Recycling

We are massive consumers who produce a lot of waste. What if you could reduce your waste by 50% just by recycling your garbage? It doesn't take much to recycle things we use every day. In order keep the planet and us healthy we need to recycle the items we consume

 

Here are 10 items to recycle to eliminate from your landfill:   

1. Aluminum cans
2. Steel Cans from canned fruits and veggies
3. Cardboard including cereal boxes
4. Paper – newspaper magazines
5. Plastics – Milk jugs, check with your local recycling center 1 & 2 are most popular
6. Glass containers
7. Clothing Donate or sell to a resale shop
8. Cooking Oil – into diesel
9. Printer cartridges
10. Compost plant waste

Composting

Let’s take a little time and talk about the last one, compost. Do you know all the things that grow  can be composted? Most people don’t realize they can do this every day. This is one of the easiest steps to do in saving our planet.  If you eat fruits or vegetables and you peel them you can take those peels and throw them in your backyard. You can even throw your coffee grounds in the compost heap. It is great if you can have a designated spot to throw the scraps and then keep turning it to make sure the new stuff gets to the bottom.  I love the recent post by my Bloggy friend Miz Helen with her new Garden Compost Helper Schreck.

The decomposing matter starts to come alive after a few weeks. Bugs and insects will be drawn to the moist environment created by all that plant matter. This also will become warm with all the bugs crawling through it and will steam in the winter. So don’t be alarmed.

The bottom of that pile is the compost. This soil is rich in nutrients the insects and worms have broken down. This is the stuff to put on the garden before you plant. This is key for a successful organic garden. After your garden has been sprouted make some compost tea to feed the roots of the garden. Here is the easy recipe:

Compost tea

I know this sounds delicious, but do not drink it. This is for your garden only. Get a 5 gallon bucket and put about 6 inches compost soil in the bottom of the bucket. Then add hot water to fill the bucket. If you can’t guess, that is around 5 gallons. Let this steep for about 5 minutes or so. Take this nutrient rich water using a watering pitcher to water the plants. The garden will use these nutrients to grow great veggies.

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I am not an expert gardener, but I have read these tricks and use them in my garden to get things to grow. Sometimes it is trial and error. I have had my share of error.

Do you have any things you recycle? What are you growing in your garden this year?

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Ways to Reduce Waste

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REDUCE WASTE!

Have you ever visited a landfill? It is overwhelming the stench and the mountain of waste we create as a society. I used to drive by one for years. It started out like a small hill and I wondered what it was. Then I noticed the hill began to grow over time. The big yellow movers moving the trash around could be seen at the top along with the white birds circling feeding off the trash we have thrown away. Then I thought how am I contributing to this mountain of trash and what are some ways I can take action to not increase the growth of this mountain?

 

There are many ways to reduce your waste in landfills. Here are a few I do around the house.

1. Stop buying bottled water. Not to mention you are drinking water stored in plastic, but it is water. We use our filtered ice cold water from the fridge and it is great and super cheap. I have purchased each kid their own water bottle, so they each have their own to fill whenever they want. They do not have to ask for water. Here is a great website for more information on plastic water bottles.  Green Upgrader.

2. Bring your own bags to the grocery store. There is no need to get more plastic bags when you probably have a closet full of them at home. I will even show you how to make your own bags using these plastic bags in a post coming soon. If you do use plastic bags, recycle them. Most stores have a place where you can bring back bags to be recycled. My daughter has a place to recycle these bags at her school.

3.  How many paper towels do you use a day? Try to stop using them for everything, even if they are FREE. Did you know you could make your own wipes? These are super easy and FREE. You should already know I love FREE. Any T-Shirts you have that you want to get rid of. Cut a square using both sides of the t-shirt and sew together. To clean them just throw in the wash and hang dry.

4. Buy from the bulk bins at the store. These are items that do not have any additional packaging to be stored on the shelves. Buying these products reduces cardboard, plastic and glue. And these items are usually cheaper, since you do not have to pay for the packaging you are throwing away anyway. If you notice I buy a lot of bulk items at Sprouts every week.

