Sustainable

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Why I Garden #13

Garlic Scape bouquet

Few things stand out more than Garlic Scapes in the garden. They have a curly, serpentine look that even got the neighbors asking about them. But even better than their look is their taste. We harvested (a little late, but just barely) garlic scapes from our hard-neck garlic this weekend. They became part of a White Bean and Garlic Scapes Dip. We had friends over for dinner and the four of us nearly inhaled the dip.

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The Greens Tidal Wave continues

Topbar Beehive with blooming Penstemon

Hey kids! It's been an exciting couple weeks as spring has finally arrived and that means, um, lots of things! It means I'm still getting greens fast and furious from the Beneficial Farms CSA. It means that the garden looks more alive and plants are in the ground with all their promise of delicious things. It means that our newly acquired BEES have several flowered things to investigate. It means that we turned on the grill this weekend and could stand around poking our grilling food and not wear a jacket. Oh the promise of spring and early summer.

Bike to Work Week 2009 - No More Excuses

Bike to Work Week Santa Fe 2009

Welcome to Bike to Work Week 2009! This is your annual reminder that bicycling is a great way to get in shape, save money on gas, explore your neighborhood and reduce your carbon footprint. To top it all off, riding a bike is fun too! Below is a schedule of Santa Fe Bike to Work Week free events to check out. Enjoy the warm spring weather and pedal on down to the Railyard Friday morning for a festive Bike to Work Day fun and giveaways. You know you want to ride your bike, so the question is what is stopping you?*

Bike to Work Week - May 11-16, 2009

Why I Garden #12

Tray of Seedlings

What holds more promise (for a gardener, anyway) than a tray full of seedlings? Our average last frost-free date is 9 days away and I am getting ready to harden off a tray full of seedlings that we started about 3 weeks ago. We are trying everything from arugula to kale, broccoli to tomatillos, and basil to fennel. This tray full of bright green baby plants reminds me of grade school science classes and egg cartons sprouting bean plants. What are you planting in your garden this season?

A Bad Day for Black Rocks

Coal Miners

What a difference an administration makes! The EPA is working once again to protect the environment here in New Mexico and elsewhere. Specifically, the EPA is reconsidering the air (pollution) permit granted to the Desert Rock coal-fired power plant near Farmington, NM. This move revisits several exemptions made to existing air quality rules and allows the EPA to incorporate its new Supreme Court mandated role in regulating CO2 emissions. I don't think we can breathe easy yet, but fossil fuel air pollution just had a significant setback.

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Screw Earth Day?

Earth Day - I'm with stupid

What does Earth Day mean to you? Is it a call to action, urging each of us to respect and protect our planet? Or, is it just another marketing ploy, seducing us into buying another 'recyclable' gizmo? Some folks have grown so jaded by the commercialization of Earth Day (sound like another holiday to you?) that they are saying Screw Earth Day! Scientists and environmentalists have been ringing the alarm bells so loud and long that deafness has become an occupational hazard.

Good Book, Bad Cover

Sustainable Energy - Without The Hot Air, book cover

Don't judge a book by it's cover, especially when the cover is this bad. Fortunately the book 'Sustainable Energy - without the hot air' by David JC MacKay is a much better book than its wrapping suggests. Professor McKay makes a case for, of all things, a fact and number-based energy policy. The idea that rational decision-making should drive energy policy shouldn't be a radical idea, but strangely enough it is.

Rebirth of the White House Garden

First Lady, Michelle Obama breaking ground for the White House organic garden

Not since WWII has the White House had a vegetable garden. Once again, a Victory Garden will grow at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. For those of us who love fresh, organic, home-grown fruits and veggies it is great to see a kindred spirit in the President of the United States. Today, the First Lady, Michelle Obama and students from Washington's Bancroft Elementary School broke ground on the South Lawn for a new White House garden.

Why I Garden #11

Spring Garlic and new Compost

The first signs of spring are popping up across town. Irises are sprouting in the front yard and garlic is appearing in the backyard. We're still two months away from the last average frost date, but many of the hardier plants are showing new growth, swelling buds and sprouting leaves. I expect we'll still see some snow, even well past the Spring Solstice. But, that's life in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

Heating Bill Before and After Attic Insulation

Natural Gas Flares

In December 2008 we insulated our home's attic to about R-50 with blown-in cellulose insulation. There was an immediate and noticeable increase in comfort and a reduction in how often the furnace ran. While I appreciate the qualitative improvement, I decided to run the numbers and find the actual quantitative difference in our natural gas heating bill.

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