Getting the Mower Ready for Winter

Lawn grasses have pretty much stopped growing for the season. Even though we may be getting some sunny, warm, late fall days, because the days are so short and nights cold, the grasses are going into dormancy. If you haven't already, it's always good to do one last mowing of the season. By mowing one more time you'll keep the lawn grasses short going into winter. If the grass is tall, it may be more likely to be infected with diseases next spring.

Once you've done your last mowing of the season, don't forget about the mower. While battery powered mowers are gaining in popularity because they don't pollute as much as gas mowers, are quieter, less smelly, and lighter in weight, most home owners still use gas powered mowers. Before you just bury the mower in the corner of your garage or shed, there are some maintenance chores that should be done. Doing a little work now will ready the mower for next spring.

• Clean the Deck. Clean the underside of the mowing deck removing all old grass and leaves. Rotting organic matter left under the deck can lead to the metal rusting.
• Tune Up the Engine. Change the spark plugs, air filter, and any other warn parts.
• Sharpen the Blades. Sharpen the blades now. Sharp blades are critical to fast, easy, efficient grass cutting. Dull blades tear the grass sometimes leading to disease problems and a ragged looking lawn.
• Change the Oil. Change the oil now in your lawn mower so next spring you're mower will be ready to go.
• Drain the Gas. If you're storing your mower in a cold area, either add a gas additive to prevent water buildup, or drain the gas. Water in the gas line can prevent the engine from turning over in spring.
• Send it to the Shop. If you don't want to do any of these chores yourself, send your mower off to the maintenance shop this fall. Spring tends to be busy. Mower maintenance shops often have 1 to 2 week waits for mower repairs and tune ups. Beat the rush by sending your mower off now to be repaired and tuned up. 

Charlie- Lawn & Garden

Green Sleep

Although I’m a certified green geek, I really never gave much thought to the environmental or health impacts from my mattress choices.  A recent Minneapolis Star Tribune article on green mattress shopping outlined the issues.  The main concerns are environmental effects of raw materials and potential health effects from chemicals used in manufacturing. 

Manufacturers use either foam or springs in mattress cores.  Springs are springs but shoppers have some choice on the source of the foam.  Most foam is made from petroleum products. Natural latex, harvested from rubber trees, is a green option.  At first, shipping latex from southeast Asia or Africa didn’t seem very green to me but we are shipping petroleum from all over the world so the impact of shipping may be a wash. 

Federal safety rules require mattresses to resist open flames, leading to the addition of flame retardant chemicals to mattresses.  Many of these substances have been linked to potential human health effects, although it’s close to impossible to prove a direct link.  Wool is naturally flame resistant and a greener option.  

National Geographic’s Green Guide has a good summary of the issues and product comparison information if you’re in the market for a new mattress.  Any green mattress owners out there?  Drop a comment and share your thoughts.

-Chris, Green

Bringing in the Pots

It's fall and the weather is turning colder. If you live where the ground freezes, you may spend a lot of time taking care of tender perennials, trees, and shrubs before winter's weather sets in. However, there are other pieces of the yard that need care, too. These include water hoses, fountains, pots, and trellises and benches. Let's take a look at each.

• Water hoses- If you live were the ground freezes in winter, then you need to care for your water hoses. Bring flexible soaker hoses and garden hoses indoors for the winter. Drain the water out of them first and hang them in a garage, shed, or basement. In-ground irrigation equipment should have the water drained from them as well. Check with your lawn service about caring for your irrigation pipes. Also, bring in hose nozzles, timers, sprinklers, and watering wands. They will last longer if stored indoors in winter.
• Fountains- Drain the water from fountains and remove the pumps. Fountains left outside in winter can crack if water is still inside them. Pumps are best stored indoors to avoid damaging the operating systems.
• Containers- Remove the potting soil and clean and store clay, ceramic, and plastic containers. Clay, plastic, and ceramic containers will crack in winter if left outdoors with soil in them. As the soil expands and contracts with the cold weather, it will break the pot. If your containers have trees, shrubs, or perennials in them, move these plants and pots into an unheated garage or shed and protect them from freezing temperatures. 
• Trellises and benches- While metal and wooden trellises and benches can survive the cold of winter, if they are portable, it's not a bad idea to move them into a protected area. Metal trellises won't rust as quickly and wooden trellises won't rot as soon, if protected in winter. If perennial vining plants are attached to the trellis, leave the trellis outdoors. In the process of removing the vine from the trellis, you may harm the plant. 

