Watch for Sales

With organic products being as popular as they are, supermarkets would be silly not to offer sales on them. Be sure to pick up the weekly ads from all of the grocery stores near you. From there you will be able to see what organic items are on sale each week. Often times stores will offer “Buy 1, Get 1 Free” sales on organics, which can save you a lot of money. If you find that the products you want are included in the sale, by all means take advantage of it. Just be sure to check dates and be logical when purchasing. If your household won’t use the product, don’t purchase it just for the sake of it being on sale. Only buy what you will use.

Find and Use Coupons

You may not think that coupons exist for organic products, but the truth is they do. You may have to look a little harder for them, but it is usually worth it. Besides checking your Sunday paper, be sure to scan your supermarket ads, as they sometimes include coupons for various products. If you have certain organic products in mind, check the manufacturers’ websites. Many companies that produce organics put coupons online. All you have to do is print them out and take them shopping with you.

Buy in Bulk

Although they may not offer a huge selection, some warehouse-type stores have begun carrying certain organic products. If you find that a product you use is available in bulk for a better price, pick it up. Buying in bulk will not only save you money, but trips to the store as well. If you have more of something, you will not run out as quickly.

Grow Your Own Organic Produce

A surefire way to save money on organic produce is to grow it yourself. Organic gardening is relatively simple, and the results will be well worth your time and effort. You basically grow a garden as you normally would, just remember to use organic pest control products, as well as organic fertilizers. When you grow your own organic vegetables and fruits, you should have enough to freeze, can, or store for future use. Not only will you have a year-round supply of organic produce, but you will save a great deal of money as well.

Make Your Own Organic Cleaning Products

You may think that food is the only thing that can be organic, but the truth is household cleaners can be as well. Non-organic cleaners contain many harsh chemicals that truly aren’t necessary for keeping your home clean and free of germs. Unfortunately organic cleaners on the market can cost a lot of money. You will be happy to know that it is possible to make your own organic household cleaners with simple ingredients that you may already have on hand. Things like vinegar, baking soda, and essential oils can all be used to easily create organic cleaning products. There are many recipes that can be found online, so doing a simple search will bring up many results. Your house will be chemical-free and clean, and the stress on your wallet will be greatly reduced.

These are all wonderful ways to save money on organic products. The savings will allow you to provide yourself and your family with safer things to eat and use on a daily basis. After discovering how easy it is to save money on organic products, you may wonder why you did not find these tips sooner.

Guest post from Adam. Adam writes for FrugalDad.com, an online coupon site.

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The summer weather does tend to bring with it some motivation and inspiration that’s quite hard to find during the winter months, so it’s vitally important that we make the most of it. Here are 4 great ways to get greener this summer.

Dry Your Clothes Outside

This goes without saying but once the sun comes out, we should all make use of it by drying our clothes outside instead of using an electric dryer.

You’ll save money on electricity and you’ll be doing your bit for the environment at the same time. Use a simple washing line inside or if you have the room, hang your clothes outside on a line to get the full use of the sun’s rays.

Not only will this save you money on your energy bills but your clothes will smell and feel better for having been dried outdoors.

Grow your own fruits and vegetables

A lot of people think that growing your own fruits and vegetables can be difficult and time consuming, but not if you follow some very basic guidelines and if you have the weather on your side!

Foods like tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, eggplants, peppers and even corn, grow fantastically well during the summer months so why not give them a try and see what happens. You can save some money and there will be a real sense of satisfaction when you are eating the food that you have grown yourself.

You will probably be able to find the seeds for your own fruit and vegetables at your local store or market, do some research or follow the instructions on the packs and see how you get on, you may surprise yourself.

Enjoy fresh produce from your local markets

I’m not sure what it’s like by you, but I have some fantastic local markets by me that offer fresh produce at great prices. Local farmers markets are great for finding fresh meat, but depending on what they have in stock, they can also be great for baked goods, cheeses and more.

Try out more than one local market to make sure that you are getting the most from your money as prices in your local area will most likely vary.

If you’re really hot, use fans instead of air conditioners

We all know that air conditioners do a very good job, but they’re expensive to run and take their toll on the environment. A more frugal way to keep cool could be to use a fan as these also do a great job too and use less energy than air conditioners.

Fans can circulate cool air around the rooms indoors instead of keeping the air trapped in a single room as an air conditioner does. It’s better for the environment and cheaper for you too, so why not give it a try?

I hope that these frugally green summer tips will help you to save some money and do your bit for the environment too this summer.

