recycling | Seeds of Design

I’m in a green state of mind. Garden dreams with eco-friendly schemes. Eat more leafy greens and fiber rich beans. Lower the thermostat, increase native habitats. Decrease plastic, opt for fabric. And so it goes.

In the course of enjoying the holiday season, I couldn’t help feeling somewhat appalled at the amount of waste and extravaganza our ‘traditional’ celebrations provide. For all the talk of the environment, climate change and mindfulness, when the holidays come along it’s as though we, as a community, give ourselves a free pass about all of that. No more – I’m planning from now for a much greener December 2020. Are you in with me? 20/20 vision indeed.

It requires some research to track down sources and products, more elbow grease, creativity and a curiosity to learn. What’s to argue about that right?!

So, here’s my list of green amendments thus far:

1. Holiday cards. For this last season, in a bid to cut back on paper waste, I chose to send custom e-cards. They were personalized by using an image of one of my watercolors. I did print up (in-house) a few of these cards to add special notes to certain friends and family. Admittedly, it felt weird to send e-cards – they don’t exude the same warmth. I did however feel better about saving paper, lowering carbon footprint etc.,

For this year, I’m going to source good, compostable paper to print my cards. Better still would be compostable paper with seeds embedded in them though I’m not sure that kind of textured paper can be used in a printer. Will just have to see!

Some of the pretty images of the cards received make lovely gift cards on presents. Simply cut out the images, punch a hole, thread a length of twine or cotton ribbon through it, write your message on the reverse side. Voila!

Note: Any paper with glitter cannot be recycled.

2. Wrapping paper. Again, use compostable or recyclable paper. However, I love the alternative of using fabric – leftover/remnant squares, scarves, tea-towels etc., In which case, the wrapping itself is a gift. Plain brown paper decorated with natural materials like leaves, pine-cones, acorns and berries make for stunning presentations. I save the pretty ribbons that come with gifts for future use.

Note: To determine if paper is recyclable use the quick ‘scrunch’ test. Scrunch up the paper into a ball. If it unfurls, then it is not recyclable. Again, no glitter allowed.

( That said, I must test my own line of wrapping paper on spoonflower.com Must make amends if found unsuitable)

3. Trees. Buy locally grown trees. Use those trees after the holidays by chipping them down to make mulch. Several towns including my own provide this service. Please do not bag the trees in plastic when moving them outside for disposal. Yes, it’s easier and less messy but you will feel so virtuous after you’ve done the extra work of vacuuming and done without the plastic.

Even better – buy living trees to plant out in spring. I’ve also been hearing about ‘rent a tree’ operations and that certainly sounds promising.

Due to my daughter’s allergy to the conifers, I’m happily free of this dilemma.

4. Decorations. Thankfully, most ornaments are either family heirlooms/keepsakes or a treasured collection. That makes them sustainable. When buying new decorations, choose ones made from foraged materials or of wood, glass or metal. Preferably created by artisans.

Keep wreaths and garlands natural as well. Any ribbons and baubles on them should be salvageable for reuse.

5. Food and drink. If you don’t have enough of your own plates, cutlery and glasses, you can rent from party rentals or purchase compostable options such as bamboo. No plastics!

Do your best and stick with local, organic, less packaged foods.

6. Gifts. I already go plastic free. In general, I try to think of gifts that are either experiences (think concerts, plays, museum memberships, movie passes), books, food or things that are truly needed/wanted by the recipient. I will continue to source local, artisanal products – this means planning well ahead and going to craft/art shows through the course of the year. That’s a fun and thoughtful activity to indulge in don’t you think?

I’d love to hear more ‘green holiday’ suggestions from you. Together we can do and be better. There is no planet B.

Note: I’m enjoying the Amaryllis and paperwhites I potted up. The anticipation of their blooms gives me shivers of delight. Fresh flowers from the market are a weekly indulgence. They keep me in a state of gratitude and well-being and spark up those gloomy days of winter.