5. What are items you can recycle? Have you started recycling in your home? Take a look around to see what you throw in your trash can. Can this be tossed in the recycle bin? Cardboard boxes such as cereal boxes, pasta boxes and meals in a box can be recycled. Check with your local recycling program to see what plastics can be recycled in your area. There is a number on the plastic carton and different areas recycle different numbers. Usually 1, 2 and 5 are the most popular.

For a family of five we use about one 20 Gallon trashcan and one 20 gallon recycle bin a week. We only take out the trash about once a week. How often do you take out the trash? How can you reduce your waste?

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Reuse Ideas

In keeping with the theme for this month of Earth Day today’s topic for Money Saving Monday is REUSE IDEAS. One of the best things you can do to save money is to reuse items instead of tossing them after one use.

REUSE IDEAS

One item that I reuse a bunch is plastic zip baggies. Most of the time I put things like muffins to freeze or snacks in these. I simply wash them out and let them dry and use them again. I will do this several times before being tossed. This helps reduce waste in the landfill and also helps my budget by not having to buy baggies as frequently. As I have said before I hate spending money on things that get used once and then are throw away.

Another item I may use twice is aluminum foil. If I am baking biscuits or something that really doesn’t stick to the foil. I will wash it off and reuse it again. Then I will fold it up and place it in the drawer and then flip the sheet over and use the other side. I normally use foil on my baking sheets, so the baking sheets stay nice and clean and provide an even baking surface all the time.

If you are a couponer and you print lots of coupons like I do, you have a lot of left over pieces of paper. I will take these and save them for the kids to color or to make additional craft projects. These little pieces of paper are stored by the art supplies and can be used for cards or whatever they can imagine. We always have scrap paper for a project.

 

Have you seen these fabulous things people have made using toilet paper tubes? I have been in awe myself. I even made this fabulous little mirror for around $3.00. Here is the link to my toilet paper tube mirror project. I think when summer is here I will have more time to make some of these little projects. We will see.

One last awesome reuse idea is to repurpose clothes. This is another thing I am pinning a lot of lately. Taking old t-shirts and using them to make skirts, shrugs or tanks. These are awesome little one hour projects that look so cool and easy to make. I can't wait to give these a try.

Is there anything you reuse to save money? I would love to hear from my readers. Leave a comment below. If you have a recipe or crafty linky party, share your links on my Linky Parties Page.

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Sunday Summary

I have discovered it is difficult for me to write everyday. I tried to do it this week, but I just don’t have that much free time. I started my green series for the month of April in honor of Earth day. I am no gardening expert, but I am sharing techniques with all you fabulous readers that I have found online. I will report the progress throughout the growing season and take lots of pictures. Any additional tips are welcomed and wanted. I have been told my Green cleaning kit has been shipped. I can’t wait to use it and share one in a giveaway with all my current readers and soon new readers. Be sure to Like Pounds4Pennies on Facebook to know when this is going live.

This week started off slow then had a crescendo with tornadoes here in the Dallas area. It has been confirmed that there were 16 tornadoes that touched down that day here. You can read my tornado story. I still managed to score some awesome Allegra and not get wet.

Little miss managed to dislocate her shoulder in the middle of the week too. After a long trip to the hospital and x-rays to find out nothing was broken. It finally popped back into place Saturday. Yeah she can play volleyball next week. I was worried I spend all that money and she has only been to one practice and one game. This is one sport she really loves.

Friday we colored our Easter eggs. I had an old kit I picked up from last year in the cabinet of tie dye Easter eggs. This is the first time we have done these. They are super easy. Even little face enjoyed himself. You put the eggs into a baggie, provided, and put a couple of drops of color on them and squish it around. Then you have a cool looking Easter egg. We only had Little face and my Stepson that is why most are green and blue.

Our neighbors behind us had their son’s 5 year old birthday party we went to this weekend. It was great, since we didn’t have to get in the car and go anywhere. We had a great time. Little face loves their playground out back. He played and ran around for hours, which leads to a great nights sleep for all.

We had a wonderful time with my parents this Easter. We went to the 9:15 service at church. At home we had a fabulous ham covered with cloves and pineapples. I made garlic mashed potatoes and we had green beans. Click the link for Friday Finals to see how much I paid for all the items in our Easter meal.