Les Roberts writes for moneysupermarket.com, the UK’s number one comparison website that can save you money with low-rate loans and balance transfer offers.

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Here are a few ideas for money-saving dishes that everyone young and old will enjoy:

Make-Your-Own Pizza

What child doesn’t love eating pizza? The homemade version is a lot healthier, cheaper and more fun than eating it in a restaurant because everyone can be involved. If you have time, you can make the dough from scratch the night before which will save you even more money. If you don’t want to buy a pricey jar of sauce from the store, just find a cheap tin of tomato sauce and jazz it up with salt, oregano, black pepper, and any other spices that you enjoy. Buy some cheap mozzarella cheese, green peppers, olives, mushrooms, pepperoni, and anything else that you and your kids like on your pizzas. Separate the dough into individual pizza sizes, and cook it for a short time in the oven to prevent it from becoming soggy. Now for the fun part, as your little ones get to assemble their own pizzas by hand!

Casseroles

A delicious and hearty casserole should be on your menu for cold winter nights, as these healthy dishes are easy to cook, well loved, and save you money because they allow you to use some of the cheaper and tougher cuts of meat at the supermarket. These tough cuts will soften after being simmered in the oven for several hours, and become juicy and flavourful. Casseroles should be cooked for most of the day, so plan your ingredients in advance and prepare them in the morning. Simply combine your ingredients such as meat, vegetables, beans, and pasta or rice in a casserole dish and place in the oven to cook. By the time dinner rolls around, the house will be filled with a delicious smell and you will have a nutritious and delicious one-dish meal waiting for you!

Soups

Soup is very easy to make and a hearty homemade soup from leftover vegetables can feed a family for next to nothing. If you grow your own vegetables, soup is even cheaper! Kids love the comforting warmth of soup, but you might have to remind them not to slurp! There are no rules when it comes to making soup. Start with a hearty stock which can be homemade with leftover meat or created with soup stock cubes. Next, add anything you desire including vegetables, barley, rice, pasta, and spices. Serve it with some nice bread or dinner rolls, and you will have a happy and well fed family!

These are just a few ways that you can treat your family to healthy and hearty meals for much less money. There are many possibilities when it comes to cheap meals, so use these suggestions as a jumping-off point to experimenting with your own ideas and creating your own recipes!

Barry Hardcastle writes about money matters on Devon Money Man, and has worked on behalf of such financial brands clients as business banking specialists Ulster Bank.

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What Is an Eco-Friendly Raised Garden Bed?

Basically, an eco-friendly garden bed is a vegetable patch that is grown without using chemicals or pesticides. An eco-friendly garden uses natural fertilizers and composting. Having the garden bed raised has a couple of advantages: you can fill the garden with the type of soil you prefer and direct the water exactly where you want it to go is easier. Raised garden beds are also easy to make aesthetically pleasing. The ornamental aspect is fun and looks good, too.

Building the Garden Bed

The actual construction of a raised garden bed can be as easy or difficult as you choose to make it. There are no strict rules or regulations; you are simply raising your garden bed above the level of the surrounding ground. Choose a spot that gets plenty of sunshine, and then gather your materials. It would be advisable to put hardware cloth or landscaping fabric beneath the area of your garden to help prevent pests from getting to your vegetables from below. The sides of your raised garden bed can be constructed of brick, cement blocks, wood, or even recycled materials. The idea is to enclose an area and then fill it with soil, thereby raising it above ground level. Your raised garden bed can be as large or small as you want it to be. Look at it as a giant flower pot–you build your pot as big as you want, fill it with soil and allow a place for water to seep out.

Benefits of an Eco-Friendly Garden

Most eco-friendly gardeners insist that not using chemicals or pesticides improves the taste of your herbs and vegetables, and they are better for your overall health. Growing herbs and vegetables organically retains more of the natural vitamins and minerals that have proven to be better for you. This is in addition to the savings you will get by not having to pay high prices at a grocery store. There’s also another benefit; if you store these eco-friendly herbs and vegetables correctly, you can enjoy them year round.

Planting Your Eco-Friendly Raised Garden

Before planting your garden, it would be a good idea to do some research so you will know how to care for your vegetables. Ask your friends and neighbors who have experience in gardening for some tips. Most people who grow organically are passionate about it and will be more than happy to share their knowledge. You may also want to take classes in organic gardening.

