Written on
September 22, 2009 by
DianaP
In the spirit of yesterday’s topic, A Fall Garden for All, today we’re partnering with EcoSMART to help one lucky reader win a Plant & Garden Value Bundle containing; Weed and Grass Killer, Garden Fungicide, Garden Insect Killer and Insect Repellent — all made with EcoSMART’s child, pet and environmentally friendly formula.
From their website:
Since EcoSMART’s proprietary botanical oil blends attack attributes that are specific only to pests, they have no effect on people, pets or the environment. The primary active ingredients in EcoSMART products are approved as Direct Food Additives or classified as GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) by the U.S.
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Written on
September 21, 2009 by
DianaP

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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Written on
September 18, 2009 by
DianaP
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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Written on
July 18, 2009 by
SusanC
It seems everywhere you look these days, someone is touting a new easy way to be green. These pushes to be green seem to crop up once every 15 years or so. Just think back to the early 90’s when Captain Planet ruled the airwaves and everyone wanted to be an eco-warrior. I even had a Little Archie comic where he started recycling at his school and roller-bladed as many places as he could. McDonald’s gave out tree seedlings with their meals. I got paid for my cans. Then it disappeared for a bit it seemed.
There were those of us that never backed down from being “tree-huggers” but most everyone else dropped it like it was a passing trend.
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Written on
June 23, 2009 by
SusanC
We received an awesome 338! comments on the NoPlastic.ca giveaway post, and today I have two! lucky winners to announce.
These two gals were chosen at random via the integer generator at Random.org.
Without further adieu, congratulations! to:
Commenter #42, Theresa!
Commenter #118, Heather H!
You’ve each won a stainless steel water bottle set. (Total value: around $30 USD, per set.)

Thanks to everyone for entering!
Happy! Tuesday, all.
An original 5 Minutes for Going Green post. Read more about all things Kerri Anne, including her renewed commitment to green living and her affinity for talking in movie quotes at kerrianne.org
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Written on
June 17, 2009 by
SusanC
Every week or so we use this space to feature a recycled note or three from some of our favorite online sources. This week we’re showcasing the hand-drawn recycled notes from the Oxford-based Etsy shop, Squirrel In The Attic.

A little bit about Squirrel In The Attic, in their own words:
You know how sometimes you want a greeting card to simply say “hey”, but still want your recipient to feel special, knowing the card was chosen just for them? Well, here at Squirrel in the Attic, we produce hand drawn greeting cards that do just that by coupling the word “hey” with a fun descriptive noun.
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Written on
June 5, 2009 by
SusanC
I think by now most of us know we as a society and a planet use too much plastic on a daily basis. We’ve talked about it on the site before, about where our plastic goes to die live forever in our oceans, and about proactive ways to minimize our reliance on plastic.
I’m happy to introduce you to NoPlastic.ca, a Toronto-based green business helping consumers lessen their plastic footprint with every product they sell. Their passion and focus?
They’re here to help you clean your food from the outside in.
The story behind NoPlastic.ca:
We use enough plastics on a daily basis!
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Written on
June 3, 2009 by
SusanC
Every week or so we use this space to feature a recycled note or three from some of our favorite online sources. This week I thought I thought I’d switch it up a bit and feature two recycled notebooks from an extremely talented Australian artist, Esta Sketch.
I love the fact that they’re discarded sketches re-purposed into artistic and usable notebooks. Which makes every one them (lovely, and) one-of-a-kind!
Recycled Art Notebook (blue)


From the seller:
This is a handbound notebook constructed from cartridge paper and silk screen prints. The cover features one of my ‘comfort’ prints that didn’t turn out perfectly.
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As much as I love summer, it definitely has its drawbacks, mostly in the form of humidity, weeds, and mosquitoes.
There’s nothing I can do about the humidity, but I’d really really like to get rid of the other two. With a dog running around, I’m even more reluctant to turn to chemicals than I was before, but I’ve got to do something.
I’m always on the lookout for green pest control tips that work, but so far, I’ve come up a bit short. So I thought I’d turn to the 5m4gg readers, and see what you have tried and tested.
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Written on
May 28, 2009 by
SusanC
Every week or so we use this space to feature a recycled note or three from some of our favorite online sources. This week we’re showcasing the beautifully designed and playful cards from AC Bohman Designs, a North Carolina based freelance designer with an etsy shop filled with unique recycled cards.
Here are just a few of my favorites:
Rad Father’s Day Card

From the seller:
This A2 sized card is made of heavy eco-white stock and flat printed with a vintage illustration (in black) and typewriter text (in red). Paired with a recycled kraft envelope and packaged in a clear archival sleeve.
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