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I don’t know about you but, I’ve been feeling mighty unsettled of late. There is a lot going on in the world and much of it is not good. Discord is rampant. You, I’m certain, read the news as I do so, I shall not expand on what is wrong. It’s been making me sad, angry, frustrated and heartbroken. Those emotions are powerful and as such, do not feel good. However, that force generated is impetus to do something positive. However and whatever one does to change or solve a problem moves us in the right direction. Besides, just how long can anybody wallow in despair? What good comes of that anyway?

True, in most cases, a single individual cannot do much but, every solution starts with a single person and a single act.

So, I’m looking around my own little world with determination to do whatever I can. From reaching out to members of my community who might be lonely or in need of some help to signing petitions/calling my representatives in government to donating to worthy causes ( money, clothes, books, food) to putting in a few hours volunteering locally to doing my share in protecting the environment by my own practices in the garden and home. Every effort, however small is empowering. And that leads to more efforts. It becomes a mission. The sum impact is seen or felt in due course.

As gardeners, we are very aware of the environment. What impacts it positively or negatively is always on mind. We want that happy balance of flora and fauna that a healthy environment needs to thrive. There is plenty we can do in the garden that protects, revives and restores that balance. Planting native plants, applying organic practices, using sustainable materials, conserving water, composting, mulching etc.,

However, despite all the progress, one thing that still seems to be widely present is plastic. Pots, tools, furniture, ties, stakes, bags, labels, bottles, gloves – you see?

By now, our senses have been collectively shocked by the images of fish found not only with plastic waste in their stomachs but, plastic has found its way into their flesh. So, it is possible then that the seafood one consumes can contain plastic. No, I take that back – we are already eating some of the plastic we have thrown into the sea. Think what those implications are.

All too often, we are smug in the knowledge that we recycle our plastic and therefore we’re doing our part. Not so fast. 78 million tonnes of plastic packaging is produced globally every year. Of this, 14% is burned for energy recovery, another 14% is recycled but only 2% of that is actually recycled into new materials and 40% goes to landfills. We produce 20 times more plastic than we did 50 years ago and by 2050 it is estimated that there will be more plastic than fish in the sea. Imagine what the seabirds will have to eat. Consider the chain-reaction in such a situation.

Okay, so back into the garden. How many plastic pots do you have? It seems that the average gardener has 39 plastic pots hanging around in their garden. In the past, there were genuine attempts to use cardboard and/or paper pots. Whale-hide ( made of rigid pitch and fiber that resembled whale hide) pots were also developed. However all these pots fell apart soon and nurseries could not have plants sitting in stock all year round. Enter sturdy plastic that takes anywhere from 50 to 1000 years to break down. You get the idea. Shipping and stocking made easy.

Enough of the bad news. Lets think pro-actively. Start by reusing as much as possible. Case in point – bags that held soil or mulch or compost can hold garbage. Meanwhile, petition your town to institute a community composting and mulching program.

Think twice about every bit of plastic that comes into the garden. Could you make a better choice? Can you reuse it after it serves its initial purpose?

Consider getting tools with wooden or bamboo handles instead of plastic.

There are indeed products manufactured with recycled plastic. A noble effort that might be but, I fear that in buying such items, it only fosters the continued use of regular plastic with the misguided thought that it’s okay to do so simply because it can be recycled. Recall paragraph 5 above.

Buy from nurseries that use recycled or biodegradable pots. Start seeds in egg-shell halves, clean yogurt containers, make your own seed-pots from newspaper – there is a simple tool for just that.

Use metal or wooden label markers. My preferred choice is actually slate – get remnants from places that sell pavers. Slate is of course highly durable and very discreet in the garden.

You see? We can each do something. That is all that is asked of us – to do our part. Collectively we shall overcome.

Note: I’m not sharing photos of plastic! Instead, here are some images from a couple of gardens I have visited in the last week.