After you’re content that you know enough about eco-friendly gardening to get started, collect the seeds you will use. Of course, you will be using organic seeds, which come from plants that have not been genetically altered. These are generally called heirloom seeds. The next step is to prepare the soil, which could take up to a year to do it correctly. Mix compost and natural fertilizers, which will draw leftover chemicals from the soil, thereby stimulating the nutrients in the soil. This will help establish a healthy root system. You will need to check the pH level of the soil. Ask your more experienced friends to help in the soil preparation process in order to make sure it’s done the right way.

Caring for Your Eco-Friendly Raised Garden

Once the planting is done, you need to care for the garden on a daily basis. The plants need to be watered and properly fertilized. You should pull weeds as necessary. Depending on how high you made the walls on your raised garden, the actual care may be easier than having to get down on your hands and knees to pull weeds. In order to keep pests out, such as deer and rabbits, you could put a fence around it. Just make sure you leave access so you can water the plants efficiently.

Guest post from Bailey Harris. Bailey writes for www.businessinsurance.org.

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Limit Your Lawn Size

Lawns tend to drain more water and also use more fossil fuel than gardens for their growth and maintenance. Here are a few tips on how to reduce your fuel dependency and water usage by manipulating your lawns.

• Opt for a mixed-grass lawn rather than grow a single variety of grass. Since not all varieties of grass require the same amount of water for growth, you’ll be able to save water.
• Choose the right type of lawn grass that’ll grow well on its own given the climatic conditions of your local region.
• To save fossil fuel, use either a manual or an electric lawn mower.
• You can also consider getting rid of your lawn and planning shrubs, trees and perennials instead as these give back more to the environment.

Use Natural Fertilizers

Chemical fertilizers are high on toxicity and harm your environment. Not only do they affect the quality of produce and its taste, they also introduce harmful chemicals into your body. Use natural fertilizers that are beneficial to your plants and your health.

• Create your own compost using yard clippings, vegetable peelings, fruit cores, dried leaves, and so on.
• Make mulch out of shredded newspapers and mix it in with the compost. The newspapers retain water and will also reduce runoff and protect soil.
• Use rock phosphate, compost, kelp, fishmeal, alfalfa meal and seaweed instead. These natural fertilizers feed both your soil and its microorganisms.

Fight Weeds

Weeds kill beneficial plants and allow pests to breed and cause infestations. Preventing weeds from growing is the first thing you should do in your pest control endeavor.

• Use cardboard to cover weeds and prevent them from growing instead of spraying herbicides.
• Use native plants in your garden as these will grow without much assistance from you, as opposed to exotic plants. Native plants can fight weeds better as they don’t have to struggle hard to survive in the soil and climatic conditions.
• Replace plants regularly to maximize soil nutrient value and prevent weeds from spreading.

Reduce Garden Maintenance

You will need to devote more time, fuel, water and other resources to maintain a robust garden. Keep your garden simple.

• Don’t make “shrub lollipops,” as these need constant maintaining with gas-powered pruners. Allow shrubs to grow to their natural height and size.
• Don’t over apply fertilizer; you’ll be constantly mowing your lawn because fertilizer will make your grasses grow too fast.

Keep Pests Away

To keep snails and slugs away, don’t use commercially prepared snail bait. You’ll harm the birds that come to feast on your garden. You may also harm your pets. Use one of the following methods:

• Layer the paths between your plants with salt. Snails and slugs hate salt and they will not walk over it. Sprinkle the salt just as it starts getting dark, because snails and slugs are more active in the night than during the day.
• During rainy weather, pour beer into low, wide saucers and keep these in between your precious plants. Snails and slugs will be attracted to the smell of beer and fall into your little beer puddles.
• Disburse beneficial insects such as ladybugs in areas of your garden that are infested with pests. The ladybugs eat your plant pests, keeping your plants healthy.
• Encourage small toads and frogs to breed in your garden. These will eat their fill of flying and crawling insects, keeping them away from your plants.
• Capture flying insects such as whiteflies by sticking pheromone-sprayed cardboard pieces between your plants.
• Usually certain insect pests prefer specific plant species. By separating the most insect-prone plants, you can restrict the insects to one section of your garden.
• Check your garden every week for signs of insect activity. Eliminate weeds, look under leaves and check for stems that looked chewed up.
• If you find pests clinging to plants, spray them off using water. Prune infested foliage and destroy it. Check for insect egg cases and destroy them. These methods work well at the early stages of infestation.
• For heavy infestations, apply the least toxic pesticides such as insecticidal soaps or horticultural oils directly to the pests. Do not spray them on the plants.