Garden is growing fine. So far the cucumber is slowly dying off. I have a few more plants I can plant  to try to get them to grow. It is raining once again today. We will have to do the Easter egg hunt inside again this year. Although it might be fun to watch the kids get wet, but I wouldn’t want to be the one hiding the eggs.

Did you do anything fun or exciting this week? I would love to hear what you did for Easter.

Super Savings Saturday

There are a ton of coupons to Print today. New Month New Coupons.  * Healthy Coupons are marked. These indicate coupons that are not junk food or vegetarian. 

Fun Fact: Today is National Coffee Cake day!

Spring Essentials

• SAVE $4.00 on any Non-Drowsy Claritin® Allergy Product (24 count or larger)
• SAVE $4.00 on any Non-Drowsy Claritin-D® Allergy Product (15 count or larger)
• SAVE $2.00 on any Children's Non-Drowsy Claritin® Allergy Product (4 oz Syrup)
• SAVE $3.00 on any Children's Non-Drowsy Claritin® Allergy Product (20 count Chewables)
• SAVE $10.00 off any Holmes® or Bioniare® aer1 Ready™ Air Purifier retail value $49.99 or less. In-store purchases only.
• SAVE $20.00 off any aer1 Ready™ Holmes® or Bionaire® brand air purifier retail value $50 or more. In-store purchase only.
• Save $0.50 On ONE (1) roll of SAFESKIN* Kids Sport Wrap (Walmart)
• SAVE 75¢ on any two (2) Shout® Color Catcher
• $1.00 OFF Any Blink® Tears Lubricating Eye Drops or Blink Gel Tears® Lubricating Eye Drops (Redeemable at Walmart)
• SAVE $1.00 On One Multi Pack or 8 oz or Larger PURELL® Item. Choose from 3 Packs of JELLY WRAP™ Carriers or 2 oz Pumps (Available at Walmar

Pets & More 

• SAVE $1.00 on one (1) Woolite® Pet + Oxygen Carpet Stain & Odor Remover
• SAVE $1.25 on any ONE (1) bag of Milo’s Kitchen® brand home-style dog treats.
• SAVE $1.50 on ten (10) cans of ALPO® Dog Food
• SAVE $1.00 on any 1-20LB or 2-10LB bags of Jonny Cat® Cat Litter
• SAVE 75¢ on any two (2) Shout® Color Catcher
• $0.75 OFF When You Buy One (1) Renuzit® Fresh Accents® air freshener
• SAVE $1.00 on any full size BISSELL® Deep Cleaning Formula. Limit One (1) coupon per purchase.
• SAVE $1.00 On One Multi Pack or 8 oz or Larger PURELL® Item. Choose from 3 Packs of JELLY WRAP™ Carriers or 2 oz Pumps (Available at Walmar
• SAVE $4.00 on any Non-Drowsy Claritin® Allergy Product (24 count or larger)

Meals at Home 

• SAVE 75¢ On any TWO MorningStar Farms® Veggie Foods Products * Healthy Vegetarian 
• SAVE 55¢ On any ONE (1) Ecce Panis® Bake at Home Bread
• SAVE $1.00 On any ONE Kashi® steam meal™ * Organic Healthy
• SAVE $0.50 on One Package of LAND O LAKES® Fresh Buttery Taste® Spread with Olive Oil
• SAVE 40¢ on any one (1) package of Dragone® cheese product (4oz. or larger)
• SAVE 40¢ on any one (1) package of Frigo® brand Italian Style Cheeses. (4oz. or larger)
• SAVE 40¢ on any one (1) package of Stella® cheese product. (4oz. or larger)
• SAVE 40¢ on any one (1) package of Treasure Cave® cheese product (4oz. or larger)
• SAVE 55¢ On any package of Bridgford Frozen Rolls or Bread Dough or Monkey Bread
• SAVE 40¢ ON TWO when you buy any TWO Pillsbury® Sweet Rolls OR Grands!® Sweet Rolls

