Archive for the ‘Green Living’ Category
City of Missoula Announces 2014 Street Cleaning Program
Spring is here, and the Missoula Street Maintenance Division will begin its street cleaning schedule on Tuesday, April 1 with cleaning take place Mon-Fri in the following zones: ... more
Love in the Winter
By BRUCE AUCHLY - Just in time for Valentine’s Day, we bring you those wonderful love birds – great horned owls. That's right, the most impressive owl in North America as a symbol of Valentine’s Day.... more
Heirloom Winter Farmers’ Market Back in Full Swing
By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - The Heirloom Winter Farmers’ Market is back on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month, January through April at the Missoula Fairgrounds.... more
Citizens Encouraged to Recycle Christmas Trees
Missoula Parks and Recreation’s Urban Forestry Division is inviting citizens to drop off their cut Christmas trees to be recycled into productive mulch. ... more
City’s Urban Forestry Division to Replace 79 Ailing Street Trees
F.Y.I. - Missoula’s urban forest is getting some much-needed attention as City arborists work with residents to replace 79 dead or dying boulevard trees throughout Missoula.... more
Missoula Leaders Engaged at Montana Economic Summit
By LINDA MCCARTHY - The local daily newspaper claimed that Missoula was not well represented at the Montana Economic Summit, held in Butte. In my opinion, nothing could be further from the truth.... more
Missoula’s Old Sawmill District Ready for Investment
By LINDA MCCARTHY - (PHOTO GALLERY) The Old Sawmill District – the former Champion Mill site on the south side of the Clark Fork River – is a great example of progress in Missoula. ... more
Missoula Scientists Study Wind Flow and the Affects on Firelines
By MARK VOSBURGH - Researchers at the UM Flight Lab and the Missoula Fire Sciences Lab are analyzing birds in flight in order to understand wind flows and their affect on fire lines.... more
Repurposing Hollow Core Doors Into Shelves
By LISA HENSLEY - Thanks to a recent remodeling projects, we have a stash of hollow core doors in our garage. They are ugly, but here's how I repurposed them into shelves for my office... more
A Return to the Ninemile Schoolhouse…an Heirloom Legacy Continues
By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - Missoula's Heirloom Foodie is re-opening the Ninemile Schoolhouse and and renting the historic landmark for writers retreats, weddings and more. ... more
City Unveils Draft Site Plan for Hellgate Park
Citizens are invited to an open house to view the draft Master Plan for Hellgate Park on Tuesday, June 11, at 6:30 p.m., at the Montech Building, 1121 E. Broadway.... more
I Am An Egg Snob…
By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - Until recently I thought my chickens' laying lives were over. Imagine my surprise when I discovered over a dozen eggs hiding behind a pile of outdoor furniture. These yolks are the dar... more
The Politics of food, Being an AG-Tivist
By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - Why HB574 is Important: When it comes to fresh milk and dairy products, I want to be able to support the farmer(s) of my choice and procure the foods that I believe to be healthful for... more
Missoula Parks & Recreation Presents: Run for the Trees and Doggie Dash
F.Y.I. - Missoula Parks and Rec presents Run for the Trees 5k/1 mile Fun Run/Walk on Saturday April 13th and the Doggie Dash 5k/1 Mile Fun Run/Walk & Doggie Expo on May 5th. ... more
DIY Underbed Dresser and Storage
By LISA HENSLEY - We've run out of space for dressers in my boys' room, so I repurposed the drawers from an old, ugly dresser and a nightstand into two underbed storage sets!... more
Heirloom Market Celebrates Official Grand Opening January 26th
By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - On January 26th, the Heirloom Market is holding its official Grand Opening at the Missoula County Fairgrounds. Come celebrate with us!... more
Shorten a Floor Lamp
By LISA HENSLEY - I have a preference for the kind of light that comes from torchiere lamps—you know, those floor lamps that point upward and throw the light so well? But I have limited floor space.... more
Is Black Locust the Ultimate Permaculture Tree?
By PAUL WHEATON - You can spot where the old homesteads are in Montana by the stands of black locust trees. They're famous in permaculture circles as nitrogen fixers.... more
Hand Washing Dishes Versus Dishwasher: Which Saves More Water?
