Living Greens: Bring Herbs Indoors This Autumn

Bringing herbs indoors before the first freeze is a great way to add greenery and freshness to a long, cold winter. It will also jump start next year’s garden.

If you’re up a little before dawn these days, you’ll notice the constellation Orion hanging high in the eastern sky. The winter stars are on their way — and with them, cooler weather. In just a few short weeks, gardeners will wrap up their beds for the season.

But that doesn’t mean you need to give up fresh herbs until spring. There’s nothing quite as pleasant as a little green around the home during the winter months. If you start now, you’ll have a vibrant and useful stock of herbs at hand through the holidays and beyond. They’ll freshen your cooking — and your indoor air — until next planting season.

Use what you have

You can buy new plants, of course. But you’re in great shape if there are already got some herbs in your garden. Mint, parsley, thyme, rosemary, and chives are all good candidates for relocation indoors. Mix a rich batch of potting soil. Equal parts of commercial potting soil, sand, and peat moss should do well.

Taking care not to damage roots, transfer some healthy plants to pots and set them aside in a deeply shaded area such as a porch. You’ll want to allow your herbs a week or to become acclimated to the reduction in heat and sunlight before bringing them indoors part time. After another week or two, your plants will be ready to stay inside for good.

Stay green all winter

Locate your potted herbs where they’ll get plenty of light, but are away from heating ducts and major appliances. Don’t over-water, but remember that indoor environments are substantially dryer than outside.

Take care of your plants well, and they’ll survive for replanting (or propagation) once the weather warms. Reading from the Southern Hemisphere? Bookmark this article and come back again in March or April. And we’ll all swap seasonal places again.

Have you had a great indoor plant experience? Please share your tips in our comment section!

Twelve Practical Ways to Green-Up Your Autumn

The arrival of autumn means cooler temperatures, darker evenings — and a last chance to get your home ready for winter. Here are twelve ways to get started!

If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, you’ve probably already noticed the first hints of autumn: a blush of color in the leaves; earlier sunsets; and cooler evenings. The winter constellations are slowly creeping higher in the night sky, and it won’t be long before we’re all involved in the downhill rush toward the holidays.

Spring and autumn are the “fix-up” seasons, as we make ready for big changes in the weather. What you do over the next few weeks can make a tremendous difference to the size of your environmental footprint through the winter. So we’ve put together a few autumn to-do items to get you started. Sharpen your pencil — and start checking a few off your list!

In the home

• Check your weather stripping. You should do this twice a year. Look for cracks and deterioration, and verify that door seals are tight.
• Review attic insulation, particularly if your home is over 20 years old. This is the area in which you can make the most dramatic savings in annual heating bills. Take a ruler into the attic. If you have less than a foot of insulation, you probably need more.
• Seal window air conditioners. Once you’re past warm weather, unplug and seal your window units. If it’s practical, store them. This will also allow you to seal your windows with energy-efficient plastic film.
• Replace incandescent bulbs with CFL or LED lighting. Shorter days and cooler temperatures means more time spent indoors. If you’ve not already re-lamped with energy efficient bulbs, now is the time.
• Install a programmable thermostat. Smart temperature control can easily save 10% of your annual heating and cooling bills — a significant reduction in your household’s carbon footprint. Basic programmable thermostats can be purchased for less than $30, so you’ll recover you investment very quickly.

In the yard

• Start a compost pile. Compost heaps need both green and brown matter to get cooking — but there’s no shortage of carbon-rich leaves in the fall. Grab then while you can.
• Consider planting trees. Some varieties do well in the gap between summer’s heat and the real onset of winter. Consult your local nursery or agricultural agent for advice on what sort of trees might be appropriate for autumn planting.
• Bring your summer herbs indoors. There’s no reason not to enjoy fresh basil, mint, and rosemary through the winter months — and having some green indoors will remind you of spring. It takes a few weeks to transition herbs to indoor living, so start before the weather turns.In your car

In your car

• Most automobile owner’s manuals recommend a switch of engine oil weights between seasons. If you did this last summer, switch to your car’s recommended winter weight as soon as the weather cools.
• There’s really no such thing as a “safe” antifreeze, but if you’re getting your radiator flushed before winter, ask for a propylene glycol (PG) formula. It’s less toxic to children, pets, and wildlife than ethylene glycol (EG) coolants.
• Do you have a roof rack for carrying summer recreational equipment? Remove it until next year. Roof racks decrease your vehicle’s aerodynamic efficiency and hurts fuel mileage — particularly at highway speeds. While you’re at it, check you car for any unnecessary summer items, such as coolers or picnic gear. No need to burn fuel by carrying unnecessary weight.
• Evaluate your tires. Worn tread and improper tire pressure aren’t just bad for fuel economy — they’re not safe, particularly if you live in an area where highway icing is likely. Inspect, rotate, and balance. Whip out your tire pressure gauge at least once a month and check all four corners.