Save Water

The most planet-friendly thing you can do to sustain your environment is to save water. Here are a few tips that’ll help you grow a flourishing garden while saving precious water.

• Don’t water your lawn when the rains are due, even if the grass goes brown. Your grass won’t die; the rains will refresh it.
• Place water butts all over your garden to harvest rainwater. Dig trenches next to garden paths and layer them with stones to collect rainwater that can later be used to water plants.
• Install a green roof over your garage or shed to help you reduce the amount of water that enters the drains.
• Group plants that don’t need much sunlight in shadier parts of your garden or under awnings. This way they won’t lose water.
• Eliminate all the weeds from your garden as they only suck up moisture from your soil without offering anything in return.
• Water to the roots of your plants once every 10 days. This is more effective than spraying water on the greens.
• Mix mulch into your compost to soak up and retain water. Old newspapers make excellent natural mulch.
• Water those plants that need more water and those that are least likely to survive drought, such as new plants and seedbeds.

Recycle

By recycling products, you can ensure lesser strain on the environment and limit toxic wastage. Here are a few interesting tips on how to use recycled products in your garden.

• Collect vegetable peels, fruit peel and cores and leftover raw vegetables and use them as compost.
• Recycle wood from sheds, paving slabs from your driveway and tiles and timber from your home and greenhouses. You can create garden paths, garden furniture, garden separators, post, climbers and many other necessary garden items from these.
• You can benefit a great deal by joining recycling group such as the Freecycle Network. Exchange tips, buy items made of recycled products and find out how best you can recycle materials within your garden.
• Recycle dead leaves from your property; either mix them in your compost or contribute them to your municipal compost site.
• Channel the water from your shower into a purification tank outside. You can use organic water purifiers and use the refreshed water on your garden.
• Don’t throw away broken plastic bottles. You can use them to grow plants in small spaces. Cut the bottles in half; make a few holes at the bottom for water drainage, and plant herbs and small flowering plants in them.

Marina Chernyak is co-owner of 1001Shops, an online store of specialty products like decorative mirrors, modern tables and lot more.

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Many people, particularly in Asian countries, love drinking green tea. One major benefit of green tea is its richness in antioxidants like the salubrious polyphenols notably catechins where epigallocatechin gallate(EGCG) is the most plentiful. EGCG is also known as a flavonoid. Other antioxidants include carotenoids and tocopherols. Antioxidants are basically phytochemicals which can protect our cells from free radicals damage.

Green tea is one of the most popular health drinks on earth for good reasons. Green tea has been linked to many health benefits including but not limited to:

(1) Inducing fat loss and weight loss.
(2) Increasing metabolism.
(3) Lowering high blood pressure.
(4) Preventing cancer.
(5) Reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
(6) Detoxifying the body.
(7) Healing acne.

In this article, am going to focus on the last benefit which is curing acne. As surprising as this might sound, green tea can indeed help in healing acne. Actually, you can use green tea in two ways to achieve your goal. Here is how to use green tea for acne.

Internal Treatment

Green tea can be used as an internal treatment for acne. If you enjoy drinking green tea, this wouldn’t be a problem. Enjoying something while using it as a treatment will make you more motivated to achieve your goal. Drinking green tea on a regular basis will detoxify your body and this will result in shrinking acne as the latter has a lot to do with toxins in our blood.

Consume 2-3 cups of green tea everyday for 2-3 weeks and you’ll notice that your acne gradually disappears. The good thing with green tea is you don’t necessarily need to use it as a treatment for any specific amount of time. You can just include it as part of your diet and reap long lasting benefits.

External Treatment

Another amazing way to use green tea for acne is as a skin care therapy. During my teenage years, this is the remedy I used to treat oily skin and eventually get rid of acne. Excess sebum is what most teenagers encounter during their puberty and is one of the major causes of acne.

To use green tea as a skin care therapy for acne, you’ll need some dried green tea leaves. Boil them in some water and let it cool down till warm. By using a clean cloth, apply the warm green tea on your face or any other areas where you have acne. Tap gently and constantly for 15-20 minutes. Green tea will cleanse your pores from excess oil and dry up your acne. The powerful antioxidants of green tea have a healing effect. Follow this therapy for 2-3 weeks and you’ll start noticing your acne shrink. Once your acne starts curing, it will start itching and this is a good sign that it’s healing. Don’t scratch as you’ll hamper your initial efforts.