By PAUL WHEATON - The misconception that washing dishes with a dishwasher saves water is an great example of how people succomb to greenwashing myths.... more
Missoula Gifts That Encourage Reuse
By LISA HENSLEY - Still have people left on your shopping list? Here are a few Missoula-centric ideas that will spread cheer and encourage people to Reuse IT this Christmas. ... more
How to Make Recycled Christmas Wrapping Paper & Bows
By LISA HENSLEY - I never have much wrapping paper on hand, but when Christmas rolls around, I get all wrapped up in the holiday spirit and make my own festive, recycled wrapping paper.... more
Horticulture of the United States of Pocahontas
By PAUL WHEATON - The foundations of sustainable horticulture seem to include permaculture, bio-dynamism, respectful harvest, and a symbiotic relationship with nature.... more
Humanure and Composting Toilets
By PAUL WHEATON - Recently, I visited Missoula’s wastewater treatment plant to learn about the reuse of treated wastewater as a source of irrigation and fertilization.... more
Compost-Based Bio-Energy Systems
By PAUL WHEATON - When done properly, composting creates a great deal of heat – heat that can be harnessed to heat water and create usable energy.... more
How to Keep Deer from Eating Your Stuff
By PAUL WHEATON - The creative ways people attempt to control deer seem endless, but they aren’t generally effective. There is ONE thing that really gets it done.... more
City of Missoula Begins Leaf Collection on Nov. 6th
F.Y.I. - The City of Missoula will begin fall leaf pickup on Tuesday, Nov. 6, starting in the downtown Special District #1.... more
This Winter, Save Energy with Just a Tiny Bit of Knowledge
By PAUL WHEATON - The real solution to energy sustainability is to get information passed as far as possible. This, friends, is saving the world with a bit of knowledge.... more
Solar Food Dehydrators for the Fall Harvest
By PAUL WHEATON - The fall harvest is upon us. Apples, plums, kale, and tomatoes abound. In the quest for sustainability, solar-powered food dehydrators are on the rise.... more
Replacing Irrigation with Permaculture
By PAUL WHEATON - There are scads of ideas of what permaculture and irrigation are. For me, I see a good permaculture system as one that has eliminated irrigation.... more
The Many Benefits of the Amazing Sunchoke
By PAUL WHEATON - Sunchokes (aka Jerusalem Artichokes) are one of the best homesteader crops, especially for those wishing to be self-sustaining.... more
Paul Wheaton on Polyculture
By PAUL WHEATON - A polyculture is a mix of plants all trading their unique goodness with other plants. All plant-eating animals are designed to eat plants from a polyculture.... more
Paul Wheaton’s CFL Video goes live
By ANDY COMMONS - Think CFLs are good? Paul Wheaton has just produced a video that says otherwise. Andy sheds light on the issue.... more
Tired of Tilling? Try Seed Balls
By PAUL WHEATON - Ever thought of lobbing seeds into your field? No tilling, just a good arm? Seed balls are used in no-tilling cultivation to get seeds established.... more
Eliminate the Cost of Chicken Feed
By PAUL WHEATON - I used to sell my chickens for nearly the same price I paid for feed. I found ways to not only eliminate feed costs, but provide higher-quality feed! ... more
Can Pigs Build Ponds?
By PAUL WHEATON - Don't even THINK of using a pond liner if you have pigs around. Paul Wheaton shows us a better way to seal a pond using pigs.... more
Take a Walk: The Glacial Lake Missoula High-Water Mark
By KP NICHOLS - 15,000 years ago, Missoula was underwater. Today, you can hike to the highwater mark on Sentinel and Jumbo and use your imagination to fill in the details.... more
How NOT to raise chickens
By PAUL WHEATON - This comic artist is exceptionally brilliant at capturing very common and complicated issues that can arise for people who have never raised chickens before. I think the desire to steward chi... more
My Inexpensive, DIY Kitchen Remodel
By LISA HENSLEY - When we moved into our house, we planned to update the kitchen. In the end, we saved thousands of dollars refinishing the cabinets ourselves.... more
A Pinterest Project: Get Organized with DIY Spice Jars
By ERIN TURNER - My kitchen was being overrun by all my spices until I stumbled on a great project I saw on Pinterest: Recycle old bottles into DIY spice containers. ... more
Eat Local and Eat Well with Community Supported Agriculture
By ERIN TURNER - Community Supported Agriculture farms have started to become popular in Missoula. They're a great way to eat healthy, local, economical food.... more
Frugal Living: Eat Tapas, Cut Your Grocery Bill
By ERIN TURNER - Serving tapas-style food, a traditional Spanish small-plates meal, is a delicious, easy way to cut your grocery budget significantly.... more
Frugal Living: Go Green and Grow Your Own Food
By ERIN TURNER - Growing your own food is making a huge comeback. Not only are homegrown fruits and veggies healthier, but you can save a ton of money, too.... more
Contain Yourself: How to Plant a Container Garden
By BILL CARAS - Gardening in containers is easy and rewarding. In our Missoula climate, many plants love containers and can be more productive than when planted in-ground.... more
Frugal Living: Learn How to Save at Staples
By ERIN TURNER - I like to shout-out my favorite stores in Missoula that offer some great deals and coupons. This week, learn how to save on supplies at Staples.... more
Frugal Living: Spring Cleaning on a Budget
By ERIN TURNER - Spring cleaning is in full swing at our house! Unwilling to pay $250 for a professional cleaning, I found a frugal way to clean our microfiber furniture.... more
Greenwashing Light Bulbs
By PAUL WHEATON - The object propelling the greatest greenwashing scheme of all time is the CFL.... more
Winter Warmer: Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
By LISA HENSLEY - I do all the meal planning, shopping, and cooking for our family. Sometimes, trying to come up with ANOTHER meal is more than I’m up for. That’s when I get a rotisserie chicken.... more
Keep those branches, twigs, rotten logs, and Christmas trees!
By PAUL WHEATON - Paul Wheaton shows us ways to recycle wood. These tips sure beat making a big pile and burning it!... more
Testing to see if you are an Eco Poser
By PAUL WHEATON - It's cool to be green. Especially in Missoula. Here's how to test to see if you are an Eco Poser.... more
Being Noble
By PAUL WHEATON - Paul talks about people, community, intentional community, being nice, mean and even noble.... more