A Healthier Home

I’ll read just about anything that mentions gardening, composting, sustainable living, helping our environment. Could be that I’ll eventually end up skimming through the main part of the article, but on the other hand, it may be that I’ll delve deeply into the heart of it to glean every idea put forth. Wanting to know what others of like mind are thinking and suggesting as ways to improve our lifestyles is a driving force for me.

Knowing this about me, it will not surprise you that on my way to checking my email today I happened upon and read word for word an article by Debra Lynn Dadd about ways we can make our homes healthier. The author listed ten ways to do so;  the numero uno way Ms. Dadd said we could make our homes healthier was to “nix ammonia” as a means of cleaning glass in our homes. Hurray for Ms. Dadd! I heard about this “alternative” cleaner a couple of decades ago and use it religiously…not only to clean glass but for my wood floors and to kill bacteria when I clean my humidifier. One part white or apple cider vinegar to one part water in a spray bottle for window and glass cleaner. One-quarter cup vinegar to one gallon of water cleans my wood floors, and I use full strength vinegar to clean my humidifier.

Another way Ms. Dadd suggested that we could make our homes healthier was to use organically grown produce. Her reasoning was that most (if not all) non-organically grown produce available in our grocery stores is heavily sprayed by the growers with pesticides and herbicides. And we know from scientific studies that these poisons can cause cancer. Ms. Dadd suggests buying organic fruits and vegetables that are in season for a healthier home. But we don’t have to just buy it. We can grow it ourselves! We can reduce our reliance on oil and gas, and decrease emissions by cutting out the need to transport that produce to the market. Growing and eating our own garden produce is one of the best ways to reduce our carbon footprint that I know of. Tasty too!

This last method of cleaning up our living spaces made me think of one of the reasons I fell in love with my husband! The first time I met him he told me about the organic garden he cultivated. It was love at first bite when he shared some home grown organic corn on the cob! Making your own organic compost is the right way to start down that path to organic gardening. And, of course, composting also reduces our carbon footprint by reusing our kitchen waste instead of sending it off to the landfill or reduces water usage by not running that waste through the garbage disposal. At BestComposters.com we want to make it easier than ever to have an organic garden and enjoy those fresh vegetables and fruits. We love our tumbling composter, since all we have to do is add our composting materials and give it a couple of cranks on the handle. Spinning the materials inside the tumbler gets air to the compost and helps those wonderful organisms to break things down more quickly. And by adding BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost (six sachets per $13.99 packet, one sachet per month) to the tumbler according to package instructions, we don’t have to be so careful in adding the exactly proper mix of nitrogen (40%) and carbon (60%). It’s 100% organic and biodegradable, reduces odors and helps in the nutrient absorption of the plants. Using BiOWiSH™ Compost Boost also reduces the amount of time it takes to achieve the finished batch of compost, so we can make twice as much! Our garden is going to love us, and our home will be a healthier place. Thanks for getting me thinking, Debra Lynn Dadd!