Peter's Eco Lunch. Homemade 100% canvas, REUSABLE, lunch bag featuring stainless steal cutlery and reusuable containers.
I’ve noticed lately two things: 1) there are a lot of tips to show you how to build a green lunch and 2) there is a lot of talk about how organic food doesn’t hold any more nutrition than conventional food. The discussion that could happen based on these trends is amazing, and I would like to add a few points to hopefully further the discussion. Read the rest of this entry »
Yesterday, I received an email from “Ben”. Unfortunately, my reply bounced back. Regardless, I said that when asked a question, I would post it here. Ben was interested in more concrete places to get free mulch, and this is what I’ve set to tell him:
We got our free mulch from Asplundh, who I believe were contracted by P.G.E. They trimmed our neighborhood’s trees when I wrote that post a few months ago. They simply had a sign that read, “Free Wood Chips.”
I believe tree trimmers and arborists have to pay a fee to dump mulch, so they’d much rather give it away. I’ve heard that some tree services have a long list of names, so it may just take some inquiring to find out.
As for a place to start… I would contact these companies or agencies in addition to Asplundh:
Lastly, I’d call the Oregon City Hall to find out if they use a specific tree service and get that company’s name to call directly.
Apparently people like mulch! This blog has seen a steady increase in hits since I posted the ‘free mulch’ tidbits several weeks ago. So, I thought I’d take this opportunity to preach to the choir about some mulch benefits:
That’s all for now folks!
Check out the Xerces Society’s native plant list: The Xerces Society » Plant Lists. Use lists like this to help plan your garden and attract pollinators. We need those prescious
The History
While putting the Tolman Guide together, we learned that poplar trees are great soil remediators. They take up toxins from soil, cleaning the soil. I already knew that sunflowers do the same thing, and in ten years sunflowers when planted on a brownfield will clean the land. What I didn’t know, and was sad to learn this year, was that poplars are not ideal for urban spaces.
In fact, the poplar tree can be so prolific as to act like a weed. Because of the compaction and density of houses, poplar trees don’t grow like they would in open country, and the trees (according to three arborists, 2 certified) are weaker and prone to falling as they get older. My husband and I were quite disappointed to learn this because we had been quite pleased with the very quick shade they brought. Several of the ’suckers’ shot up 6+ feet, some reaching 15 feet, in about 18 months!
It started with the neighbor wanting to cut down his ‘problem’ tree. He hired a tree guy (not a certified arborist) to cut down this tree he thought would impact his foundation in 40 years. This was the summer of 2007. The tree is directly on the property line, and we wanted the shade and did not want to pay this shady tree guy, so we instructed him to leave ‘our’ tree alone. Shortly after half of the tree was felled, we began noticing these weedy things in our yard. The ‘weeds’ followed the root line of the felled tree. This summer, 2008, we consulted our Audubon book and learned our prolific weeds were indeed white poplar. These suckers, as they are called, kept popping up in odd and annoying places, and they were getting more difficult to mow over; so we called in the professionals.
We had three arborists come out. Two are certified with the ISA. The low-ball bid (the first, non-certified) quoted $300 to remove all the trees. There were about a half dozen. The second, $600, and we’d get the wood chips they would make on-site. The third (Green Options) quoted $2000 but offered a home remedy. All agreed we were addressing the problem at an early, preventive stage.
The Remedy
James Kinder of Green Options saw our plight and suggested we do it ourselves. Being in the infancy of the problem, he instructed us as follows:
The trees take big gulps of oxygen trying to survive after being cut, and by dousing them with oil, you effectively suffocate the tree preventing it from spreading.
Next, you have to take care of the weed-like suckers. Kinder gave us a homemade recipe for weed-killer. He told us that Roundup is actually based on a similar (or the same) base as vinegar, it just has all the unneccessary stuff added.
Homemade Weed Killer Recipe
Next, cover the severely affected area with newspaper, then add 90% weed-free topsoil. The area should be ready for planting in about 6 months.