-Charlie, Lawn & Garden

Washing My Hands of Non-environmentally Friendly Bathroom

I now realize why the kids are always in our bathroom. Theirs is most definitely one of the most neglected parts of our home.

A true upgrade is on our “to do” list, but for now I am thinking about ways I can make it more eco-friendly with minimal time and investment.

I started with the shower curtain. I am not sure what it is made of since there is no tag but I am assuming since its about 5 years old that it probably was made with PVC (polyvinyl chloride). Vinyl shower curtains like this one can leach out over 108 chemicals in the first 28 days of use, and continue to off gas for a long time. Hot water only enhances the possibility of the chemicals being inhaled and absorbed by our skin. Not only are the PVC shower curtains not so healthy for us, they are not biodegradable. PVC is very difficult to recycle and usually ends up in a landfill. Not to mention the air and ground water pollution from the factories making products containing PVC.

So what to use instead? There are hemp shower curtains, which are especially good for dry climates (the dryer, the less mold). Another alternative is a washable, tight weave, cloth curtain. Finally, there are liners and shower curtains made with EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate).

Other easy, inexpensive ways to make the bathroom more eco friendly is to use green cleaning products, as well as green body, hair and other personal care products. Basically if there are words you don't know or can't really pronounce on the packaging, they aren't so great for you or the environment so choose something a little bit closer to nature like Burt's Bees products. Look for bathroom tissue made from 100% recycled paper with a minimum 80% post-consumer content.

Organic or hemp organic towels are another good option if you are in the market for new towels and make sure the bathroom is lit with energy efficient lighting.

Luckily there are ways of making the bathroom more eco-friendly without spending a dime. Saving water while showering, shaving and brushing your teeth will even save you a few!

Bigger ticket items include installing a low-flow shower head, a low-flow faucet aerator, and a dual-flush toilet. Need to know how? Manage my home can tell you. This might cost a bit up front, but you will save thousands of gallons of water, and money, each year. Folks also retrofit their current toilets to make them dual flush.

Washing my hands of non environmentally friendly bathroom,
-Phyllis, Green Expert

Opt Out 2

In August, we talked about ways to reduce the amount of unwanted junk mail we all receive. If you didn’t sign up then, please think about it now. The Christmas catalog onslaught is coming. I'm already getting one or two catalogs a day and we just passed Halloween.

In addition to the daily junk mail delivery, we just passed phone book drop off day in our area. Several large volumes were waiting on my front step to welcome me home. They enjoyed a quick tour of the garage on the way to the recycling bin. I can't recall the last time I actually consulted the phone book for a business or other listing.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency identified a solution for any of you who no longer need your annual phone books. The Yellow Pages Association offers a one-stop shop for opting out of phone book delivery. Simply type in your zip code and the YPA will give you a listing of phone book distributors in your area and contact information for opting out of delivery. Your request will take 60 days to process.

The MPCA says that only 20% of the 5,000 tons of phone books delivered in Minnesota each year are recycled. That's a lot of paper that ends up in the garbage. Give the YPA web site a look if you're ready to break up with the phone book for good.

