3 New Ways that we Have Gone Green, This Year, and Saved some Green

My family and I try to be good stewards of what God has blessed us with. Saving money, along the way, is an added bonus.

1. Starting a Garden
A garden can be a bit of a financial investment, at first, but the costliest materials in my garden, the composite vegetable beds, can be reused year after year. (My husband made our beds out of composite, rather than treated wood, as treated wood tends to leach into the fruits and vegetables in the garden.) We are hoping and praying that our harvest, in our little garden, will be worthwhile and that we will be reap from the fruits of our labors. We have 15 tomato plants, 4 pepper plants, corn, carrots, cucumbers, onions, 4 cabbage plants, broccoli, 2 strawberry plants, zucchini plants, crookneck squash plants, and herbs. Considering the cost of organic vegetables, if our harvest is decent, our produce will be at a substantial savings. We have learned so much from having a garden, which is truly priceless.

A zucchini getting ready


2. Composting
This is my handy, dandy compost bin, which we purchased from Sam's Club, a few months ago.
There are three main ways that my compost bin saves me money:
I. Use less trash bags:
Depending upon how many fruits and vegetables your family consumes, roughly 15-20% of your garbage is compostable. When I would make something like mashed potatoes, it was ridiculous how quickly I filled the trash can with potato peelings. Now, I put all fruit and vegetable peels and skins, coffee grounds, tea bags, egg shells, and other compostable items, in the composter, rather than in the trash.
II. Less trips to the dump
We live outside of the city limits, so trash service is something that we have the option to pay for, from a private company. Since our local dump is only 3 miles away, I take the trash to the dump, every few days. Composting reduces our quantity of trash, so I don't have to make trips to the dump so often.
III. Compost is free, nutrient-rich vegetable fertilizer and food
The price for bags of cow manure and vegetable food can be expensive. Since we started composting just a few months ago, we have not been able to use our compost for our garden, this year. We are looking forward to using it next spring.
3. Hanging Laundry on a Clothesline
I mentioned, last week, that my children and I are hanging out most of our laundry, weather permitting, to save money on our electric bill. These are the ways that I have found that line drying saves money:
I. Line drying extends the life of clothing.
II. Line drying cuts energy costs by roughly 5%.
III. Line drying in the summer reduces added heat in your house, which could add in energy savings.

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