advice
-
![]()
![]()
Garden Girl TV: indoor gardening, part three
In this episode, I show you how to build the shelves for your indoor garden. Mine are up off the floor about 14 inches, which ensure my seedlings get as much direct sunlight as possible. This is a power tool moment, but don’t worry. It’s easy. I’ll show you how. Can’t get enough of […]
-
![]()
![]()
Ask Umbra on down comforters, soapy gray water, and canned tomatoes
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I’ve recently moved to Tahoe and, in an energy-saving effort, am trying to keep the heat down in my house. The problem is that now it gets to be around 50 degrees in the bedroom at night, and we need some serious warmth in the blankets! I’d […]
-
![]()
![]()
Ask Umbra on eating in
Dearest readers, Look, Ma — no takeout!The sharper among you already know from yesterday’s video that HuffPost Green is exhorting us all to board the cooking-at-home train via its Week of Eating In experiment. Not one to ask of others what I myself am not willing to do, I have taken the pledge. That’s right; […]
-
![]()
![]()
Ask Umbra on organic mushrooms, dog toys, and revisiting cloth napkins
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I’m a big fan of organic produce (especially when the local version isn’t at hand or I’m eating it raw), and I’m also one of those folks who is obsessed with mushrooms. When I come across organic mushrooms, though, my curiosity is piqued: What don’t I know […]
-
![]()
![]()
Ask Umbra’s pearls of wisdom on nuclear energy
Dearest readers, Not all of your questions are as manageable to navigate as selecting local versus organic apples or how to recycle your light bulbs/baby food jars/yogurt containers/cell phones. Some are downright difficult, controversial, and ambiguous, which is frankly all the more reason to dive into these quandaries. One such pickle: nuclear energy. It’s recently […]
-
![]()
![]()
Ask Umbra on political activism, donating light bulbs, and BPA in canned food
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, A while back, you said that political activism was really important. I think I can tear myself away from my new(ish) organic garden long enough to do a little, but I’m not sure what to do. How can I be politically active with my busy schedule? Jon […]
-
![]()
![]()
Pom-Pom club: Just how ‘Wonderful’ are pomegranates?
In Checkout Line, Lou Bendrick cooks up answers to reader questions about how to green their food choices and other diet-related quandaries. ————— Dear Checkout Line, For months now, I can’t seem to walk through my local natural-food market without smacking into a vast display of pomegranates — and I usually put one in my […]
-
![]()
![]()
Ask Umbra on engagement rings, straws, and napkins
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, My boyfriend and I are talking seriously about marriage, and he knows I don’t want a diamond ring (at least not a new one) because of the social and environmental impacts. You addressed this topic in 2003, saying the only good options were no ring or a […]
-
![]()
![]()
Ask Umbra’s pearls of wisdom on Valentine’s Day
Dearest readers, Sometimes when I’m down in the stacks researching answers to your latest dilemmas, I enjoy taking a stroll down Ask Umbra archives lane. Here are some sparkly tidbits I culled from my past advice on lessening your impact on that sweet little romantic holiday, Valentine’s Day. Have any of your own sustainable loving […]
