1. Home
  2. Home & Garden
  3. Gardening
photo of Marie Iannotti

Marie's Gardening Blog

By Marie Iannotti, About.com Guide to Gardening since 2004

Myth vs. Fact: The Truth About Green

Wednesday October 8, 2008
Being a green gardener is even harder to define than being an organic gardener. Most of us love being out in nature, or we wouldn’t be gardening in the first place. But unless all you’re doing is hugging trees, gardening is a manipulation of nature, not a joint effort. Still there’s a lot of “green” in the green around your house. According to the non-profit Project EverGreen, creating and preserving green spaces in your neighborhood contributes to the health of both you and the environment. For example, “...the net cooling effect of one young, healthy interior tree is equivalent to ten room-sized air conditioners operating 20 hours a day...” How’s that for living green?

I just learned about Project EverGreen recently, but they’re doing some really interesting and fun things. Want to become a member of YEA! (Yard Enthusiasts of America) and share tips on having a great yard? Maybe you can help Beulah, the compostaholic, with her composting addition.

Or maybe you’d like to volunteer for GreenCare for Troops, a program that has helped over 7,000 military families to date care for their yards and landscapes while mom or dad is on active duty.

OK, you might not be ready to get rid of the air condition in favor of a ficus tree, but you can get to know a little more about gardening green by reading these 5 Myths vs. Fact: The Truth About Green.

Photo: © Marie Iannotti (2008) licensed to About.com, Inc.

Comments

October 10, 2008 at 10:48 am
(1) Melissa says:

My children and I love to garden. We always promoted green living. never thought about ‘green’ in terms of health, I always thought it was just about saving our planet! After reading Sloan Barnett’s newest book “Green Goes with Everything” and taking her Body Burden Test, I now realize how important it is to detoxify our gardens and our homes.

Leave a Comment

Line and paragraph breaks are automatic. Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title="">, <b>, <i>, <strike>

Explore Gardening

About.com Special Features

Home Allergy Center

Banish mess, reduce allergens, and maintain a clean, healthy home. More >

Home Improvements Made Easy

Inspirational ideas and expert tips to help you pull off your next DIY project. More >

  1. Home
  2. Home & Garden
  3. Gardening

©2009 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.

All rights reserved.