-Chris, Green

Getting Ready to Force Bulbs

November is a great time of year to scour garden centers and nurseries looking for discount bulbs. Most stores have spring flowering bulbs, such as tulips, daffodils, crocus, and hyacinths on sale now, so it's easy to get some good deals. While most areas of country still can pop these in the ground for next spring, another fun activity is to get them ready to be forced into bloom this winter indoors. Forcing bulbs brings a touch of spring in February and March when most of the country is still fighting cold and snow storms. Here's how.

Forcing Bulbs

Fill a 10- to 12-inch diameter clay or plastic pot with moistened potting mix. Place a selection of bulbs in the pot, planting large bulbs, such as daffodils and hyacinths, about 6 inches deep and smaller bulbs, such as tulips and crocus, just 3 to 4 inches deep. Position the bulbs so that they almost touch each other. You can grow just one kind of bulb per pot, or mix up varieties and types.

Place the planted pots in a cool (32°F to 50°F), dark area for 12 to 16 weeks. A basement, unheated shed, or garage works best. This “resting” time in a cool, dark place convinces the bulbs they have experienced winter and they should be ready to start growing once they’re exposed to “sun” and “warmth.”

Check the bulbs in storage after about 3 months or when you notice shoots emerging and roots peeking through the drainage holes. Then bring the pots into a sunny, warm room. For the first week place them in a 55°F room to start growing. Keep them well watered. When bulb shoots are 2 inches tall, place them in a 68°F room. The bulbs should flower within one week.

If you don’t have room for storing potted bulbs in the house, place the loose bulbs in paper bags in the refrigerator crisper for 6 weeks. Then pot them up and store them in a 55°F room for one month before bringing them into a warmer, sunny room to bloom. The warmer the room, the faster the bulbs will come into flower. Cooler rooms (55°F to 60°F) tend to slow down flowering.

-Charlie, Lawn & Garden

Light Bulb Acronym Soup

Now that I replaced nearly all of my standard light bulbs with compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs, all the cool kids are switching to light emitting diodes (LEDs). The Minneapolis Star Tribune recently reported on the costs and advantages of LEDs. Many of the large national retailers are carrying LEDs along with their supplies of CFL bulbs.

CFL bulbs use only 25% of the electricity of an equivalent incandescent bulb but LEDs use even less – about 10%. Unfortunately, LEDs also cost more. Most are in the $9-20 range but some are $70 per bulb. They last 20 years, so you won't need to buy many, but that is a long payback time for a light bulb. Like CFLs, one big complaint about LEDs is color (blue vs. traditional yellow). LEDs also emit light “directionally,” meaning they aren't available for all types of fixtures. Unlike CFLs, LEDs do not contain mercury.

If you're not quite ready to switch, commercial building owners are starting to buy LEDs in bulk (e.g., Wal-Mart). Large commercial purchases will start to drive down the cost of the bulbs and make them more affordable for you and me.

I'm buying my first LED Christmas lights this year. I'm going to slip them onto the tree and see if anybody notices. I'll report back on cost and appearance.

-Chris, Green

When Mothers-in Law Arrive!

My in-laws are coming for Thanksgiving. I am delighted that they are coming—all the way from England, in fact!—but I am kind of beginning to panic about the state of the cleanliness of my house. To be fair, I should say the lack of cleanliness of my house. It's not filthy, but I'm no Donna Reed either! My husband wants it stated that he believes the only messiness in our house is dog hair from Lilly, our Golden Retriever—he's delusional, but it's a nice sentiment.

I have 16 days before they arrive, so I can dust and vacuum and de-gunk the house in that amount of time—oh, the bathroom alone!!! But here's the real issue at hand. My mother-in-law is only 5 feet tall; I am 5'9”. That means I have to go through the entire house from a completely different height range to see the filth that has collected underneath objects that I never even see because I am looking from the top down.

The first time they came to America to see us, I did the same thing and was so horrified at what had collected under my oven hood that I stayed up nearly an entire night removing the hair and grease from it while trying to keep the bile in its rightful place.

