Sparkle with solar powered Christmas lights
Solar powered Christmas lights are a great way to add some festive cheer to your home without any green guilt! Normal Christmas lights use both energy and create CO2 emissions, but you can still light up your life with these solar powered Christmas rope lights. Made in Germany and created for the British climate, they are designed for both outdoor and indoor use, though they do work better outdoors where, on clear winter days, they should be able to store enough power to work for around two and a half hours every evening. Stylish and simple, these solar powered Christmas lights can actually be used all year round as beautiful garden decorations, but are particularly lovely at this festive time of year. The solar powered Christmas lights are available with yellow and red bulbs (or you could buy two sets for a mixture of both!). If you don’t trust the British winter to deliver enough clear light to charge these over the whole of the festive season, you can always use these to complement your existing traditional tree lights, only switching on the electric lights if your solar powered lights have not fully charged – you’ll still be saving energy and money, and doing your bit for a greener Christmas. And probably impressing the neighbours more than having a giant glowing Santa on the front lawn…
A rechargeable mower makes your garden greener
While it may not be gardening weather at the moment, spring will be here soon enough, and this rechargeable mower provides the ideal eco-gardening solution. The rechargeable cylinder mower uses no messy or polluting petrol and is cordless, so you also avoid potentially dangerous trailing wires – no risk of tripping or accidentally slicing through the power cords! The rechargeable mower runs off a 12v rechargeable battery and will mow a 2000 square foot lawn (186 square metres) on a single charge, which lasts up to one hour. The rechargeable mower is lightweight – which also reduces energy use – and comes with the extra safety features of a safety switch and isolator key, which has to be plugged in for the mower to work. It also has an easy to empty collapsible grass soft box, which allows for easy storage. It is simple to use and gives a great result, as its blades are adjustable and it has a roller, allowing you to achieve a beautiful striped finish for your lawn. But the real bonus of a rechargeable mower is that, by running on rechargeable energy rather than petrol or oil, you are saving valuable fuel resources and saving money. The rechargeable mower uses less energy and is a clean and easy way to garden, allowing you to be as green as your lawn!
Be eco in the afterlife with an Ecopod Coffin
Ecopod coffins are recycled and biodegradable coffins that are completely non-toxic, enabling you to leave this planet with as little environmental impact as possible. Most coffins in use today are made of chipboard covered in laminate, but Ecopod coffins are made from naturally hardened, 100% recycled paper, making them biodegradable and suitable even for use in Greenfield sites. The revolutionary Ecopod coffin design is strong and light and available in two sizes and a range of colours including – of course! – green, (with a silver Celtic cross) as well as blue and, for those who would like a touch of bling even at the end, gold. Each Ecopod coffin comes with a calico mattress and carrying straps and can be delivered anywhere in the UK. While it may sound morbid thinking about death, choosing an Ecopod coffin – or informing loved ones that this would be your choice – allows you to make a conscious decision about how you want to exit the planet and enables you to minimise the environmental impact of that departure. We are becoming more and more aware of the cost to the environment of all of our choices throughout our lives, and even at the end of them. Ecopod coffins allow us to make that final decision one that respects the planet, so that even in death, we are helping protect the life left behind.
Help your local wildlife with natural habitats from Wildlife World
Winter can be a tough season for wildlife, especially as our unpredictable weather can disrupt the habits of even the hardiest animals. But a rich and varied wildlife is vital to keep our eco-systems balanced, so helping support this where you can is one easy way of boosting your green credentials. Wildlife World can help with this – they are a small UK-based company (so no air mile issues!) who have been specialising in making eco-friendly wildlife habitats for over 10 years. Products are make from either reclaimed wood or FSC-certified timber and finished with water-based stains and paints, so are non-toxic and environmentally friendly. Wildlife World produce a selection of habitats depending on the garden space you have available and the wildlife you would like to attract: these include hedgehog houses, bird feeders, beehives, ladybird insect towers and bat boxes. Designs range from simple but stylish to the ornate, such as a white gothic nest box. For super keen wildlife enthusiasts, Wildlife World also produce nesting boxes fitted with colour cameras, so you can not only help the animals flourish, you can record beautiful images to keep a record of your avian visitors! Separate wildlife camera box kits are also available. So no matter how small your space, you should be able to find an eco-friendly solution to help you keep your local wildlife thriving through the winter.
