~ Eco Monday~

 Growing Vegtables, Flowers and Herbs can be fun! Especially when you find things around the house to grow them in! A fun way to incorporate a Reuse and Recycle what you have at home. Here are a few things im using in my recycling garden.

This year I have used 4 tires to grow some tomatos on the outside of my garden. This way I have a little more room inside my garden for other veggies. Just fill the tires with organic soil and plant away! Its not pretty but it works.

You can also use baskets as planters. I added a plastic bag inside with rocks on the bottom to help with drainage. The plastic helps to keep your basket from rotting and falling apart. Im growing peppers and nasturtiums in this basket.

This is a candle holder that I used to use in the house. I dropped it and the bottom broke out. I barried it in the dirt about a half inch and am growing some Oregano in it. Adds a little color to my eggplant and shallots garden bed.

Everyone has collections of tea pots! Im using this old teapot as a planter for my spicy basil. I will sit this on our patio table. We eat out there alot in the summer. This way we can easily pinch off fresh herbs and toss em on our food.

This is a much bigger container! It was the top of a bar from a tavern that did some remodeling. Hubby brought it home for me to use as a planter.

 Tomatos and scallions are growing in this one.

What things do you use in your garden?

Happy Recycling!!!

Recycled Trellis's for my Garden

Today I started the building of my Trellis's for my garden Veggies!

I am using an old futon structure as my Cucumber Trellis (black trellis)

I also used 3 wooden stakes that I made from old wooden pallets! I tied some wire fencing to the stakes to make a trellis for my Long Beans!

With limited space in my backyard, I try to trellis as much as I can!

Happy Recycling!

~Eco Monday~

My latest garden idea has turned out well!

I have been searching out large tree branches and small ones as as well.

Why you ask? To make a Garden Fence of course.

 I wanted a more natural fence. A fence that looked like it was always there.

The new tree branch fence will serve dual purposes.

Purpose number one, keep the dog out!  Purpose number two to grow multiple beans, Nasturtiums, and Morning Glorys. A natural trellis!

Here are a few pictures of ways to re-use branches/tree limbs in your yard!

This is the enterance! Im hoping to grow Nastritums and Morning Glorys as a trells entry way!

I also plan on painting that wall of the shed and painting some Sunflowers to add a little pop. There will also be a small table and chairs, so I can watch my garden grow!

Here is one of the sides of the fence!

Here is another angle.

Another side! Tomatos will mostly grow in the area with Nasturtiums!

A basic view of the summer garden! As time goes by, I will be adding more sticks to fill in areas a little more.

This is just what I have so far. I will also be building some trellis for Cucumbers as well!

Happy Recycling!

~Eco Monday Tip~

Egg Cartons!

Egg cartons and their many uses! I always keep the cartons my eggs come in. The uses for them are endless.

You can start seedlings in them. Use them to hold fresh eggs from your chickens. They can be used for crafts, holders when dying easter eggs, fire starters or sorting nuts and bolts in large tool boxes.

~Seedling Pots~

Poke small hole in bottom of each egg cup (for drainage).

Fill each egg cup ¾ full with potting soil.

Plant a seed in each egg cup.

Water, put in sunny window ; continue to water when dry. Watch plants grow! (They will need to be transplanted to the garden or bigger pots when they outgrow their pots.)

~Fire starters~

Fill the paper egg cartons with dryer lint.

 Pore melted wax over the lint.

You can tear apart the sections and use for fire starters when you are camping, or in your fire place.

 I use left over candle pieces for the melted wax. You could also use old crayons.

~Egg Carton Ladybugs~

Heres something I saw on the internet that I thought would be cute to make with your lil ones! It looks like a fun craft for when spring arrives!

From what I can see from the picture, All you would need is paint,Fuzzy craft balls, pipe cleaners & googly eyes! I love all the differnt colors. You can even make these and put them in your lil ones Easter Baskets. How cute would they look in the baskets of grass.

~Halloween~

Heres a cute idea for Halloween to do with the kiddos also!

If you are feeling really strongly about the Triple R's, you can build your own furniture! I found this picture while doing research on the internet. I thought it was pretty cool.

Happy Recycling!

