1st rule of gardening: build up the soil by Kirsten Dirksen on December 13, 2010 Every year Jacqueline Kennedy starts her garden by throwing local horse manure under her veggie patch. Her soil is now …
Hacking your own simple laundry greywater system by respach on March 16, 2010 In Southern California, we are dealing with water restrictions due to years of continuous drought and water shortages. Here is …
Sustainable yard: drip irrigation, thyme groundcover by Kirsten Dirksen on August 24, 2009 The days of installing sprinklers systems for large grass lawns may be numbered in much of the United States. A growing …
Tapping into the water beneath our homes by Kirsten Dirksen on August 8, 2009 In chronically dry places, like the entire continent of Australia, communities faced near permanent drought increasingly rely on alternative sources …
Tips from a Greywater Guerrilla: the bathroom by Kirsten Dirksen on July 14, 2009 While there’s a growing trend to re-use our home’s water (except for what we send down the toilet), there are …
Permaculture: a home that supplies water by Kirsten Dirksen on June 2, 2009 Permaculture is about working with nature toward more individual self-sufficiency, whether it’s food, energy or water. Rainwater harvesting involves capturing …
Food Not Lawns: growing your own yard by Kirsten Dirksen on May 30, 2009 Every year, 58 million Americans spend approximately $30 billion to maintain over 23 million acres of lawn, using more pesticides …
A neighborhood with porous sidewalks & plants that clean by Kirsten Dirksen on May 30, 2009 A sign at Seattle’s High Point Development explains what happens to rainwater here: “Native plants and grasses on gently sloped …
Greywater 101: replumbing your kitchen sink by Kirsten Dirksen on May 30, 2009 If you’ve decided to replumb your home to reuse your household greywater (everything but the toilet water), the first thing …
Permaculture: a smart house by Kirsten Dirksen on May 30, 2009 A permaculture home is a home in tune with nature, but that doesn’t mean it’s low-tech. Mark Feichtmeir and Karen …