Housekeeping 

• SAVE $3.00 on any Glade® Sense & Spray® starter kit
• SAVE $1.00 on any Glade® PlugIns® Scented Oil warmer
• SAVE $1.00 on any TWO Glade® Scented Oil Candle products
• Save $20 on a Sweep debris & steam mop in 1 step with BISSELL Steam&Sweep™
• SAVE $10.00 off any Holmes® or Bioniare® aer1 Ready™ Air Purifier retail value $49.99 or less. In-store purchases only.
• SAVE $1.50 on any two (2) Pledge® Furniture Care products
• SAVE 75¢ on any Scrubbing Bubbles® Toilet Cleaning Gel
• SAVE $1.00 on any two (2) Windex® Multi-Surface products
• SAVE $1.00 on any (1) ONE 28oz Purex® Crystals bottle or larger (Coupon not valid for trial or travel size items)

Breakfast

• SAVE $1.00 off any TWO (2) Pebbles Treats- 8 Pack
• SAVE 75¢ when you buy any flavor/variety Cascadian Farm® product
• SAVE $1.00 ON TWO when you buy any TWO BOXES General Mills cereals listed: Boo Berry® • Cinnamon Toast Crunch® • Cocoa Puffs® (any) •
• SAVE 75¢ when you buy ONE BOX Multi Grain Cheerios® cereal * Healthy
• $1.00 OFF any (1) Silk® Pure Coconut Coconutmilk (Half Gallon) * Healthy
• Save $1.00 on any ONE (1) Emerald® Breakfast on the go!™ Product 7.5 oz or larger * Healthy
• SAVE $0.75 On any TWO (2) Bagel-fuls® (4ct)
• SAVE $0.55 on NEW Almond Plus almond milk or any So Delicious® Dairy Free product * Healthy
• SAVE $1.00 on any ONE (1) bag of Starbucks® coffee (11oz or larger)
• $1.00 OFF any (1) Silk® Fruit&Protein quart or larger * Healthy

Everyday Woman 

• $3 off With purchase of two Revlon nail color items
• $2.00 OFF any Sally Hansen Wax Kit
• $1.00 OFF Sally Hansen Hand Cremes
• $2.00 OFF any Sally Hansen Lip Product (Available at ONLY CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens)
• SAVE $2.00 on any one e.p.t® pregnancy test
• $1.50 off SoftSheen-Carson® hair care or color item • Dark and Lovely or • Reviving Colors or • Hi Rez or • Optimum Care or • Roots of Nat
• SAVE $2.00 on Any Revlon PhotoReady™ Face Product (Available at Walmart)
• SAVE 50¢ off any ONE (1) Suave Professionals® Keratin Infusion™ Hair product (Excludes Trial and Travel. Cannot be redeemed with another
• SAVE $1.00 ON FOUR when you buy FOUR any flavor/variety LÄRABAR® or JOCALAT® bars * Healthy

Family & Kids - 

• $5.00 OFF Mr. Popper's Penguins on DVD or Blu-ray™ * HIGH VALUE
• $6 off Loopz® memory game
• 40% OFF EVERYTHING all regular priced items and no session fee
• $3.00 Off Little Angels DVD
• $3.00 Off Marley & Me: The Puppy Years on DVD or Blu-ray™
• $3.00 Off Tooth Fairy 2 on DVD or Blu-ray™
• $10 off Hot Wheels® RC Stealth Rides™ vehicle
• Save $0.50 On ONE (1) roll of SAFESKIN* Kids Sport Wrap (Walmart)

Friday Finals - Tom Thumb, CVS, Walmart

Tom Thumb  Shopping

2 Keebler Crackers $2.99 - $2/2 Store Q, $1/2 Keebler Crackers

            -Final $1.49 each

2 Dole Fruit Salad $1.00 - $0.50 doubled Dole Fruit

            -Final $0.50 each

2 Comstock Fruit $2.49 - $1/1 Comstock Fruit

            -Final $1.49 each

1 Fried Onions $3.19 - $0.50/1 doubled French’s Fried Onions

            -Final $2.19

3 McCormick Spices $9.57 total B2G1 - $6/3 Store Q, 2 $0.75/1 McCormick Spices Q

            -Final $0.06 each

1Hormel Naturals Lunch Meat $3.49- $1/1 Store Q, $0.50/1 doubled Hormel Naturals Printable

            -Final $1.50

1 Spiral Ham for Easter - $15.64 Saved $10.49

1 Vinegar $0.77

2 18 Count Eggs $1.99 each

I spent $31.05 and saved $36.17 on $67.22 worth of food this trip. I was so excited to get the Ham for Easter. I splurged and go the spiral ham for $0.20 more a pound.