If you have acne, start using green tea as it’s a natural treatment without any side effects and it’s not expensive. Patience is required but it’s really worth it.

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There have been countless bacterial outbreaks in large food processing plants, essentially since the advent of large food processing plants. Tainted meat, dairy, and vegetables have led to large numbers of people contracting E.coli, hepatitis A, salmonella, and other diseases.

In the last several months, there have been quite a few of note: The US Food and Drug Administration has announced that Cal-Maine Foods Inc. released 288,000 eggs subject to recall after one of their suppliers, Ohio Fresh Eggs, LLC, tested positive for Salmonella Enteritidis, then saw distribution to eight states. While there are no consumer deaths confirmed yet, many in other environments aren’t as lucky.

Four people died across ten cases as a consequence of listeria and listeriosis infection after eating celery from a processing plant called SanGar Fresh Cut Produce based out of San Antonio, Texas, leading to an FDA investigation and concerns over cross contamination with other chopped vegetable products made at the plant (where inspectors also discovered issues with condensation, dirt, and hand-washing, among other problems).

Another listeria infection happened as a consequence of contamination at a smoked salmon plant in Fairbanks, Alaska, prompting a recall despite there being no confirmed deaths yet. In Canada, pet food sold in British Columbia and made by Surrey Meat Packers was tied to E. coli contamination.

All of this, then, points to the fact that food processing facilities regularly suffer from contamination issues simply as a consequence of the large volume of their operation. Furthermore, food processing also ensures that food takes longer to reach you, making it less fresh unless loaded down with preservatives and other chemicals intended to make sure it reaches its destination in an edible state.

No matter how you look at it, it’s hard to say good things beyond the inherent cost efficiency about the mass processing industry first demonized in Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and now read about almost monthly in our newspapers, where we hear about recalls with alarming frequency.

While it’s bad for them, it’s a good reason to support smaller local organizations producing lower quantities of better food, especially when dealing with meat and dairy, where the risk of bacterial contamination is highest. Local purveyors often provide superior-tasting products made from animals not pumped full of hormones to ensure rapid growth or additional milk production. They also make dairy products with distinct flavor profiles and in significantly smaller batches, meaning that the reduced sample size helps to bring down the risk of introducing bacteria that ruins the entire group.

By choosing to support local food producers, you virtually guarantee yourself a more flavorful alternative to a bagged, several-week-old packaged products made with thousands of others exactly like it from all over the country, smashed into a homogeneous, flavorless, potentially toxic mass. You also support people who are working to change this system. Better yet, you can even begin to grow your own produce or keep your own animals where possible, allowing you to see exactly what came from where and just how safe it is.

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Growing and maintaining your own organic vegetables can be very rewarding. You and your family can consume healthy, home-grown veggies that are free of pesticides and other nasty chemicals. You will also have the benefit of knowing that your vegetables are indeed organic–just because they are labeled “organic” at the store doesn’t mean they always are. Growing your own vegetables can save you money, and you’ll be helping out the environment at the same time.  With a little bit of work and some helpful hints, you can be on your way to a successful, organic vegetable garden!

1. Make a Plan

Before you do any planting, formulate a well thought-out plan. Where are you going to plant your vegetables? Many vegetables require at least 6 hours of direct sun each day, and others thrive best in a shadier spot. Once you’ve decided on the best place for your garden, you should test the soil to determine the pH, and the amount of nutrients that are present. You can do this by purchasing a soil test kit at your local garden supply store.

You should consider starting a compost pile if you don’t already have one. You can add nutrients to soil and improve soil condition by using compost. Other organic materials that you can use to improve your soil are bone meal or fish emulsion which can also be purchased at a nursery or garden supply store. Compost (or other organic material) should be added to the soil approximately two weeks before you begin planting. Another important part of the planning process is choosing which vegetables you are going to plant. Try to buy organic seeds, and if possible, ones that are more resistant to disease. For your first vegetable garden, you may want to choose vegetables that are easier to grow such as cherry tomatoes, lettuce, radishes, carrots, and peas.

2. Proper Spacing

Now that you are ready to begin planting, make sure that you allow the right amount of space between your plants. You can find this information on seed packets and plant tags (if you are using starter plants). Air should be able to flow properly between plants to help prevent disease. Be sure to label your rows so that you can remember what will be growing where!

3. Mulching

Placing mulch around your vegetables is very important for a number of reasons. Mulch helps keep your plants well-insulated and moist. It also aids in the prevention of weeds and it improves the condition of the soil around your vegetables. Some examples of organic mulch include grass clippings and leaves. Using organic mulch is not only beneficial to the earth, it’s also free!

