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Eco landscaping business PR copy; anyone reading this you are welcome to use, adapt to your needs/circumstances. (Post with pics in the Transformative Adventures group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/238637257015056/permalink/1189619575250148/ )

My work “truck” has been very busy for the past few days! Working on some boutique projects that will become a key addition to my landscaping services portfolio.

For the project I am gathering valuable materials that someone else thinks are “trash” (but they are too lengthy for waste collection to pick up — fortunately for me as it has bought me a few days’ time for this large collection endeavor!).

Main tools for preparing cut bamboo to transport smoothly and utilize easily:
scissors, loppers, mini saw … and of course my ever-trusty cup of coffee (from one of the scrappy, stalwart beachside bodegas that are situated within walking distance of DG headquarters AKA Harvey House).

#boutiqueproject #trellis #fabulousbamboo #DeepGreen #ecolandscapingservices #spongecity #puffylandscaping

“DEEP GREEN landscaping services: Doing my part to reverse desertification of the barrier island and reduce the flooding in Midtown … one little Beachside yard at a time!”

“I use the city green waste stuff for kitchen scraps but keep seeing advertisements for electric kitchen composters. I live in a complex with a lot of green space and am involved with gardening that green space. But we are along the a city greenway/Railway so can’t do a traditional compost due to fears of rats (due to co-op rules). Has anyone tried an electric kitchen composter? Are they helpful with gardening or are they mostly just another attempt to sell us stuff? Does anyone have any thoughts?”

FWIW I have been composting in intensive, densely populated urban settings for years and have never had rats in the compost.

Things that may help:

• make sure there is enough “brown” matter (fallen leaves, twigs, cardboard etc.)
• the urine of a large mammal has been found to be an extremely effective deterrent of rodents etc <wink>

Came across my socials feed this morn; permaculture group newbie getting more & more alarmed as she finds out that the trees and shrubs around the home she’s just purchased are invasive (or as someone else said, “monstrous”).

My response:

A reassuring note: Remember that in permaculture, even a species we humans don’t see as “desirable,” does have value and serves a function in the ecosystem. (Second ethic of permaculture design: Care of people and all other species.)

If nothing else, right now for you these mature trees are providing shade (essential in Florida of course!) and maybe privacy buffer; noise buffer around your house. Of course, planting natives is great and you can always add in natives and edibles (and, if you choose, cut back or remove the nonnatives) as your time and budget permits!

Also in permaculture, sometimes we find that “invasives” are edible or have some other good use such as building materials. In one place where i lived, I built a little outdoor shower-stall using branches cut from an “invasive” tree. Also its fuzzy leaves were useful for various applications such as TP for the compost toilet.

Sometimes, the permaculture movement doesn’t necessarily totally overlap the native-plants movement. Although many of us are endeavoring to support & promote the spread of native plants, most of us are also into learning about plants that provide food, fuel, fiber, building materials, etc. Some of the most useful and beneficial plants growing right around us are not necessarily natives.

So what might those nuts be useful for? What unique properties do they have? What might the branches, leaves, etc be useful for? Even if you don’t end up directly finding roles for them other than the shade, beauty, stormwater absorption, and heat mitigation they provide, researching the various co-inhabitants of your home place can be a fun adventure. And can help you feel better, less stressed about the land around the home you have bought.

The permaculture design principles and ethics offer us an exciting invitation to become learners and fellow-residents with the natural world (of which we humans are a part too, though we “modern” humans have cut ourselves off).

Whew, that got sort of longwinded! But anyway, Hi and welcome to this group! And congrats on your house, may you enjoy getting to know the nonhuman fellow residents who might have lots to share.

#Stormwaterabsorption #heatmitigation #naturehabitat #oceanfrontnaturalbeauty

2min36sec video
A tale of two oceanfront vacant lots. Both are privately owned and not intended by their owners for the public to use.

#1 is kept mowed super short, which is costing money & energy needlessly, and reducing natural beachfront beauty while compromising Mother Nature’s highly effective “sponge” of heat mitigation, drought buffer, erosion control, & stormwater absorption.

#2 is a classic wild oceanfront dune-meadow of grasses & wildflowers, offering sustenance to many birds & other species. And for humans, it offers improved stormwater absorption, heat mitigation, erosion control, drought buffer, and natural beachside beauty!