CVS 04/03/12 – Tornado Day – Read my story

4 Allegra Adult $6.99 – 4 $7/1 Allegra Allergy coupons

            -Final FREE – I LOVE FREE

           

I spent $0.00 on $27.96 worth of allergy medicine this trip.

  

Walmart 04/02/12

1 Minute Maid Apple Juice $2.98 - $1/1 Minute Maid Printable

            -Final $1.98

2 Grapenut Cereals $2.82 - $1/1 Grapenut cereal

            -Final $1.82 each

3 Schick Razors $1.97 – 3 $1.75 Schick Razors

            -Final $0.22 each

1 Mozzarella Cheese $3.29

1 Carefree Panty Liners $0.94 - $1/1 Carefree Liners

            -FREE + $0.06 Profit

10 lbs Potatoes $3.77

Bananas $1.06

I spent $19.19 and saved $10.25 on $39.44 worth of groceries and healthcare items. I never have good luck at Walmart. I had four Minute Maid coupons and she only scanned 1. I also had 4 razor coupons and she only scanned 3. I brought back the juice and the razors and complained. I don’t mind if my coupons don’t work, but please give them back so I can purchase it somewhere else. I had little face with me and he is a BIG distraction. So I will pay more attention next time.

CVS

6 Cans Bumble Bee tuna $0.50 each

1 Tooth Brush $4.99

1 Advil $7.99

Used

$10.99 in ECBs

$2/1 Advil from product

Spent $3.00 and saved $12.99 on food and healthcare items at CVS.

Received $2.00 ECB for Next Purchase

Tom Thumb Round #2

3 McCormick Spices under $5.50 B2G1 Store deal – Used $4/2 Store Q, 2 $0.75/1 McCormick Spices

            -Final FREE $0.66 overage

1 Odwalla Bar $1.00 - $0.15/1 Tripled Odwalla Bar

            -Final $0.55

2 Dole Pineapple Slices for Ham $1.00 - $0.50/2 Doubled Dole Pineapple.

            -Final $0.50 each

Spent $0.89 and saved over $10.00. I can’t find my receipt for this transaction, but I remember being surprised when he said $0.89. Woo Hoo!

Altogether I spent $54.13 and saved $97.37 on $151.50 worth of food and other items. Barely over budget!

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Tornadoes Here in Texas - My story

Sorry no Going green post today. I want to share with you my story from yesterday here in Texas were the tornados were everywhere.

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My son goes to a mommy’s day out program and I normally pick him up around 2:00. I normally do my errands while he is at school. If am home alone I normally don’t turn on the TV or anything. I really enjoy my piece and quite. Normally I leave around 1:45 to go pick him up around 2:00. These times are important so pay attention.

It was raining a little outside, but nothing serious when I  pulled in at 2:00. I was nearly in the front of the line. “That’s odd,” I thought to myself. I am normally in the far back of the line. I got of the SUV and went to get little face and buckle him in his car seat. While I was outside of the SUV, I hear my phone ring and it was my husband. “Oh well,” I thought I will just call him back when I am heading out. So I tried to call. It won’t go through. “Darn phone,” I thought. I hate this d@*# thing. So I try again, and again, and again. Now I am starting to get a little concerned. It would have normally gone through.  My little wheels are starting to turn in my head, hmmm people picking their kids up early and I can’t get through. OK what is going on?

Finally I get through and he tells me to get home fast tornados are on the ground and the storms are heading my way. A little bit of panic starts to set in.

So I ask him “How much time do I have?”

Hubs:”Why?”

Me: “I wanted to stop by CVS and get some Allegra. Their registers were down when I went in earlier and they are holding it for me.”

Ok I want to get four of them, since I had four coupons and I knew they had them. I thought to myself “this will look really good on my Fridays post.” But is it worth it? Ok Yeah. I will just pick these up and not do any more shopping. I still have $10.50 in ECB’s that expire this Thursday. I will spend those later. I will be fine. In hind sight - WHAT WAS I THINKING!

