growing grass and is used for so many things that when the last part of a stand of bamboo is harvested, it’s very likely that the first part has already recovered. In other words, it is almost impossible to deplete bamboo’s availability. When bamboo is used for flooring it is sliced, pressed, molded and then carbonized. Carbonization is when the bamboo is exposed to heat so that it will harden.

Bamboo flooring comes in traditional plank styles and is installed similarly to traditional hardwood flooring. It is made with a tongue and groove, an underlayment is set down and then the fitted pieces are tacked down with a nail gun. Bamboo flooring maintenance is almost identical to other hardwood flooring, except that water should be removed as quickly as possible as bamboo’s fibers will expand more easily. Simple sweeping and mopping with a gentle cleanser will be enough to keep it looking clean and beautiful. Avoid getting gashes in the wood as bamboo is more difficult to buff or fill in than hardwood flooring.