4. Feeding and Watering Your Vegetables

To keep your vegetables truly “organic,” always feed them with natural products. Compost is really the best food for your garden. If you don’t have a compost pile, animal manure works well, too. Regular watering is also essential to the success of a vegetable garden. To conserve water, try watering your plants early in the day, before the sun is high. Always try to water plants closer to the roots—too much moisture on the leaves can make your plants more susceptible to disease.

5. Pest Prevention

To keep irritating pests at bay, try spraying soapy water around your vegetables. This is a safe way to get rid of insects, and it’s safe for you. If you choose this method to control pests, be sure to wash your vegetables thoroughly before you eat them. Another way to get rid of pests is to plant flowers near your vegetables that will attract them. Flowers planted for this purpose are commonly referred to as “companion plants.” Some recommended companion plants are Black-eyed Susan, Daisies, Goldenrods, Marigolds, Sunflowers, Yarrow, and Zinnias. To keep out larger, unwanted guests, place a fence around your garden.

6. Weeding

Weeds will take much-needed nutrients and water away from your vegetables. They can also potentially attract harmful insects. Weed your garden regularly. Because your vegetables are organic, do not use weed killers to get rid of them. Pull them by hand. It’s good exercise, and it’s safe. You can also get rid of weeds by pouring boiling water on them–but make sure you don’t get the hot water on your vegetables.

7. Rotating Your Plants

If you plant your vegetables in the same spots every year, you will gradually deplete the soil of valuable nutrients. Rotate your plants by designating new spots for them at the beginning of each growing season so that you can look forward to another rewarding bounty of delicious vegetables the next time around.

This was a guest post from Bailey Harris. Bailey writes on many topics, including car insurance for www.carinsurancequotes.net.

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The economy and environment are at the forefront of our minds as governments the world over look for ways to improve the health of both, and as individuals, we try to make the financial and environmental aspects of our lives more comfortable. There are plenty of simple ways you can save money and the environment at the same time around your home, from making your own cleaning products to avoiding aerosol cans. However, if you want to make a real, measurable difference, you need to look beyond the obvious frugal tactics, and consider these 10 financially and environmentally life changing ideas.

1 – Eat less meat

Most nutritionists will tell you that cutting down on eating meat is better for your health, and the spend at the butcher would easily be the biggest portion of most family budgets each week. Therefore, with so many benefits already, the fact that eating less meat is also good for the environment is a bonus.

Research has shown that if we all ate less meat, we could reduce the cost of fighting climate change by $20 trillion. This research takes into account the consumption of beef and pork, and if land was not needed to farm these animals, vegetation would be able to thrive in these areas. Even though additional farmland would be needed to grow the alternatives to meat, less space would be required than is used to farm meat producing animals.

As well as the extra vegetation which would be allowed to grow, millions of tonnes of methane would be saved thanks to reduced emissions from farms. This would negate the need for expensive carbon saving technologies such as clean coal power plants. The methane is also released from the animals themselves, where cows in particular release methane when flatulent, and as their manure decays.

You wouldn’t need to give up eating meat all together, and instead need to look at how meat can accompany other foods, rather than be the star of every meal. If the global population were to eat a low meat diet of 70 grams of beef and 325 grams of chicken and eggs per week , 15 million square metres of farmland could be used for more vegetation to absorb more carbon dioxide. The farmland could also be used to grow bio energy crops which could replace fossil fuels.

2 – Downsize your home

It is easy to think that you need a big house with a games room, three bathrooms, a separate study, guest room and formal dining room. However, if you were to downsize your home to accommodate your family in a bedroom each and one or two living areas you will be able to not only save money on mortgage repayments, heating and cooling costs but you’ll also find more time to spend together as a family for a richer lifestyle outside of your bank account too.

Plus, even if you do remember to turn the lights off when you leave the room, turn the air conditioner up in summer and down in winter and turn off your standby appliances, when your home and living areas are smaller and more compact, you are using less power in less space, and producing fewer emissions.

3 – Look in your own backyard

Your own backyard presents numerous opportunities to be frugal, for example, growing your own vegetables and collecting rainwater for use in the garden and in your home. However, as you’re saving money in your backyard, you can also be landscaping in an environmentally sensitive way to reduce your carbon footprint.