Little face and I run in there and get the Allegra. The lady wasn’t sure if she could do that, so I grabbed the flyer and showed her there were no restrictions and showed her the coupon where there were no restrictions. Then we were outta there with my four Allegra.

That’s when I heard the tornado sirens go off. Now shear panic is sitting in. I have my 2 year old son out and about with the sirens going off. Those who live here know that if the sirens are going off it may already be too late. So I am trying to get home safely and quickly. Whew we are safe at home around 2:20.

Wait…

I need to get my daughter from school at 2:40. I watch TV and then our weather radio goes off with a tornado warning for our area. As a mom I start to FREAK OUT a little. What do I do? Do I go out and get her and bring her home? That leaves me and little face out in this weather. OK no bad idea. I finally convinced myself that she is safe at school and we are safe at home. I will get her when this passes. The school sent out an email that they are in lock down mode and will not be releasing any children until storms have passed. I also received a call from the school district, and a few minutes later another call from the principal. Yes she was being taken care of.

So little face and I hunker down in the bathroom with our flashlights, blankets and pillows to wait out the storm. We played flashlight tag to pass the time.  I am pretty shaken up, since I can’t be with my daughter hoping she is OK.

Finally I was able to go get her at 3:40 and all was well just lots of rain and wind. Normally I don’t get too freaked out about storms around here. They come and go. But when I am told several tornados are on the ground and I am away from one of my children. That will freak me out. My husband came home early yesterday, so I could have a drink to calm my nerves. Whew what a day.

Ways to Go Green - 10 Tomato Growing Tips

I can't wait until summer is here to have ice cold tomatoes on my sandwiches or cut tomatoes with a little salt. Doesn't that just sound delicious? My mouth is watering just thinking about this. I have been reading a lot about gardening and improving my skills. Tomatoes seem to be the most popular plant every gardener wants learn how to grow and grow with abundance. I have listed here 10 tomato growing tips to help you have the juiciest, most delicious tomatoes this year. I am trying all of them, since I would like to actually eat something out of my garden this year. 

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Ways to go Green In the Garden

10 Tomato Growing Tips

1. Choose a spot with lots of sunshine. Tomatoes require at least 6-8 hours of sunlight in order to ripen to a nice red color. Make sure the spot you want to plant is filled with sunshine.
2. Bury the stems. When transplanting your tomatoes bury stems up to the first leaf. This will give your tomatoes a healthy start. These will turn into more roots and help produce more tomatoes.
3. Water deeply but not often. It is a good idea to water your tomato plants once or twice a week for a long period of time rather than frequently for a few minutes each day. This will produce a hearty root system and great juicy tomatoes.
4. Pinch off the suckers. The suckers grow at the base of the leaf and try to grow another tomato branch. While this may seem like a good idea, these suck nutrients from the stems that actually are producing plant. Whenever you see the first leaves appearing just snap them off at the base to prevent these suckers from reducing your harvest.
5. Use stakes or tomato cages. I use tomato cages purchased at the store. While this may be a little of an investment at first, these will last you many many years. As the tomato plant grows allow the branches to drape over the edges. The last thing you want is your tomatoes on the ground. They will rot before you can harvest them.
6. Add compost Halfway through the season add more compost around the base of the tomato plant. Or make a compost tea and water your plants. This will provide more nutrients to the roots and a longer growing season.
7. Pick ripe. I find that ripe is when the tomato is starting to turn red. When you start to see the first stages of the tomato turning a little pink it is time to harvest. Simply give the tomato a little twist and it should pop right off the vine. Allow it to ripen in a dark warm area for a couple of days. These will be ready to eat or can.
8. Seedlings spaced 2 feet apart. When planting, place at least two feet apart to allow the plant to grow and not over take the next plant. If you go with the round cages, each cage should be at least 1 foot apart.
9. How many plants do I need? A good rule of thumb to follow is to grow at least three to five plants per person in your home.  
10. Bug prevention. Lastly you want to protect your plant. See my post from yesterday for a few gardening ways to go green insecticides you can use on your plants.

Here are a few ways to go green for growing awesome tomatoes. If you do all these steps, you should have a bountiful tomato harvest this year. 