Stylish solar-powered Sun Jars provide eco-friendly lighting for home and garden
Solar powered lighting is many things, but it is rarely beautiful. However, eco-friendly designers Suck UK Design have come up with an innovative lighting solution that manages to be both green and stylish. Their Sun Jar lights combine solar technology with classical design to provide energy efficient lighting. Made with a traditional Mason jar, the lights contain a solar cell, rechargeable battery and low energy LED lamps. Simply leave in direct sunlight to charge up the Sun Jar, and it automatically activates when it gets dark or when the lights are switched out. (There is an override switch located inside the lid so you can turn it off and conserve the power). Because the Sun Jar uses warm coloured LED lights and the glass is frosted, it gives a warm glow – looking like sunlight diffused through the jar. With no visible external switches, it will intrigue and impress visitors! The Sun Jars are also watertight, so make ideal garden illuminations as they can be left outside whatever the weather. As they give a warm rather than harsh glow, they are also ideal energy efficient and safe nightlights for children. Suck UK Design produce the Sun Jars in a range of colours including pink and blue (the Moon Jar) so you can combine them to beautiful effect. For anyone who likes a more high-tech looking lighting solution, though, Suck UK Design also produces Glow Bricks, which use the same technology placed in an actual lightbulb, encased in an acrylic brick. Available in green and blue, these sharp designs give a contemporary look to your lighting, as well as saving you energy and money.
Being Green is Good For the Environment – Seeing Green Is Good For Your Health!
We know green spaces are good for the environment and all realise the importance of the role of trees and grassy areas (particularly in built-up and inner city areas). Now, new research has been revealed in The Times Newspaper Online, showing that ’seeing’ greenery is also good for your mental health and emotional well being!
Environmental biologist, Ross Cameron, of the University of Reading, has revealed ‘Urban green spaces are good for your health’. Mr Cameron uses examples of crime reduction, domestic violence reduction and stress reduction, in studies carried out in Chicago. The studies concluded more trees and greenery in urban areas had a positive impact on social well being.
Furthermore, Mr Ross Cameron suggested we must protect our green spaces from ‘garden grabbing developers’. Mr Cameron expressed his dismay at the large sections of domestic gardens being paved, concreted and asphalted over. Highlighting the importance of domestic gardens by citing a study in Australia whereby the risk of dementia onset was delayed in correlation to the amount of time spent gardening. Getting children into gardening early – for instance with a children’s vegetable garden – can also teach them valuable lessons about nature and food, encouraging them to eat vegetables and therefore decreasing their risk of obesity and other diet-related conditions. Finally, Mr Ross Cameron told the Times Newspaper urban green spaces should be awarded the same protection as the countryside, in order to allow us all to benefit – emotionally, mentally and socially! So, do yourself a favour – mentally, socially, emotionally and environmentally – keep your garden lawn. Yes, concrete may be low maintenance, but why risk depression and crime, for the sake of having to get a lawnmower out every fortnight or so!
Reduce your household waste with a Compost Pail
Caught up in the drive for environmentally friendly products and services is the notion this can only be made possible by innovative technological advances. Eco-friendly gadgets will often comprise the very latest in technology and will aim to do a particular job more efficiently than older products. Moreover, eco-friendly gadgets will produce little or no carbon emissions, which often puts their predecessors to shame. Nevertheless, whilst technologically advanced eco-friendly gadgets are warmly welcomed by most, they tend to overshadow more rudimentary methods of protecting the Earth.
Indeed, organic waste is something that many people take for granted. In fact, such waste is usually discarded without any consideration as to how it may be used for the greater good. As many bin collection services throughout the UK are undertaken fortnightly and recycling has been made an obligation, little attention is paid to organic waste. However, food comprises a significant proportion of the waste that is dumped on landfills each day and, in the context of being left to rot for two weeks in residential bins, there are certain social and health related concerns to consider. Moreover, bins would not fill up so quickly if they did not contain organic waste.
Thus, the Powder-Coated Compost Pail, which retails for around £20.00, can help people reduce their waste even further by providing a convenient and immediate method of food disposal. Indeed, this handy and stylish pail is designed to hold kitchen waste until it is ready to be composted, which is a far more environmentally friendly throwing out food and organic matter. If you prefer a more contemporary look for your kitchen, stainless steel compost pails are also available for around the same price, with removable filters retailing for around £5. If you are keen to start composting but aren’t sure how best to go about it, there are a number of cheap and simple to follow guides on the market.