I have a diminutive friend who commiserates from the other angle. She lamented recently that her tall husband was totally unbothered by the gathering of dust and grease that accumulated on top of the refrigerator—where she can’t see and he can. Why, she wondered, did that not bother him the way it bothered her when she finally pulled a chair up to inspect?

Let me be clear: my mother-in-law has an absolutely spotless and lovely, lived-in home, and I would quite happily eat any food off any floor in it, and she has never shown a clear disdain for my less-than-stellar house-keeping skills. She is always incredibly gracious and has never done the Mary Poppins white-glove dust test—at least not in my presence, but I still am feeling incredible pressure to get the house in tip top shape before she arrives.

I hope I can get everything done in the next 16 days that I want to get done. The list is long, but I am pretty sure that I can enlist my husband, her son who seems to feel none of this pressure by the way!, and my son to help. By the time we sit down to Thanksgiving dinner, I should be full of gratitude for the spotless state of my home! And if not, I'll have to be grateful for extended family, and that's a lovely thing, too.

-Dayna Del Val

Working with Rocks and Stones

Fall is a great time of year to work on the structure of your garden. One of the best pieces to add to your garden are stones and rocks. Whether it be a rock wall, stepping stones placed in a walkway, or large boulders to catch your eye or accent a view, rocks offer texture and a natural visual appeal.

The best stones to use would be native to your area. Look around at neighbor's yards and public gardens to see the types of stone available. While a dry stone wall outlining your perennial garden may be beautiful, it does require either lots of physical labor on your part or money to hire someone to build. However, you don't have to build a huge wall. If you have a source of stone, you can build 1- to 2-foot tall, small stone wall around low growing plants to add a backdrop without having to invest in a larger wall.

Strategically placing boulders in the yard gives your property a natural feeling as well as adds places to group plants. Mimic nature by growing small trees, shrubs, and low growing groundcovers around boulders giving the area a wild feeling. If you have kids, consider placing boulders where they can climb and play on them. It's fun to climb on rocks. Just don't plant prized plants nearby, since they may be trampled by frolicking youngsters.

If a wall or boulders just seem like too much work, simply gather flat stones to place as stepping stones in walkways and gardens. Not only do stepping stones make the walkway more interesting visually, they provide a place to walk during rainy stretches that might turn your walkway into a mudway!

-Charlie, Lawn & Garden

Drive More Efficiently. Its good for your wallet and the planet

As we mentioned earlier in the week, the type of vehicle you drive is key to treading lighter. However, so is the way you drive and maintain your car.

You probably already know that flooring the gas pedal not only wastes gas and leads to drastically higher pollution rates, but have you considered some of these driving tips from greenercars.org?:

• Combine trips. Warmed-up engines and catalysts generate much less air pollution, so combining several short trips into one can make a big difference.
• Take a load off. I used to carry a stroller around in the back of the car but no more. Carrying around extra pounds reduces fuel usage.
• Change the oil. Ask the service station if they recycle used oil, or if you do it yourself, take your old oil to a place that recycles.
• If your vehicle has it, use overdrive gear at cruising speeds. When driving a manual transmission, shift up as soon as possible. Running in a higher gear decreases the rpm and will decrease fuel use and engine wear.
• Try using the vents and opening windows to cool off before you turn on the air conditioner.
• Keep your tires properly inflated.
• Buy low-rolling-resistance (LRR) replacement tires.
• At the pump, stop after the click. Don't overfill the gas because spilled gasoline evaporates to aggravate smog formation and can leak into groundwater.
• Look for local gas stations that have vapor-recovery nozzles (those black, accordion-looking plastic devices attached to the nozzle).
• Park in the shade in summer to keep your car cool and minimize evaporation of fuel.
• If you have a garage, use it as much as possible to keep your car warm in winter and cool in summer.
• Consider other commuting options as well to cut pollution, reduce traffic congestion and conserve energy.

Tread lighter,
-Phyllis, Green Expert