Greener Living #23-25

#23 Don't Just Dump: Envelopes come in huge quantities for free every day. If you are careful when opening letters, you can use the envelopes again by simply putting a label over the original address. This saves money and trees, while reducing waste. Try to re-use jars and plastic containers--for example, when taking your lunch to work. (Doing so prevents waste, and making your food at home is less expensive than the alternative.) Ask your office manager to buy re-useable mesh coffee filters instead of bleached paper ones, which may contain dioxins. They are tree-free and should save your company money.

#24 Avoid Disposable Goods: Institute a mug policy in your office. Americans throw away some 25 billion polystyrene cups each year, most of which end up in landfills. Refill your water bottles once or twice, and make your coffee in a ceramic mug. If you bring in cutlery from home, you will also cut down on those pesky plastic forks, knives and spoons.

#25 Grow Your Own Garden: In 1826, J.C. Loudon wrote in An Encyclopedia of Gardening, "For all things produced in a garden, whether salads or fruits, a poor man that has one of his own will eat better than a rich man that has none." To start a vegetable garden costs nothing but a few packs of seeds and rudimentary garden implements, and it saves enormous amounts of money, to say nothing of food miles and the packaging that go into supplying you with fresh fruits and vegetables. Of course, a vegetable garden is only productive for part of the year, but it is amazing how long that growing season lasts and how much you can produce from one small patch. (My grandpa has always had a garden, and my Paka had a garden too. One of my fondest memories was picking veggies at Nana and Paka's house. My dad has planted tomato plants a few times. Now my aunts Eliza and Katie have started their own garden at home, including various herbs. I hope to follow in their footsteps one day as soon as I have some space to plant the seeds. I doubt my landlord would appreciate me uprooting the plants in front of the apartment to start my own garden.)