~Eco Monday~

Ever wonder what to do with faucet handles from your outdoor faucets! I have a wonderful idea for those of you who love garden art and windchimes. At the Auburn County Fair today, they had on display a faucet handle wind chime! They used old faucet handles, some small springs & a chain to withstand the weight. What an intresting way to liven up a garden space! Absolutly adorable and so very creative! You can use many differnt colored ones and it makes a beautiful piece of art for any gardener! I cant wait to start collecting faucet handles to make my own windchimes! What a great way to Re-use this item. Another fantastic way of Recycling and keeping these little items out of the landfill!

Happy Recycling!

~Eco Monday~

Everywhere I go, I  see Wood Pallets. They are along the road, People give them away and theres a ton of them that end up in landfills. Why not reuse them! Currently the Husband and I are building a compost bin out of wood pallets. We are also using some of the wood to build a new chicken coop for our growing Chicken family as well. He is also constructing raised garden beds from the wood for me. Im currently working on a Recycled Garden using all the things I find from junk piles and things I have around the yard. Its a work in progress and I hope to be finished by early spring. It should be a very Eclectic garden. I plan to add many touches and elements to the new garden. So keep your eyes open for future posts on these projects! Below is a pictue I found online of a compost bin made from wood pallets. As soon as we finish our project I will Blog all about it!

Happy Recycling!

~Dressing The Vegtable Garden~

What to do with those old dressers that fall apart. Make use of them , put them in your garden! They add a little decor and its an instant raised garden bed. Best part, all it cost you was the dirt and seed you had to add. I took the backing off the dresser. I then laid it flat on the part that would be against the wall. Filled it up with compost and soil. I then added Radish seeds and Carrot seeds to my new raised dresser garden bed. Then It was time to make use of the dresser Drawers. I turned them into my mini herb garden.I drilled holes into the bottom for drainage. I then added some brick underneath to raise them off the ground & filled them with compost and soil. I then sowed the seeds. I grew baby spinach, cilantro,parsley and scallions.Then I decorated the area to give it my own flair. It was very cute on my back patio.It made a dull space come to life. Get creative! Livin up your garden.

Happy Recycling!

~Recycled Futon Frame~

What do you do when the cushions on your futon are all worn out! You get rid of the uncomfortable cushions and you use the metal frame pieces in your garden! At least, thats what I did. I took 2 pieces of the frame and made an "A" frame structure from them. I stuck the metal ends deep into the dirt for support and tied them up with some gardening metal ties.
I am currently using them to grow my Cucumbers. As the vines grow longer I tie them in differnt places to the "A" frame.

Its turned out to be a great support for my Cucumbers! I was able to make 2 "A" frames from the metal of the futon.I Donated the foam cushions to our local vet. No waste from the broken down futon! 1 less thing in our local landfill. I will have these frames for many years! They make great supports! Wonder what I will use them for next year!

Happy Recycling!

~Bicycle tubes in the Garden~

My family loves to ride bikes! We go to the store the park or just ride around. With 6 bikes, theres always a tire to repair. Dont dispair! I have a way to recycle those old tubes.

I cut them into pieces and make multiple sizes for many differnt uses. Then I rinse them off with a little soap and water.

Here is a great idea for use. I used them to tie around my tomato cage and attach to a wooden stake
for support.

Or you can use them to tie fencing to wooden posts in your garden. Store your left over tire tube ties for future uses. Im sure you can come up with many other uses for your tire tube ties! Say that real fast 3 times!

Happy Recycling!

~Recycling a box spring~

A had this box spring from a bed and i used every piece of it! None of it will end up in a landfill. How awesome is that. Im lowering my carbon foot print any way I can! So I had my most awesome hubby tear it apart for me. I used all the wood from the box spring to make wood stakes for my tomatos and pepper plant. Gave me 18 stakes. I used the metal wire mesh and hung it on my fence to use as a trellis for my jasmine so it will grow sideways along the back of my fence! How awesome is that. then I took the springs and buying some metal stakes or dowels and welding the springs on the the metal posts and make candle holders for around my garden. So I can light them outside for a warm glowing feel on summer nights. Im also making them to hold soda cans next to my lawn chairs, so the cans dont have to sit in the ground and get bugs inside them. Still thinking of a few extra ideas to use them for. When im done making them I will post some pics. Last but not least the fabric that was on the box spring, i cut into squares and washed them and donated them to the SPCA for the animals to lay on as bedding! All that was left of the box spring were nails. So i used the nails to hammer the wire mesh from the box spring to the fence and then saved the rest. Do your part to reduce your footprint.

Happy Recycling!