Tag Archive: fall

Green Family Friday – October 2, 2009

We may have started the fall conversation almost two weeks ago, but there is something about the first of October that makes the season more official. And that’s even aside from the hard layer of frost I had to scrape from my windshield first thing yesterday morning.

As temperatures drop and day light wanes keeping green families busy gets tougher, but not impossible. As a matter of fact, it seems most of us are thinking along the same lines these days — gardening and preparation are the name of the game.

5 Minutes for Going Green reader, Shannon, shares two wonderful blog posts with us this week.

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A Fall Garden for All

Victory Garden Bounty Circa 1941-1945 on Flickr

Victory Garden Bounty Circa 1941-1945 on Flickr

The fall garden used to be something that only experienced backyard growers took on. Those that had a few good summers filled with ripe tomatoes and wax-free bell peppers still warm from the sun. In a throwback to the era of Victory Gardens and self-sustainability spurred by eco-consciousness however, fall gardens are rising in popularity almost as much as their summer counterparts. In fact, the word on the street is that this year even the White House will have a fall garden. And if the White House can do it, so can you. Even if you do lack gobs of more-than-qualified staff to do your dirty work.

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First Weekly ‘Green Family Friday’

Family Fun Big or small, traditional or uniquely unconventional, all human or composed of those that stand on more than 2 legs as much as those that do; families are beautiful things. At 5 Minutes for Going Green, we value families and the things — both big and small — that they do together to be a little more friendly to our planet. That’s why we’re excited to announce our first weekly Green Family Friday .

Each week we’ll be collecting tips, tricks and ideas for green weekend activities from families just like yours! And every Friday morning we’ll feature them here.

Looking for something to do?

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All The Brown Material You’ll Ever Need For Your Compost Bin

At my house there is never a shortage of green material (also known as wet or nitrogen-rich matter) – orange peels, corn husks, dinner food scraps, yard waste, etc. – for my compost bin, but when it comes to finding brown (also known as dry or carbon-rich) material, in the past I’ve often ended up coming up short. The trick, of course, to getting compost to work and breakdown into that coveted nutrient-rich soil is to have the right combination of both green and brown matter.

About a year ago, however, I posted my first Green Tip of the Week suggesting that my readers keep a bag or two (or three) of their dry fall leaves to use throughout the coming year as brown material to add to their compost pile or bin.

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