The beachside is a barrier island, actually a giant sand-dune!! What we do with restoration of natural landscapes on the beachside has great potential to rebuild the SPONGE function, which can greatly help mitigate the deadly flooding on the mainland!! (and also help mitigate the heat and drought on the beachside). Plus, when people come to the beach, they expect it to look BEACHY!!

A fellow activist asked what we might be able to do to shift the landscape.

It seems to need a multi-faceted approach, for example:

• my little signs recognizing nature landscaping seem to be having some effect, in terms of giving moral support to people who are doing a good thing
• in local govt, landscaping maintenance policies are determined by multiple departments, and we are attempting to communicate w as many of the departments as possible to find leverage points
• citizens are invited & encouraged to attend the Beautification tree advisory board meetings which are the first Tuesday of every month at 4 PM
• I have had also some success by communicating at neighborhood watch group meetings in Daytona Beach specifically my home group BNW Beachside Neighborhood Watch, and our sister group on the other side of the bridge the Midtown Neighborhood Watch, regarding the importance of vegetation for heat mitigation and stormwater absorption.
• Further leverage points exist as well. Both the grasscutter industry and the lawn equipment manufacturing industry need to be somehow coaxed to see their self-interest in becoming more aware of the importance of the “sponge.” On this note, property owners/managers/stewards who have money-spending decisionmaking authority re landscaping decisions, have an essential role to play.

Woohoo! I am thrilled to be a part of this wonderful Directory and organization. Thank you Angie Bee, Loretha Simon, Volusia Business Women!!!

“A Community of Entrepreneurs. From authors to life coaches to graphic designers and more, we are a community of entrepreneurs with a goal in mind: to grant business women in Volusia County an affordable website presence and be the Go-To site for event listings in our County.”

Yes it’s true as the slogan on my cool VBW ceramic pencil cup goes, “We Are Stronger Together!”

You can see my directory entry here. “It is easy being green — and I’m here to help you with all aspects of sustainability, both interior and exterior! Consultations, workshops, eco landscaping. Specializing in micro businesses; urban environments.”

#Entrepreneurship #Women #SupportLocal

I have noticed that for me, the best way to minimize encountering unkindness and meanness in the world is to work really hard to avoid being unkind and mean myself.

I’m not always successful but it’s a goal worth constantly striving for.

Yes, there’s a lot of unkindness and meanness out there, and maybe no way to avoid it 100%. I did notice that I was causing a really high percentage of the meanness I was seeing, though. Your mileage may vary! Not everyone is as cranky and mean as I am sometimes.

A lot of times if I’m willing to face it in myself before it “escapes” into the wild, I’m a lot less likely to see it out in the world. (This is an old principle of consciousness; nothing new.)

Also, some little imaginary devices I have found helpful:

• virtual roll of duct-tape (for my mouth; apply for example before meetings where there are issues I’m super fired up about but have said enough and really need to let other people talk)

• 7-second delay filter (breathe deep for 5-7 seconds before responding to something)

Best and most reliable advice I can give about recycling. Unless you know differently for your specific town/city/area, at this point it’s best to assume that nothing gets recycled. And do our best to modify our grocery shopping and other purchases accordingly.

It sounds bleak but never fear, there is good news too. Stay tuned, I’ll be back later to add to this post; just need to do some composting tasks.

OK I’m back. The good news is that everything gets “recycled,” eventually. What I’m talking about is Mother Nature’s recycling bin. Compost.

In one of the first permaculture design courses I took, back around 2005, I heard a saying, “Everything composts.” The instructor was talking about a landfill in Vancouver where someone noticed that batteries were decomposing.

At the time, this came as a great revelation. But I have noticed many other examples over the years, of everything breaking down in nature. Tin cans rust and dissolve; even plastic disintegrates. Does this exempt us from being careful? No! For example, micro-plastic particles are proving deadly to waterways and marine life.

What it does suggest, though, is that compost bins and other compost facilities have a wider role to play than we may have thought, in breaking down “waste.”

Ultimately, we need to not make packaging that’s not either readily compostable or truly recyclable or both. In the meantime, I refuse whatever I can. Then reduce to a minimum, then reuse, then compost what I can. And then inevitably, some things end up in the trash or the recycling bin.

But I always think it’s best to assume nothing gets recycled unless I recycle it myself.