We’ll make this list a baker’s dozen: If you’re shopping for sweaters, jackets, and winter wear, start at your local secondhand store. It’s not just price — though shopping the thrift shop and rummage sale circuit can save your hundreds of dollars — it’s putting perfectly good clothing back to use, rather than consuming fresh resources. You may also be supporting a worthy local charity or civic group with your purchase.

So there’s a start. Once you get into autumn “green-up” mode, you’ll probably think of other small projects. Get to them before Jack Frost beats you to it. And here’s wishing you a rich, warm, and Earth-friendly autumn.

Do you have some autumn tips to share with the Lighter Footstep community? Please add your best practices in our Comments section!

Five Easy Ways to Green-Up Your Tailgate Party

That coolness in the air means football and tailgating season has arrived. But can you make a stadium outing less of a green disaster? Try these tips!

It’s that time of year again. There’s a blush of color in the trees, the air is getting crisp, and football season is in full swing. The perfect time for tailgating.

Before we go much further: a reality check. There’s not much green about the idea of transporting thousands of people to a football arena, jetting teams around the country, and cleaning up tons of trash after the final down. If you want a truly eco-friendly tailgating party, skip the stadium. Watch the game on TV and invite a few friends over for barbecue in the driveway.

But greener living doesn’t always have to mean doing without. It’s about doing better. So if you’ve got your heart set on a traditional pregame party with alumni, fans, and family, we’ve rounded up a few ideas to green-up your party and demonstrate that almost anything can be made a bit more sustainable.

The green barbecue

Your lowest-impact grilling option is propane. Sure, propane is a fossil fuel — but it burns a lot cleaner than charcoal or wood fires. Propane also leaves behind less waste, and is particularly convenient when you’re cooking away from home.

If you’re going the charcoal route, consider something like Greenlink’s All Natural Briquettes. They’re made from environmentally friendly wood sources and renewable plant wastes such as coconut husks. Unlike conventional briquettes, Greenlink doesn’t use clay or anthracite fillers.

Forget the charcoal starter: it’s rich in Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), which you don’t want in your food or in the air. Use an electric starter. If that’s not practical, a good-quality charcoal chimney will get those coals glowing in minutes using nothing more than a sheet or two of newspaper.

Earth-friendly eats

Maybe you’re easing back on your meat consumption for the sake of the environment. That doesn’t mean you’ll have to settle for trail mix at your tailgate party. Check out the Vegetarian Kitchen’s tasty suggestions for veggie barbecue.

Not ready to give up on burgers and hot dogs? If you’ve not tried Boca’s burger patties or one of the great vegetarian franks you’ll find in most grocery’s freezer sections, you’re in for a surprise. A tip: veggie hot dogs are better boiled than grilled. You can always steam them in foil when you’re ready to serve.

As for the rest of the meal, go with local, seasonal produce and plug in your favorite recipes. The great thing about tailgating season is that it coincides with the biggest selection of the year down at the farmer’s market. Bon appetit.

Organic brew

Green beer isn’t just for St. Patrick’s Day. Of course, we’re talking organic — not color.

Organic beer has really taken off in the past few years. Even big players like Anheuser-Busch have gotten into the act, which means organic brew may very well be sold wherever you normally buy groceries. Whole Foods, Trader John’s, or most local natural food stores also carry organic beer lines.

Wolaver’s is currently the largest national distributor of all-organic beers. Their Pale Ale is a good choice for warm-weather tailgating. It’s traditional to drink heavier brews once there’s a snap to the autumn air. In any case, it’s an excuse to sample Wolaver’s award-winning Brown Ale or Oatmeal Stout. You’ll find similar organic selections from Peak Brewing and Goose Island Beer Company.

Ditching the Disposables

It’s tempting to break out the paper plates and plastic cutlery when you’re eating away from home. They’re certainly convenient, but most dining disposables end up in the environment or clogging local landfills, rather than finding their way into the recycling stream.

It’s really not much of a hassle to bring some dishes from home. They needn’t be your everyday ware: picking up a set of lightweight plastic place settings is a great outdoor investment, and you can probably find them secondhand for next to nothing at a garage sale or thrift store. Carry them home for washing in a lock-top box.

If you really need disposables that won’t make a mess of Mother Nature, check out Cereplast’s line of compostable cutlery. They’re made from a bio-resin derived from corn and potato starch. For other ideas on cutting picnic waste, see our article on Dining Without Disposables.

A little entertainment

If you’re fit enough to roll with the Tour de France (and perhaps a bit crazy), you can always follow the big game on a bicycle-powered television set like these inventive fellows.

For the less obsessive, there’s the Eton FR300 Emergency Radio. You’ll probably have a great-sounding car radio to turn up at the tailgate site, but the FR300 is ideal for catching the play-by-play in the stands. It can be crank-operated, which means no need for AC power and zero battery waste. The FR300 has a TV audio section and will even recharge a dead cellphone battery in a  pinch.

It’s a smart radio to have on hand for emergencies, and a subtle way to demonstrate alternative-powered consumer devices for friends.

What can you add to this list? Feel free to leave your green ideas in the comment section below.