Sustainable Living

Today my topic is sustainable living.  I’ll explain what it is, why I like it, and one way I participate.

First, what is it?  Sustainable living is a lifestyle, a way of acting on a conscious decision to reduce the amount of natural resources we use as individuals.   People do this by altering their activities related to transportation, use of energy, consumption of goods, and/or diet.   For example, someone who invests in solar paneling to reduce the amount of natural gas needed to warm their home, practices sustainable living.  Another example would be someone who opts to dine out locally, and strolls instead of steers, to nearby restaurants and shops.   

Why do I practice it?  For me, it gives me the opportunity to reduce negative impact to the planet while simultaneously increasing the positive benefits to me and my family.  Positive benefits include less money out-of-pocket, fewer errands, the opportunity to build community and to make an ecological impact.      

My husband and I have done this in many ways, but my favorite example is the creation of a variety of gardens on our property by using sustainable living practices.  This has led to fewer store runs, and therefore fewer purchases of packaged goods.  Let me give you more detail about these gardens.

Our home sits on about one quarter acre of land.  The very back third of the yard was not getting used for anything; we simply mowed the grass here and mowed the grass there and mowed the grass even further over there.  Eventually we decided to reduce the amount of lawn space and created ornamental gardens instead.  Doing so reduced the amount of time and the gasoline we needed to cut the grass.  But we didn’t run to the nursery to purchase plants.  We utilized what was already growing on our property first.  We started by thinning and transplanting overgrown perennials, like daylilies and liriope, from the front of our yard to the very back. 

Of course we didn’t want the same plants everywhere so we spoke to neighbors and friends about trading some of our ornamental perennials.  This has been a huge success and is on-going!   For example, we have a beautiful deep pink Rose of Sharon bush that produces many offspring each year.  This year we dug up the offspring, put them in used flowerpots, and shared them with neighbors, friends and family.  In turn, we have received back many different ornamental perennials such as ferns and bleeding hearts, to name just a few.  And we transfer plants from one house to another by reusing the same flowerpots.  We educate everyone to use them over and over again.  This trading keeps us from traveling to the nursery to make purchases; it also creates a sense of community among our neighbors, family and friends. 

Next, we dug up other portions of our yard in order to plant separate vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens.  We’ve come a long way.  About ten years ago we had one small vegetable garden, with little more than peppers and tomatoes.  Every few years we doubled this space.  The vegetable garden is now about 900 square feet and we plant many more veggies than peppers and tomatoes.  We have also conscientiously selected the vegetable plants we grow, selecting as many perennials and self-sustaining plants as possible.  For example, rhubarb and Swiss chard return every year.  Another example is garlic, which is harvested, and then some of the heads are set aside and replanted.  You just need to be sure to buy starters from a manufacturer that doesn’t genetically modify the bulbs so as not to reproduce.  The fruit garden includes raspberry patches which delight us by producing lots of fruit every year.  And did you know that many herbs are perennials too?  Rosemary, oregano, mint, chives and sage are a few examples. 

Having fresh fruit, veggies and herbs on hand gives us plenty of dinner ideas, and keeps us from running to the grocery store so often, especially during the summer.  But sometimes the yield is too great and we can’t consume everything.  Then we freeze some and give some to our neighbors.  This makes for great community. 

Sustainable living then is acting on a conscious decision to reduce the amount of natural resources we expend and generally results in living more simply.  One way we participate is the way we garden.  Hopefully you’ve gleaned that it’s not difficult to live this way, we use less of our planets resources, and we have built community.  Maybe it has piqued your interest and you’d like to learn more.  If you do, just ask me, because I have more to tell.

Reflective questions:
1.  What does sustainable living mean to you?

2.  How do you or would you benefit from sustainable living?