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Gleaning Made Easy – Neighborhood Fruit

Fruit! We all Most of us love it, but not all of us have it and it can be so dang expensive.  Some of us have some, but want more variety and well, it can be so dang expensive.  However, have you ever noticed how much of it litters our sidewalks in the summer? The smell of perfectly good fruit fermenting on the sidewalk is almost synonymous in the summertime.

Many people have taken it upon themselves to make sharing of fruit from their trees easier for each other by allowing gleaning.  It’s a great way to get rid of that leftover fruit and also share with friends and neighbors.  But it is not always easy for everyone to know where the people are who don’t mind a little gleaning.  Well, Neighborhood Fruit has set out to solve that problem with a great website and iPhone app.

With the website and app you can search a radius around your zip-code for public and private trees where piking of fruit is allowed.  It’s a great idea and may just help to keep the sidewalks cleaner and your bellies fuller with fruit that would have otherwise rotted on the tree.  The only problem is that right now it does not appear that any trees are registered in the city or the state yet.  So please register your tree if you have something to share!

Want to garden, but your thumb isn’t so green? Help is on the way.

There is a new trend in the world and it is an exciting trend to me. People are growing their own vegetables again! From the die hard gardeners to the White House and everywhere in between American’s are picking up their shovels and their rakes and growing again!

It isn’t so new to me since I have had a garden everywhere I ever lived, but to many they are hearkening back to something their grandma did or perhaps, great grandma did. Many don’t know where to start or what to do and that is where folks like Salt Lake City’s D&L Urban Farms come in. Continue Reading…

RainPod an easy way to gather all your rain in one place.

Now this is an easy and beautiful way to gather all your rain in one place. It definitely beats those big green barrels that place under your downspouts. (I am not talking about rss feeds here.)

According to the RainPod Site “”People usually water their plants and garden with tap-water although rainwater is free…Rainpod is a standalone rain collector. Its three legs are made of local wood trunks which makes each unit unique and reduces transportation impact. Its high placed tank delivers rainwater under pressure for easy watering, thanks to gravity.”

Now I can’t seem to find any information on where to purchase these or how much they are but when I do I will update you here. I know I want one! I currently have two rain-barrels which I use all summer to water all my potted plants. It works wonderfully and my plants seem healthier. I have been looking for another and this is a great alternative.

Source: Treehugger and Hotchoz

Plant More Trees – Spring Planting Season is Here.

While Fall is the best time to plant trees, Spring comes in close as another good time. Just don’t plant in the middle of the summer.

So if you are thinking of planting a tree this Spring, check out arborday.org for the 9 things you should know about planting trees or click on each link below to be directed to the area you want to learn more about.

9 Things You Should Know About Trees

#1 – Don’t Top Trees!
#2 – 1/3 and 1/4 Rules of Pruning
#3 – How to Make a Pruning Cut
#4 – The Value of Mulch
#5 – Where Roots Really Grow
#6 – Girdling Kills Trees
#7 – How to Plant a Containerized Tree
#8 – How to Plant a Bare-root Tree
#9 – Your Street Trees May Be City Trees

Watch the video below for just one more good reason to plant a tree this year. Think of the squirrels.

daily stuff – October 24, 2007 – Rainwater Catchment

Have you ever wondered where all that water goes once it runs off your roof? Maybe you think that if only you saved a little from the last rainstorm, you could keep those flower pots watered on the front porch. When the drought restrictions are forcing you to let the lawn die.

Rainwater Catchment has been around for ages, but it is rarely used here in the USA. However, as droughts become longer, summers hotter and rain storms fewer and far between many people are wondering how they can make use of what little does fall.

So what is rainwater catchment? “The rainwater cisternis historically an underground basin of water, but it can also be an above ground barrel or tank. Much like an artificial well, cisterns are used to make sure that water is not contaminated nor suffers from evaporation. Probably the most effective but overlooked form of rainwater storage in the modern era rainwater cisterns are practical and can be aesthetically concealed below ground, behind fencing or trellis. Good materials for cisterns include plastic liners or membrane material in wood frames, ceramic, fiberglass, “food grade” plastic and poly-tanks, as well as other potable liquid materials.”

I personally have installed a rain barrel on one downspout from my roof. It is 55 gallons and I can typically fill it with two downpours or an hour long drizzle. The water I use for flower pots only and 55 gallons can last me about 3 months. Only once this summer did I run out before the next rain.

If you would like more information on the different systems that are available, www.harvesth2o.com is an excellent resource.

This video is also very interesting.

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