Putting Your Civic House in Order: How the Young Members of the Family Help

...l school grounds, attractive club houses, neat, trim, well-kept homes with lawns, vegetable and flower gardens, clean vacant lots, and flowers, wild and cultivated, everywhere in greatest profusion. But of even greater value than these physical things are the effects upon the individuals who wrought the change–the teachers, children and parents–and the community at large. To the teachers the contest gave an opportunity for carrying gardening instr...

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Getting Ourselves Back to the Garden

...in underused, wasted space. What if we transformed those empty, never used lawns and parking lots into gardens and community spaces? This is exactly what the Environmental Changemakers did in collaboration with Holy Nativity Episcopal Church in Westchester, a suburb of Los Angeles near the airport. This past weekend a 10th anniversary party was held to celebrate the collaboration and recognize the leaders of the two organizations, Joanne Poyourow,...

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Mulch, mulch, mulch!

...rary to popular belief, need a lawn. In fact, we all know they are hard on lawns. As far as kids go, a yard full of trees to climb, secret forts, chickens, flowers, vegetable patches and interesting critters and bugs might better lure them outside than a perfect lawn. I know many happy kids who live in such yards. And as a kid myself, I preferred such spaces. I have no fond memories of grass. I do have strong memories of playing in wilder spaces–u...

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Saturday Tweets: Dubious Tips, Growing Furniture and So Much More

.../t.co/6z1QVzSuQz — Root Simple (@rootsimple) April 16, 2015 The Roomba for Lawns Is Really Pissing Off Astronomers http://t.co/3rqtzMThqe via @WIRED — Root Simple (@rootsimple) April 16, 2015 Make your own compost Sensor http://t.co/OT6G3XpWSB — Root Simple (@rootsimple) April 16, 2015 Don’t make bicyclists more visible. Make drivers stop hitting them. http://t.co/etbZAaifpP — Root Simple (@rootsimple) April 15, 2015 Mexican farmers are trucking p...

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Local Politician Tom LaBonge Wants LA Covered in Astroturf and the City to Pay For It

Our local utility is offering residents a sizable rebate to remove lawns and replace them with less water intensive plantings and mulch. This makes long term sense in what appears to be a permanent, climate change related drought here in California. Unfortunately, Los Angeles City Councilman Tom LaBonge is pushing for the inclusion of artificial turf in that rebate program. He, apparently, has a vision of Los Angeles, as one big tawdry miniature...

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