Sustainability

Outdoors

To Till or Not To Till?

As Spring is quickly approaching, many gardeners may be thinking about how they will begin prepping, including the arduous task of tilling their soil once it warms up. Although this has been such a regular practice for many (including my family growing up), I would love to propose an idea that may be quite challenging: 

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Sustainability

Where Does The Bag Money Go?

In July 2021, Governor Polis signed House Bill 21-1162 into law. The Plastics Pollution Reduction Act began phasing out single use plastics on Jan. 1, 2023 by requiring retailers to charge 10 cents per plastic bag, with the goal of reducing pollutants in Colorado.  While the law has certain exceptions for small and Colorado-based retailers

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Sustainability

Composting In Wheat Ridge

Composting is an easy and often inexpensive way to live sustainably. If you don’t compost yet, knowing where to start can be overwhelming. We’ve outlined a few options of what is available in Wheat Ridge, some tips to help you choose, and share one resident’s journey to compost.  It first helps to understand compost and

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Edgewater

Reducing Your Carbon Footprint this Winter

Fall is in full swing, and winter is just around the corner. As temperatures drop, you may be turning on your thermostat. However, as the furnaces turn up, so does your energy and gas bill and your carbon footprint. To reduce this carbon footprint and save money on electricity bills this winter, thinking about your

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Sustainability

Handling The Havoc Of Hailstorms

Hail season in the Front Range begins in April and extends through September. This year has been a particularly pounding season; gardeners are mourning multiple losses of tender annuals and nursing devastating injuries, especially to big-leaved perennials. Established perennials and woodies usually bounce back from early-season hail without too much intervention, but storm damage caused

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Sustainability

How To Reduce Your Ozone Impact This Summer

You can’t see it, smell it or taste it. This invisible pollutant even accumulates the most on hot and sunny blue-sky days, when the Colorado air appears clear. Yet, ground-level ozone is the Front Range’s most pressing air quality problem, impacting our health and environment each summer.  Ozone is simply three oxygen atoms stuck together.

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Sustainability

Friend Or Foe?

With the gardening season in full swing, it is important to be able to recognize what bugs are bad or good in your garden. Whether you are growing vegetables and fruits or just have a flower garden, understanding the effects of pests can help you and your plants stay stress free. One of the most

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Sustainability

Bring ‘Em Out, Bring ‘Em Out!

It’s our favorite time of year again, my friends: Springtime! With spring cleaning comes planting, repotting and bringing those plants that have been inside all winter long back out into the yard or patio. I, unfortunately, do not have a yard at the moment, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have a patio full of

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Edgewater

Spruce Up With The Healthy Tree Canopy Program

Calling all tree enthusiasts! Edgewater’s tree-tastic initiative is back, and it’s here to help you give your leafy friends the care they deserve. Say hello to the Edgewater Healthy Tree Canopy Program for 2023! If you have trees that need some love, all you need to do is hop onto the AskEdgewater app or www.EdgewaterCO.gov/AskEdgewater

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Edgewater

Joyride With The City!

Bike to Work Day is just around the corner – so come JOYRIDE with us! The Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) annual Bike to Work Day event is Wednesday, June 28 and encourages people to bike to work instead of driving. It’s a great way to get some exercise, reduce traffic congestion and improve

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Sustainability

What Is Regenerative Agriculture?

What is Regenerative Agriculture, what are its benefits, and how can we incorporate them into everyday gardening practices? Regenerative, like the name suggests, is to generate again, there’s an implication of a cycle, a place from which to renew, or begin again. When applied to agriculture, it could mean to grow food in a way

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Outdoors

Happiness Gardens: A Thriving Community Space

“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” – Aubrey Hepburn Spring has officially sprung, and thoughts of renewal, planting and growing come to mind as the snow melts and days become longer. I love this time of year when the tiniest shoots of green and color push through the soil and trees awaken

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Sustainability

Showing Love For Our Native Plants

We have managed to make it through the busiest time of the year and as we move into February, it got me thinking about showing some love for native plants right here in Colorado. It is time to start planning our springtime planting! Like many of you, I am excited to get my hands back

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Sustainability

New Year, New Growth

Wow! The year flew by and here we are on the lookout of a new year full of new opportunities. I am sure many of you will be making some new year’s resolutions and setting new goals for yourself. For me personally, I am going to try and grow everything from seed this year! Trust

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Edgewater

Handle with Care: Safe Disposal And Recycling Options For Used Household Batteries

According to the EPA, most batteries are recyclable. However many –  including lithium-ion, lithium metal, lead-acid, nickel cadmium and other rechargeable batteries – should NOT go in household garbage or recycling bins. In a world where batteries are increasingly powering everything, it is useful to know which batteries can be recycled, where they can be

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Sustainability

The Gift Of Plant Propagation!

Autumn is here, and boy am I excited! Colorado is just lovely this time of year and with the changes of the seasons come beautiful fall foliage and crisper, colder air. If you are a gardener like myself, you will start to bring in those potted annuals and cut back your perennials in preparation for

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Edgewater

Edgewater Goes Renewable With Solar On The Civic Center

When the Civic Center in Edgewater was being proposed in 2018, the community was invited to offer feedback during a series of charrettes and public meetings. This process welcomed residents to share their desires for the new government building. With overwhelming support, the community expressed hope for a solar installation on the top of the

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Community

Gardeners Share Their Backyard Bounty

Did you know that there’s a national Sneak Some Zucchini Into Your Neighbor’s Porch Day? It’s the ultimate dump and run. Many gardeners are trying to get rid of the massive number of zucchinis growing in their garden this time of year, and every neighbor has had enough. And even though the national holiday was

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Sustainability

Saving Water, But For Whom?

Like many Coloradoans, our family made some home improvements during the pandemic. One major project was to convert turfgrass in our front lawn to a low-water and pollinator-friendly xeriscaped groundcover. As we patiently awaited our award from the City of Wheat Ridge for being outstanding sustainably minded citizens (still waiting…), I wanted to dig a

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Sustainability

Gardening Is Truly A Joy For Us

When my husband Murph and I bought this home 50 years ago we thought it was a pretty great place already – a good-sized yard with lots of trees. Today, all these years later, our yard looks very different, mature but not overgrown, tended by the two of us who have grown older but are

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Edgewater

Whittle Your Waste

Help put an end to food waste – and start composting with us! Edgewater and Scraps offer residents an affordable compost pickup service. You can learn more and sign up at www.ScrapsMileHigh.com/Edgewater. Not sure yet about composting? Check out all the benefits you will bring to the community and the climate! Benefits of composting •

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Sustainability

Turning A Passion Into A Purpose

Like so many people, I find solace in plants. It doesn’t matter if it is in the garden or in my home, they bring a peace that is not only comforting, but needed. At first, I thought of gardening and collecting plants as a hobby that just passed the time. It was something that kept

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Sustainability

‘The Mighty ATATs’

Founded in 2013, the Wheat Ridge Active Transportation Advisory Team (“the mighty ATATs”) is a citizen-led organization that works with residents, city leadership, businesses and partner organizations to increase opportunities to walk, to ride a bike, and to connect with transit in Wheat Ridge. The ATATs work to promote and develop a physically and economically

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Community

Could This Be…A Wheat Ridge Home Companion?

What if … the Car Talk guys joined up with the Prairie Home Companion team to talk about gardening? Something like that is happening here in Wheat Ridge, by locals, about locals’ gardens.  Listen for yourself: Upside Down Tulips not only sows botanical advice every two weeks, it has its own theme song, corny jokes,

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