Tag Archives: environment

Our favorite articles about the environment and eco-friendly living posted on TexasHomesteader.com

Going Green Is Easy. Tales of a Single Day of Greenery!

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by Texas Homesteader ~

It’s no secret I have an environmental bend. But many people think that ‘going green‘ is complicated or requires special equipment. Here’s the good news – you don’t need special equipment or to do anything complicated to be Eco-friendly.

I thought it would be fun to rattle off things that are a typical day that just flow with my regular chores. No extra effort needed, no special equipment.

On this day we have a few errands to run and I need to make yogurt for breakfasts & a supply of boiled eggs for RancherMan’s snacking. Let’s see how smoothly this environmental thing can be done without much thought at all!

Going Green: What did YOU do today to give good Ole Mother Earth a big wet kiss right on the mouth??! #TexasHomesteader

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How To Make Your Own Homemade Minty Mouthwash

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by Texas Homesteader ~
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I wanted to eliminate plastic bottles of mouthwash. Although I found many ‘recipes’ for making your own homemade mouthwash, often they’re overly complicated or use specialty ingredients I don’t want to have to buy.

What’s my battle cry? Yep, y’all remember it well: 

Use Whatcha Got!

Making my own Homemade Minty Mouthwash helps me toward the zero-waste lifestyle I strive for. And using only simple ingredients, too! #TexasHomesteader

 

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Solar Cooking: Cheesy Chile-Chicken Casserole

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by Texas Homesteader ~ 

This simple Cheesy Chile Chicken Casserole recipe can be cooked the traditional way in a standard oven. But I often cook it outside in my solar oven.

So whether or not you have your own solar oven – read on, dear friends!

solar cooking - cheesy green chile chicken casserole #TexasHomesteader

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Homestead Hack: Reusing Plastic Bags In The Garden

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by Texas Homesteader ~

I.  Hate.  Plastic. In our area of NE Texas, plastic bags are not recyclable. So I’m always looking for a repurpose use for plastic bags for times when they make it into our home.

Let’s take a bag of potatoes for example. When that bag of potatoes is empty it still doesn’t go to the trash. Nope, I’ve got another use for them. 

You know my battle cry: Use Whatcha Got!

Sometimes we buy a bag of potatoes. I've got another use for the bag in the garden. You know my battle cry: Use Whatcha Got! #TexasHomesteader

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Make A Raised Planter Using A Small Tire

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by Texas Homesteader ~

A few months ago RancherMan & I joined my parents for a quick dinner at a local restaurant.  On the sidewalk outside the restaurant was a cute planter. Upon closer inspection, it looked like a small, thick tire that was painted & then planted. 

RancherMan said it was probably a riding lawn mower or golf cart tire. I loved it! Heck you always wonder what to do with an old tire anyway. And their disposal is always an issue. 

Plus I often worry that planters that you buy just can’t hold up to the rough Texas weather year after year. Spring hail storms can render that cute ceramic planter useless in short order!

These repurposed-tire planters seemed to be the best of both worlds – interesting looks, very durable and using something previously wasted. I decided to give it a try. 

But I didn’t have an old lawn mower tire and I really didn’t want to buy a new one. It seems like such a waste of resources to buy a perfectly good usable tire & paint it!

A cute nearly indestructible raised planter that can endure year after year in challenging Texas weather using a small, repurposed tire #TexasHomesteader

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Plastic Free July – Our Successes & Failures

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by Texas Homesteader ~
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I’d never heard of plastic-Free July before, but I’m willing to jump on the bandwagon to eliminate as much extra plastic from our lives as possible. Now I hate plastic and I shun it every day anyway. But for me, it’s all about balance. If I stumble I don’t obsess about it, life’s just too short.

But I’m usually pretty successful in eliminating lots of plastic with super-easy changes. Come see ways I’ve been able to stop lots of plastic from coming into our home. Maybe you can pick up a few tips. 

We’d love to hear your tips too, be sure to share in the comments. We can all learn from each other!

Plastic Free July is going great. There are a few stumbles, but many successes. How do YOU eliminate plastic from your home? #TexasHomesteader

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Repurposing An Empty Coffee Canister: Dried Herbs

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by Texas Homesteader ~

Coffee canisters are easy to repurpose for any number of things. And repurpose them we do!

Y’all know we love our coffee. We prefer Folgers to other brands of coffee. But at least their coffee canister is food-grade plastic. So in addition to other non-food repurposes, I’m able to do even more with it.

I can store large quantities of dried herbs in them.

Use those empty coffee canisters to store dried herbs. I have a huge harvest of dried rosemary stored to use in cooking & soap making. #TexasHomesteader

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GO GREEN – Compostable Utensils & Wooden Plates!

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by Texas Homesteader ~
*contains affiliate links

Did y’all know there’s such a thing as ‘Plastic-Free July‘? Me neither! But you know I hate plastic so I’m loving anything that has to do with eliminating more of it.  And it’s perfect timing since recent buying decisions had me looking for disposable utensils.

Wait a minute, WHAT Tammy??!  I thought you hated disposable things!

Yes, you’re correct… But we were hosting an outdoor family reunion I didn’t want my good flatware going outside & being lost or thrown away accidentally. And you KNOW I’m not gonna use anything plastic! 

So I went online searching for options. I was intrigued to find compostable forks, knives and spoons. There are many manufacturers out there but PerfectWare utensils by Perfect Stix were actually WAXED. I knew right then & there that I’d be buying those!

Compostable Utensils? YES! These waxed utensils are inexpensive and fully compostable. Used for backyard BBQ's & weddings! #TexasHomesteader

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