Treecycling

Hi everyone,

Hope you all had great holidays! If you're like me and my husband and don't know what to do with your tree when you are done with it and your husband ends up driving all around creation trying to dump it into non-existent woods in your neighborhood like he did last year, here is a good alternative! Go to this website to find out how and where to recycle your Christmas tree in your area. There are programs that will turn your tree into compost or mulch to be used again, hooray! http://green.msn.com/Tools/GreenDirectory/Recycle/Default.aspx

Just type in Christmas Tree in the "What" and your zip code in the "Where".

According to Earth911

"Christmas trees are recycled for five main types of large-scale uses for post-harvest trees:

Chipping (chippings are used for various things from mulch to hiking trails)
Beachfront erosion prevention
Lake and river shoreline stabilization
Fish habitat
River delta sedimentation management

Today around 98 percent of real Christmas trees are grown on farms throughout all 50 states and Canada. Real trees are a renewable, recyclable resource, and real trees are planted to be harvested just as corn and/or pumpkins are cultivated for a harvest.

For each real Christmas tree harvested, up to three new seedlings are planted in its place, depending on farm size and current field rotation. Young trees in their rapid growth years have a high rate of photosynthesis and thus produce more oxygen than older trees.

This year, over 60 million new seedlings were planted by Christmas tree farmers all over North America."

Now you don't have to feel so bad for chopping down that tree, and feel even better for recycling it when you are done with it!

Take Care Stay Green,

The Greenwitch

Holiday Wish

Happy Holidays! I hope you are all doing well and enjoying the spirit of giving, sharing, and enjoying time with friends and family this year. I appreciate so much in my life every day, especially in these hard economic and unknown times, and I hope you do too. My wish is for everyone to look past all the doom and gloom that we hear every night on the news and look to those you love and realize that is what really matters.

I couldn't leave off without giving out some free information, of course!! I just read a post on http://www.ivillage.com/ go green about natural beauty products and I thought I would share it with you. If you are still looking for gifts, as most of you men probably are, get someone you love something that is good for them and will make them look and feel beautiful too! Or, just get a little treat for yourself! I'm still in the process of swapping out the old toxic with the new natural products myself. A great website to check out the ingredients that are in your shampoos, makeup, cleansers, moisturizers, etc. and what they mean to your health is http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/. Nourish your body from the inside out, which means eating organic whole foods, but don't forget about your skin, which absorbs up to 60 percent of 200 chemicals daily! These are some of ivillage's favorites:

For Colorado-based Pangea Organics, the mandate is "truly organic" and full disclosure. At Pangea, healthy means "of the earth" — not "ingredients taken from the earth and then mixed in a lab with unnamed additives." Calendula, rosemary, Egyptian fennel and Nigerian ginger are but a few of Pangea's herbal extracts that support body and mind. Pangea products enjoy a two-year-plus shelf life, yet tend to biodegrade in 48 hours.
For EO, a small, 12-year-old family business, plants matter. Essential oils are concentrated, aromatic plant essences, and they give the company its name and passion. Used in aromatherapy for centuries, essential oils are a main ingredient in EO's products, which are based on traditional healing practices. The company has studied herbalists, chemists and family-owned farms, and it boasts the first USDA-certified organic lip balm. EO relies on its oils to "awaken and delight the senses."
Devoted to wholesome skin care, New Zealand based Living Nature, began 17 years ago, and since then, it has consistently offered some of the world's most natural products. Still isolated and relatively unpolluted, New Zealand provides exceptional raw materials. Many of the company's plants are "organic wildcrafted" — grown and harvested chemical-free in the wild. But because they are wild, some are not certified organic. New Zealand 's special plants, manuka honey and clays are rich in bioactive ingredients and positive medicinal benefits.
A leader in holistic skin care for 35 years, Dr. Hauschka's pure botanical products and treatments are anchored in unique farming methods that protect life rhythms and a plant's core healing properties. Ingredients are grown organically, biodynamically (a more holistic form of organic agriculture) or ethically wild-harvested. Dr. Hauschka uses a high-quality alcohol distilled from vegetables and grains instead of the isopropyl alcohol usually found in cosmetics. The company's Website offers comprehensive answers to a range of questions.
The brainchild of a California businessman, Organic Fiji promotes the vitamin-rich, natural healing and moisturizing properties of 100 percent certified organic coconut oil. With one of the world's only certified organic coconut plantations, the company uses an ancient Fijian recipe for its soaps. Its facial products protect the skin with natural antioxidants, and the company is committed to clean, humane and healthy environmental practices.
Devour started out with a wildly successful hand-blended fragrance oil. The company prides itself in long-lasting scents, and its nonalcoholic fragrance base blends naturally with a woman's own body chemistry for a scent that, unlike commercial perfume, is personal and distinctive.

Have a safe and healthy New Year!

Take Care, Stay Green,

The Greenwitch