Green Living
How Many Paper Towels Does It Take?
Does anybody remember the animated Tootsie Pop commercial? “How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?” Strangely, I thought about that commercial the other day while in a public restroom. I know, how odd! Anyway, what made me...
read moreThe Coffee Makers Funeral
The other day I heard a man brag about giving a worn-out coffee maker a ‘Viking funeral’. For those who are not familiar with the Vikings, they would set their dead on a boat and light them on fire. Then they would sail off to Viking heaven. Back then, of course,...
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The Grocery Story: Our Food and Co-ops in the age of Big Grocery Retail
I walked in the C. Burr Artz Library expecting a large crowd gathered in the community room. There were a couple of tables set up, chairs lined in their rows, and an elderly crowd making chit chat as we were waiting for Jon Steinham to begin his discussion on his new...
read moreThe Anthropology of Roadside Trash
For a year now I have been routinely cleaning up litter along a two -mile stretch of Harmony Road, sometimes with the help of family and friends. We adopted it as part of Green Frederick's mission to serve the community. Its a bucolic setting, winding along the stream...
read moreSchool Composting and Waste Sorting Data
Joe Richardson of Bar-T Mountainside Ranch (a directory member!) and member of the @Frederick Compost Workgroup recently presented data from a number of waste sorts and composting efforts he coordinated at schools in Frederick County. He presented the data to the...
read more“There’s a new ‘JOHN’ in town”
If you poop, add a scoop. If you pee, let it be. Months later, top-dress the brown spots in your lawn. I interviewed David Myers of Build-Rite Construction LLC/Myers Barn Shop, and RN, a customer of his, about the Sun-Mar Composting Toilet. And the statements above...
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The Christmas Tree Shopping dilemma
Every year at this time we scope out whats being said about real vs. artificial Christmas trees, and while Green Frederick leans towards buying a re-plantable LOCAL real Christmas tree, there are considerations. Take a look at Earth 911’s assessment here, with some...
read moreEmmitsburg Nuns Prioritize People AND the Planet
Three cheers to the North County Daughters of Charity! They combined their order’s mission of serving the disadvantaged with their goal of stewardship of the earth—all in one project, the Seton Center. The Seton Center, a community center providing job training and...
read moreState Tree Nursery Now Accepting Orders
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is now accepting online orders for shrub and tree seedlings from the John S. Ayton State Forest Tree Nursery for the spring 2019 planting season. The nursery offers more than 50 species of shrubs and trees for large-scale...
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McClintocks Distilling: Sustainable Spirits
When Braeden Bumpers and Tyler Hegamyer went into business in downtown Frederick, becoming successful at distilling spirits made from organic feedstock was their primary focus. They have become green champions in Frederick County and the State of Maryland along the...
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