To design a backyard which is affordable to maintain, and also beneficial to the environment around it:

• Design your yard so it requires little or no mowing so you can get rid of your petrol powered lawn mower.
• Plant varieties which are native to your area and so require little to no watering or fertiliser.
• Research companion planting so you can grow your garden without using harmful chemicals, and can instead use natural ecosystems to control bugs.
• Make your backyard a relaxing and inviting place to be and you and your family will be able to enjoy evenings and weekends at home together and save on costly family outings.

4 – Renovate instead of moving

In many cases, reusing materials from old properties and refurbishing existing homes can save more carbon dioxide than building a new home. For example, the construction of a new house generates approximately 50 tonnes of carbon dioxide; however, the renovation of an existing home emits just 15 tonnes.

Plus, there is often little difference between the performance of an old house, compared to a new one, and it can take decades for the operational savings of a newer more energy efficient home to offset the carbon emitted during its construction. As a result, there is almost no difference in the average emissions of a new house, compared to a refurbished house over a 50 year period.

Therefore, while it is more environmentally friendly to renovate your existing home, compared to building a new home from scratch, it can also be much more affordable. When you renovate a home there are many materials you can reuse, even if not in their original capacity, for example, structural timbers taken out to open up a living area could split and sanded to be used for floorboards, a kitchen bench top or a dining table.

5 – Build a new sustainable home

If you don’t have a home you can renovate, building your own home is often more affordable, and better value than buying established where you are paying for landscaping and all of those expensive finishing touches, which might not all be to your liking anyway.

Instead, you can plan for a sustainable and energy efficient new home, which will be affordable and environmentally friendly to build and to run. You can do this by:

• Choosing a passive design. If you can get the design of your home to work to heat and cool your home, then you can save yourself turning on the air conditioning and heating. For example, using glass in measured architectural designs can mean warmth is admitted in the cooler months, and kept out during the summer months with modern glazing methods.
• Heating and cooling ratings. When you purchase the heating and cooling system for your new home, look at its energy star rating as the more stars it has, the more energy efficient it is to run. Another environmentally and financially friendly option is to choose a ducted system, with individually controlled vents, which allows for the system to be turned off in any room which is not being used.
• Solar or gas hot water. Solar and gas hot water systems are the two most energy efficient systems to heat the water in your home, and you can make your unit even more efficient by insulating around your hot water pipes – the first two metres from the hot water system in particular. You can also choose a hot water system based on its Renewable Energy Certificate which determines the performance of the system – the more RECs the better the system.
• Lighting. In your new home, make sure you install energy saving light bulbs, and choose the lowest wattage you can for an area to save power. Also, while down lights have become very fashionable in new homes, try and avoid them when building as you will need a lot to light up a room, and a lot of heat can be lost through the holes in the ceiling where the lights are housed.
• Solar power. When you build a new home, consider running it on solar power from the beginning as panels on your roof can collect enough sunlight and convert enough electricity to power your home, and have power left over to send back into the grid to power other homes and businesses.

6 – Your free time is free

If you are looking for ways to save the environment, and some money, start by looking at home – and staying there. Spending time with your family at home or around your neighbourhood can reduce your carbon footprint, and save you money in fuel and long distance family holidays. Consider the emissions you would produce going on long road trips or towing a caravan around the state, or even towing your boat down to the shore. Instead, find affordable holiday destinations closer to home, or rent a caravan at a caravan park when you arrive, instead of using gallons of fuel to tow your own, or fish from a jetty or the beach instead of towing your boat to the ocean, and then burning fuel all day out on the water.

7 – Creative clothes shopping

Have you ever looked at every item in your closet and thought about how many times you’ve worn it? Chances are that while you have your favourites, there are dozens of pieces which you’ve only worn once or twice, and others you haven’t worn at all. So the next time you see a skirt on sale, or a pair of shoes you think would be perfect for your son, think of all the clothing, materials, time and money which have already gone to waste in your wardrobe, and consider whether this really is a smart purchase.

To reduce the impact of your clothing purchases, look for more creative ways to expand your family’s wardrobe. For example, if you get together with friends to swap hand-me-downs, it doesn’t matter if your daughter doesn’t like the top you chose for her, because it is being reused, not wasted from new.

8 – Stop using your car

This doesn’t mean you have to start walking everywhere – although you would certainly be able to save on a gym membership – but instead, simply consider whether you really need to drive to where you’re going. With a little planning and organisation, you can cut down your vehicle usage, and save on the wear and tear of your car, fuel costs, and fuel emissions.

