Goal For The Green

Most ladybugs are voracious, mighty little predators.  They are often referred to as a “gardener’s best friend.” This is because they can effectively control garden pests that are harmful to both our vegetable and flower gardens.

Ladybugs eat mostly aphids, (a small green soft bodied insect that thrives on plant juices), mites and scales.  All of these types of insects are harmful to many crop plants, and are considered to be serious pests to plant life in general.  Even as larva, ladybugs eat aphids, and other soft bodied insects such as mites, white flies, and scale insects that can devour a garden.  There are some species of ladybugs that can be considered as vegetarian, preferring to eat mushrooms and various forms of fungus.  Some like to dine on mildew, while others do prefer eating leaves, and may become a pest to some plants.

The majority of ladybugs, however, are not considered to be pests.  They can effectively keep a garden aphid and pest free, making them a natural and chemical free form of pest control.  In many areas they can be purchased to help keep your garden pest free.

It’s as amazing, as it is wonderful that by what this little creature eats,  it is helping us humans, by keeping the food that we grow and eat pest free!

See where the cutest ladybugs live!

Well, here it is Saturday again.  I don’t know if you agree but, most Saturday evenings, there is just nothing on TV.  At least, that is what I thought last weekend, when I convinced my husband to watch “The Garbage Moguls,” on the science channel.  So, here I was watching this program, mouth hanging open in utter amazement, thinking UNBELIEVABLE!

If you didn’t know, this week has been National Compost week.  Most people that are into gardening, know that worm castings (vermicompost) is like black gold for your garden. I know this to be true, by working at a local worm farm, where developmentally  disabled adults maintain the worm bins. They chop after market fruits and vegetables, feed the worms, and then dry, sift and bag the castings.  You then, can make your own worm tea (liquified worm poop) from the bagged product (castings).

In 2001, two Princeton University students, Tom Szaky and Jon Beyer, set out to turn the concept of  worm compost, into a real-life commercially viable “green” business. Thus, TerraCycle was born.

The TerraCycle Story, is a story of Eco-Capitalism at its finest.  The flagship product,   TerraCycle Plant Food™, is 100% organic certified, liquid plant food, made from worm waste (poop).  It is then, packaged in reused soda bottles, the sprayers are other companies leftovers, and the boxes that they use for shipping, would have been trashed for printing mistakes.  To date, this company has kept at least 100 million tons of plastic bottles, juice pouches, and other types of packaging out of landfills.

Today, TerraCycle  can be credited for not only turning something as simple as worm poop, into a household name, but for leading the way in how we look at many environmental issues.  They look at new and innovative ways to take the waste that people and companies generate on a daily basis, and turn garbage, that would otherwise wind up in our landfills, into 100% profitable and usable products.

TerraCycle has teamed up with such companies as Office Max, Office Depot, WalMart and Home Depot, to name a few of their clients, to bring you new (from recycled material) and unique products.  The company collects all kinds of waste products, such as discarded electronics, soda bottles, drink pouches, cookie wrappers, and yes, worm poop (their flagship product) and turns it into household cleaners,  office supplies, backpacks and other usefully unique products.

This young and unique company, has not only successfully turned trash into gold, but they have given new meaning to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.  They truly are working toward a better tomorrow for the entire planet!

Enjoy and relax to a “Green Dream, ” by sand artist Ilana Yahav.  I love watching her create these amazing works of art…I hope you do too!