Ten Tips to Save Water

10 tips to save water
By BO EMERSONThe Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/26/07
You've already cut off the sprinklers (your lawn is dead anyway) but Gov. Sonny Perdue wants you to reduce water usage by another 10 percent. If, like the average American, you go through 50-100 gallons a day, that means cutting back by 5-7 gallons. Here are a few suggestions:

Laundry Switch off the "extra rinse" cycle; save 8 gallons.

Toilet Don't use the toilet as a trash can; save 3.6 gallons.

Toothbrushing Don't run the water while you brush, use a glass to rinse; save 4 gallons.

Shaving Don't run the water while you shave; save 4 gallons.

Dish washing Don't rinse dishes before putting them in the dishwasher, or half-fill a plastic tub to rinse; save 8 to 10 gallons.

Drinking water Keep a bottle in the fridge; don't run the tap to get it cold; save 1 gallon.

Showers Take a "Navy" shower (turn the water off while you lather); save 8 gallons.

Baths Shower instead of bathing; save 30 gallons (even with a long shower).

Garbage Use a compost pile instead of the garbage disposal; save 2 gallons.

Food Defrost in the refrigerator overnight, not under running water; save 4 gallons.

Savings at the commode based on 3.5 gallons-per-flush; (greater savings available with low-flow 1.6 gallon-per-flush toilet). Savings at the sink based on 2 gallon-per-minute tap in bath and kitchen. Savings in the bath based on 2 gallon-per-minute showerhead and a 50-gallon bathtub. Savings in the laundry based on a 40-gallon top-loader (a 24-gallon front-loader offers more savings).

What is One to Get Her Best Friend??

For a girl that has everything..?? It is her EIGHTIETH birthday, yes I said 80 th.. Sweets are out, as she is diabetic and fall is almost here so a plant is out.. So help me dear Internet friends. What are some good ideas??

On the no water issue, Thanks for the comments.. We had a downpour yesterday and so my pots are set for a week or so.. They sure don't drink up the water like they did with the triple digit days. I know some say don't plant pots, but when you are used to a very rainy climate you don't have to water them, except for during a crazy long drought. It is almost time to bring in the Hibiscus trees and saves some starts of my double impatiens for next year..

North Georgia Outdoor Water Ban

We are now under a water ban handed down by our Gov. Sonny Perdue.. I can't argue about it because where I live we are 15 inches in the hole so far this year.. So what is one to do when the temps are mild and your flower pots are still blooming and beautiful?? Is it legal to get a pitcher and cart water from in the house to my potted plants?? I was thinking of using the kids bath water, but then again I want my flowers to live a little longer..

Oriental Lily Black Beauty

She bloomed on her first summer after planting.. What a great thing!! I was thrilled to see the huge stalk and all the buds on the end.. This morning... I caught my first up and personal glimpse of her.. I loved how she had petals that curved similar to tiger lilies. The smell is sweet and not overpowering like some Orientals. are.. My daughter loved it as well and couldn't stop smelling it.. This flower is one that my grandmother (who passed on the green thumb to me) would have loved in her garden.. I know she is please with this picture and smiling from heaven..










Quick update.. I have pledged to change my lightbulbs, as a step in the right direction to decrease my "footprint".. I will replace two lightbulbs today.
http://action.earthday.net/dia/organizationsORG/EDN/signUp.jsp?key=2108&Country=US

What is Your Footprint on the Earth?

The quiz is based on national consumption averages and is meant to give you an idea of your Ecological Footprint relative to other people in the country you live in. It is not highly detailed, but should give most people an idea of where they stand. You can take the quiz here...

http://www.myfootprint.org/


My results are the following.. I did OK, but not as good as I would hope.. I am 13 acres less than my country's counterparts, but need to get that down.. WAY DOWN

CATEGORY
ACRES
FOOD 2.5
MOBILITY 2
SHELTER 3.2
GOODS/SERVICES 3.5
TOTAL FOOTPRINT 11
IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN YOUR COUNTRY IS 24 ACRES PER PERSON. WORLDWIDE, THERE EXIST 4.5 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE ACRES PER PERSON.

IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE ME, WE WOULD NEED 2.5 PLANETS.

Lady Bird Johnson

Lady Bird Johnson was my kind of first lady.. She was a lover of the earth. She practiced what she preached. She was a human being who left her soulprint on the world. Her legacy will surely carry on and help the world to be a better place. She modeled conservationism at its best.



"Lady Bird Johnson, our former first lady, and Actress Helen Hayes founded an organization in 1982 to protect and preserve North America's native plants and natural landscapes. First as the National Wildflower Research Center and later as the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, this special place exists to introduce people to the beauty and diversity of wildflowers and other native plants. Every day, the Wildflower Center brings life to Mrs. Johnson's vision in its public gardens, its woodlands and sweeping meadows as well as in internationally influential research. In 2006, the Center became an Organized Research Unit of the University of Texas at Austin.

Decades ago, Mrs. Johnson recognized that our country was losing its natural landscapes and its natural beauty. As much as 30 percent of the world’s native flora is at risk of extinction. The Wildflower Center was intended to help preserve and restore that beauty and the biological richness of North America. Since then, the Center has become one of the country’s most credible research institutions and effective advocates for native plants.

The Center’s gardens display the native plants of the Central Texas Hill Country while the Plant Conservation Program protects the ecological heritage of Texas by conserving its rare and endangered flora. The Native Plant Information Network is a database of more than 7,200 native species available online.

The Land Restoration Program uses the science of healing and renewing damaged and even destroyed ecological systems to restore balance to the landscape. The Center’s education programs for children and adults teach people about their natural surroundings and how to grow native plants in their own backyards."

This information was gathered from http://www.wildflower.org