For example, make a list before you go shopping so you don’t have to go back to the supermarket for forgotten items, wait to go to the post office until it is time to pick up the kids from school so you can make one trip.

Your family may even be able to look at getting rid of a second car with some organisation and timetable scheduling. For example, if the family left earlier in the morning, you could drop off the kids at school, and your partner at work, rather than you both taking a car each to work. You can then organise a car pool home from school for the kids.

9 – Switch your car’s fuel

Petrol is one of the most expensive and environmentally damaging fuels you can be running your car on, and if you are able to convert your car to gas or to run on bio-ethanol, the financial and environmental savings can be worth the investment. If you are already looking at buying a new car, consider the fuel it runs on as a priority, right up there next to power windows and Bluetooth, and look for vehicles which produce less harmful emissions running on alternative fuels such as ethanol, hydrogen, electricity and even diesel.

10 – Save your paperwork

Whether you run your own business, work from home, are part of a corporate office environment or are just looking at the contents of your home filing system, you are probably surrounded by paperwork. Curbing your paper use is just one way you can save money and the environment in your office and you can start by:

• Printing double sided when you print documents, or reusing old printed pages.
• Having bills sent electronically, rather than posted as paper printouts, you also often save several dollars for receiving electronic bills and bank statements.
• Making notes electronically on your computer desktop, your email manager or your smartphone to save on note paper and Post-its.
• Think twice and three times before you print a document or email.
• Organise the files on your computer for easy access to electronic documents as this will retrain you to search electronically for the information you need, so you can avoid printed copies of your work.

Alban is a personal finance writer at Home Loan Finder, a home loan comparison site.

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1. How a Home Buyer Can Lower Their Carbon Footprint
2. 5 Green Living Tips to Fatten Your Wallet
3. How to Save Money on Organic Products

Making green choices in the grocery store is a great way to help protect out planet. Here are a few things you can do to make grocery shopping more eco-friendly.

Make a List

Before you go grocery shopping, take time to plan your meals. By planning ahead, you can make a shopping list. The list will help you buy only the items you need. Buying more than you need often leads to more wasted foods and packaging. Making a list will also help you remember all of the items you need to buy, preventing you from making multiple trips to the store. You’ll save time and reduce the amount of fuel used. This small action is very green indeed!

Buy Fresh Produce

Buying fresh fruits and vegetables reduces wasteful packaging. Bring your own plastic bags from home to bag your produce before using the bags on hand at the store. Try to buy locally produced fruits and veggies. A large amount of fuel is used to transport produce to all of our grocery stores. Buying locally produced foods supports your local farmers as well as decreases fuel costs.

Look for Foods with Less Packaging

While shopping, look for foods that have very little or no packaging. The less packaging, the greener the choice! Also, buy foods that are packaged in bulk instead of foods that are individually packaged. For example, buy one large container of yogurt instead of 6 individual single-serving cartons. This helps eliminate excess waste in our landfills.

Recyclable Packaging

When making your selections at the store, look for foods sold in recyclable packaging or containers. Try to buy foods packaged in cardboard versus foods packaged in foam, egg cartons for example.

The Health and Beauty Aisle

When shopping in the health and beauty aisle, there are a couple of things you should look for. When selecting a deodorant, buy a stick or roll-on deodorant. Spray deodorants are harmful to the ozone layer of our atmosphere. The same goes for hairsprays. Buy spritz hairsprays instead of aerosol sprays; they’re much better for our environment.

The Cleaning Aisle

Green cleaning products are much easier to find these days. If you are unable to find one that you like, look for products that are bleach and phosphate-free. Bleach and phosphates are known to be hazardous to our ground water. You should also consider making your own planet-friendly cleaning products. You can find the ingredients right in the super-market. Baking soda, lemons, lemon juice, and white vinegar are essential if you decide to make your own cleaning products.

Bring Your Own Bags

Remember to bring your own bags when you go grocery shopping. You can buy nice cloth or canvas bags that are very durable, or you can bring back the bags you accumulated from previous shopping trips. If you have a choice, choose paper over plastic. Paper bags are much easier to recycle.

As you can see, there are many things you can do to make your shopping experience more eco-friendly. A few simple changes can make a big difference! In the long run, your actions may help preserve our precious resources for future generations.

This was a guest post from Bailey Harris. Bailey writes for the Health Insurance Blog.

Related posts:

1. How to Make Green Cleaning Supplies
2. 8 Simple Ways To Be Energy Efficient At Home And Save
3. 3 Steps to a Frugally Green Spring Clean