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I check my garden everyday to make sure it is doing well or if it needs water or are there any bugs eating my hard work. I want to eat this food, not let the bugs have it. Last year I had a caterpillar nearly eat an entire tomato plant in a couple of days. I found him an moved him to the front yard. He was very fat and happy by the time I found him, so this made him easy to find. I hope the egg shells will discourage them from intruding this year. I should be able to conquer these little pests!

Do you have any great tomato tips you would like to share? Are you growing a garden? If you have a garden post, leave a comment below. I would love to read what you have written.

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Ways to Go Green

Have you ever tried to grow your own garden? If the thought of growing an entire garden with a lot of plants is overwhelming to you, start a container garden with a few herbs. Gardening is a little tricky, unless you know what you are doing. Ours was a complete fail last year, so I have done a lot of research I would love to share with you. This week I will be writing about green ways to take care of your garden.

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Ways to go Green In the Garden

One of the easiest ways to go green is trying not to produce more waste by purchasing a product to use once and then just throw it away. In order to combat the bugs in our garden this year we have incorporated a few organic pest control methods we make ourselves. These are super easy and do not take much time. By making your own pesticides you are reducing your waste and not putting unnecessary chemicals into the environment.

• Eggshells can be added to your garden. First let them dry completely and rinse them out. Then use a blender or food processer to crush them. Adding crushed eggshells in the bottom of the planting hole will prevent blossom rot for plants such as tomatoes and peppers. Blossom rot is caused by a calcium deficiency in the soil. The eggshells will break down and provide calcium for your soil.

• Crushed eggshells can also be used to deter slugs, snails, and cutworms from eating your garden. These pests do not like to crawl over anything sharp. Sprinkle these around the edge of your garden to prevent these nasty pest from getting in and also around your plants. 

• Here is a recipe for an organic pesticide spray that is super easy easy to make. The use of garlic in this spray deters deer and rabbits from your garden. While the soap will work on the soft bodied pest by drying them out. Boil 2-3 head of garlic in about 1 quart of water. Add 1-2 tablespoons of soap such as a castile soap. Let the mixture stand overnight and drain into a spray bottle.

We have been saving our eggshells and crushing them and using them around the perimeter of our garden as well as around each of the plants. I will report on how well this way to to green is working as my garden progresses through the season. I will start spraying them with the green insecticide soon, since they are growing so quickly.

Do you have any other ways to go green you use in your garden? I would love to hear what others do. I need all the help I can get. 

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Ways to Go Green

We had a wonderful weekend this weekend. On Saturday I had a girls night out and had a fabulous time at the Glass Cactus dancing with my friends. Thanks everyone for a great evening!

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Ways to Go Green

In an effort to eat the things we love, this summer we are growing a garden. So far this weekend we have planted tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini and bell peppers. Soon we are going to transplant our Jalapenos. We tried growing a garden last year, but this was a complete fail. We learned a lot and trying something new. This year we are trying the lasagna method. I can't wait to report on how well this goes. If successful I am working on a post to show you exactly how we did it without a tiller. Being from Texas we love salsa, so we are trying to grow a salsa garden to make fresh salsa this summer. Hopefully all the veggies will come in at the same time for us to make fresh salsa. I am so excited about growing a garden this year I can't wait to harvest the fresh vegetables. If they don't keel over with our Texas heat.

The weather here in Texas has reached summer temperatures already. It has reached into 90's this weekend. Since it is very hot outside, we were able to enjoy our pool this weekend. We have been heating our pool all week with our solar panels located on the roof. We are so excited we are able to utilize our solar panels in our efforts to go green. These were on the house when we purchased it. This was a major selling feature for us when purchased our home. It is April and we are swimming in our pool!

In the next few weeks I will be writing about 20 small little steps you can do to go green leading up to my Earth Day giveaway. I will write a review about a cleaning kit with several different types of green cleaners included in the kit and one kit will be given away to my fabulous readers on Earth Day April 22. So check back soon for when this giveaway is going live or like Pounds4Pennies Facebook page, so you know the moment this giveaway goes live. You don't want to miss this.

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Are you doing anything to make this world we live in a better place? What are some of your ways to go green?