Offsetting Your Carbon Footprint: Grow Your Own Tree
There is nothing new about growing fruit, vegetables, plants or flowers in the garden, which are seen as effective ways in which organic produce can be cultivated at home to save money the green way. Furthermore, people are now more conscious of their individual impact on the environment, which is commonly expressed in terms of the so-called carbon footprint. Much like a normal footprint, the carbon variety refers to the impression left on the environment by a particular individual or household in the context of harmful CO2 emissions.
Every person leaves a carbon footprint behind them and, in this increasingly eco-conscious community, each is accountable for it. As such, many homeowners have sought to reduce their carbon footprint by adopting renewable energy sources, such as installing solar panels, insulating lofts and cavity walls, upgrading boilers and installing underfloor heating, which typically uses less energy than conventional radiator systems. However, there is a greener way in which carbon footprints can be offset somewhat. Indeed, if every home that has a garden or access to public grounds planted a tree, the world would literally become a much greener place to live.
Trees are beneficial to the environment not least because they support eco-systems in a general sense but also because their leaves absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Thus, the Grow Your Own Tree kit from Canova, which comprises a compostable grow bag into which the included silver birch tree seed is sowed and eventually planted into the ground, provides a convenient way to grow trees, which will considerably offset carbon footprints. And if you don’t have access to a garden? There are a range of kitchen friendly options, from organic herbs in a bag to instant kitchen boxes or instant compact herb gardens.
Green Fingered NASA Technology
Urban dwellers often find themselves in the unfortunate position of wanting to grow something green to help the environment but cannot do so because they do not own or rent a little patch of Earth. Those people who are lucky enough to have their own garden will note growing plants, flowers, shrubs and trees can prove to be a very rewarding experience. Moreover, as environmental awareness has increased sharply recently, many people take great delight in giving a little back to the planet.
Furthermore, gardens are ideal for people who wish to grow their own food, which is sensible in the middle of a recession and an era in which green produce is heavily treated by chemicals. A garden is also useful for growing flower bearing plants such as rose bushes, which come into their own on birthdays and Valentine’s Day. You can even grow your own organic Christmas decorations by planting a holly bush. However, the aforementioned urban dweller does not always have access to this way of life. Indeed, in his or her case the grass is very much greener on the other side. Nevertheless, the Aeroponics Power Plant Growing Machine, which is based on cutting edge NASA technology, is the perfect solution for those stuck in a concrete jungle.
Requiring a connection to the mains electricity supply, the Aeroponics Plant Growing Machine is exceptional in that its technology enables plants to grow without the need for any soil whatsoever. Indeed, only water needs to be added to the machine, which uses a special growing sponge, nutrient mix and microjets to stimulate relatively rapid growth. Perfect for the green fingered soul trapped in a concrete jungle. (And if that all sounds too technical? You can still grow your own organic herbs out of a bag on your kitchen windowsill or even buy a ready made kitchen windowbox. So there’s really no excuse…)
Gardening – a great way to start going green
If you have a small plot of land spare, perhaps an allotment or garden, you may want to consider getting your fingers green this summer. Despite a worldwide economic downturn, the cost of living continues to rise. Indeed, many shoppers have noticed that their weekly food list is costing more than it had been when the economy was experiencing a stable inflation. Fortunately, for those who are also interested in doing their bit to ’save the planet’, financial savings can be coupled with a greener way of life.
Growing one’s own supply of vegetables, fruits and herbs may seem like a mission impossible to the uninformed, but actually it is relatively straightforward to get started. Depending on your local climate and the physical space you have available, growing your own produce can be sustainable throughout the year and offers a wide variety of fruit, vegetables and herbs. If possible, erect a greenhouse in order to stimulate
regular growth, especially in relation to produce that would not normally grow during the UK’s colder months. However, do ensure that your greenhouse is eco-friendly by using materials that do not require excessive winter heating and, for the summer, develop a capillary watering system that supplies the plants with rain water, which can be collected in an external reservoir. Also ensure that produce is grown organically – the Earthmaker compost bin could come in handy for this – and that insect repellent plants such as Sweet Woodruff are used instead of pesticides. Finally, unless you want to feed the birds, do not forget to cover your produce with sufficient netting!
And to keep all of your gardening green you can find a great selection of green and ethical seeds, plants and garden accccessories at green retailers greenfingers.com , Nigels Eco Store and Biome