The Results
We noticed results with the weed killer within a few hours, most noticeably 24 hours after application. You spray the leaves of the sucker, and within a day the sucker begins to wilt. Some plants come up easily, some do not. We ordered 4 cubic yards of screened, weed-free topsoil. We covered the area, about 15′ long and 3′ wide, with newspaper, a few sheets thick throughout. Then we shoveled the dirt onto the newspapers. Then the rains came. We’ll catch up in 6 months and see how well it worked. Kinder instructed us that the few suckers that will remain should then be easy to pull up by the roots.
It’s important to remember that all ingredients are found in the kitchen. Most people have vinegar and vegetable oil on-hand. I didn’t ask what properties sea salt added over iodized salt, but would conjecture the lack of iodine. Some grass was killed, but we buried the rest in soil anyway. This process is green, but do be mindful of the smell of the hot vinegar concoction; I have not had levels tested for toxicity.
A lot dealing with sustainability answers the question, “How can I do for myself?” A major component of sustainability is keeping things local, and what’s more local than supplying for yourself from your place on this earth? Whether it be an apartment, a small house with a small yard, or a farmhouse, a new book breaks it down in simple ideas for the Average American.
The Urban Homestead: Your Guide to Self-Sufficiency (review and blog) examines this question in a simple, easy-to-read format. It’s what we did with the Tolman Guide, it but makes the techy stuff easier to swallow. In The Urban Homestead you will find easy to understand tips for making your own cleaning products, how-to-compost and what to look for, and even a lengthy section on fermentation and storing food.
I will admit, I was a bit envious when I read it. The thought, “We did this first!” kept screaming through my head. But, they did it in a manner that’s easier to understand, and they hit many highlights of living in the city.
A must-read for any person who wants to live closer to the land in the city.
At Metro’s Swan Island Paint Facility, of course! Here, they sell the home-composters for the bargain price of $35, half off retailers price. Get yours today, and get there early as there is usually a line!
The trek into having chickens has become more informative. For the City of Portland, a permit for chickens is only required if you have 4 or more chickens. It is suggested that you follow the guidelines for having 4 or more chickens even if you have less, just in case you want to have more later. Plan ahead, in other words!
The City of Portland decides the code and Multnomah County enforces the code. The basic requirements are that the coop’s outer reaches (the chicken’s enclosure) is not less than 15 feet from your neighbors home. Although the requirement is quite flexible, it is suggested that you keep the coop on your property and contact all neighbors within 200 feet of the chicken enclosure. Keep the odors under control, and don’t feed the chickens things that will attract rats.
For more information, check out the following links:
Or, another way to ask would be… what do we do about those pests, naturally? How do we get rid of pests, naturally? What is a natural remedy for pests?
Every summer, we get ants. Here in the Pacific Northwest, Willamette Valley, after the mild winter has gone, on that first warm, sunny day; the ants come out to play. I have lived here for five years in four different places in three areas of Portland (SE, SW, N), and only one home was ant-free. Every other place had the same problem at the same time of year, that first nice day in spring the ants come out.
It’s always difficult to discern where they originate. Toxic solutions didn’t work. An environmentally-friendly professional didn’t work. And, my mother’s old trick of cayenne pepper didn’t work. So, how to get rid of these pests is a question that comes up often. And, when you consider pets and small children who don’t know that something is bad and they shouldn’t touch it, the desire for natural solutions is greater.
Some basic web research yielded these results:
Since cayenne pepper didn’t work here for me, I was skeptical of the bay leaves, we don’t own large quantities of talcum powder, the vinegar solution was for me. Trial and error taught me to fill the spray bottle nearly full with vinegar (I started with 3 parts water, 1 part vinegar) and a big squirt of soap. I use Ecover’s Dishwashing Soap (you know if you wash dishes by hand). Now, when I see ants, I spray the area they are found with this concoction, and the ants disappear for several weeks. I have had to go back to the bottle since April, but they have ceased to be the annoying pests I usually think of them to be.
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