Going Back to School Green

If you are a parent who cautiously monitors the lifestyle habits of your family by implementing eco-friendly items and ideas into your household, you are setting the groundwork to instill positive green habits into your child’s life. Your child spends a great deal of their early life in school and it is difficult for them to make green lifestyle choices while they are away from home each day.

There are simple ways in which you can easily implement green living habits into your child’s school year and help the environment without making huge changes to your family’s lifestyle.

Pack a Green Lunch

Cold lunches help protect the environment because they cut down on plastic waste from the cafeteria that needs to be discarded and chemicals in soaps used to wash lunch trays. Purchase an eco-friendly lunch box or bag that holds containers for sandwiches and snacks. A lunch box can be re-used rather than buying paper or plastic bags that have to be disposed of in the environment.

Try to keep the lunch wrapper-free by adding fresh veggies and fruits or using containers made of cloth or metal. The standard juicebox is coated with plastic and has a plastic straw; however, it can be easily eliminated by using a small metal bottle or other container. It may be hard to get your child to eat a cold lunch every day, so try setting an initial goal of two or three times a week.

Eco-friendly School Supplies

Another small way to help the environment is to outfit your child with green school supplies. Binders, pens, pencils, pencil boxes, and notebooks that are made from recycled materials are a great way to help your child do their best while helping Mother Nature at the same time. There is no need for embarrassment with eco-friendly school supplies as they come in a variety of hip and fashionable designs.

Toss the vinyl backpack for a more eco-friendly hemp backpack or 100% post-consumer recycled rubber pack. When dressing your child, make sure you buy from a company that makes PVC-free shoes and select clothing produced from untreated, uncolored, and pesticide-free organic cotton.

Carpool After-School Activities

 After-school sports and activities are in full force the day the first school bell rings. Running around for football practice, band, or other activities is not only time consuming but is also hard on the environment. Transportation and gas costs typically double in the fall for most parents when school starts up for their kids. Setting up a car pool system with other parents limits the amount of gas you use and the emissions you put in the air.

Organize Gatherings With Other Parents

Organize a green-living group with other parents to share eco-friendly tips and ideas. A green-living group is a great time to ask others about car pooling and alternating pick-up days from school. Host a clothes swap so that items children no longer use can be traded with others; this is a great way to get to know other parents and help cut back on environmental waste in landfills. Get together a group of parents and kids to pick-up litter, help with recycling, or plant some trees.

By implementing small ways to go green in your life, you are one step closer to leading an eco-friendly lifestyle. You are a role-model and reflection of your child, so when you show you care about Mother Nature, your child will too.

Bats - Integral to the Environment

Bats are an essential part of the environment. It is estimated that they have existed for more than 50 million years. Approximately one thousand species of bats exist in the world today. A single group of bats is referred to as a colony.

Even though they are classified as mammals, bats are capable of flight. The scientific name given to bats, Chiroptera, translates to “hand-wing.” Bats are then classified into two separate categories. These two categories are Microchiroptera, which means “small hand-wing,” and Megachiroptera, which means “large hand-wing.”

Bats in the nectar drinking category help to pollinate a variety of plants. These plants include night blooming desert plants that would cease to flourish if the bats were not available to pollinate them. The giant Saguaro cactus, bananas, mangos, dates, cashews, agave, and figs owe their existence to nectar drinking bats. Additionally, bat guano is used as fertilizer due to its rich content.

Rainforest growth relies on bats. Fruit eating bats spread rainforest growth by depositing seeds through their bat droppings. Many of the accessible plants known today rely on bats for their existence.

Pest control is assisted by insect eating bats. The bats act as natural pest control that helps to keep the insect population down. This decreases the need to spray harmful pesticides in both the agricultural and residential communities. In fact, a single bat can ingest as many as 600 mosquitoes in a single hour. Bats also ingest countless numbers of rootworm, a pest that harms local farming communities.

In addition to nectar, fruit, and insects, different species of bats also eat frogs, fish, and small mammals. Some species of bats have even been known to consume other bats. In fact, three species of bats are known as Vampire Bats. These three species survive by drinking the blood of small mammals and birds. The Vampire Bats originated in Central and South America.

The smallest known bat is the Bumblebee bat. It originates from Thailand and only weighs as little as a penny, no more.

The natural roosts for bats are trees. However, as the human element takes over more and more of their natural habitat, bats have learned to adapt and relocate within buildings and caves. They have even taken up residence beneath bridges. Many of the bat species are now on the Endangered Species List.

How to Go on a Mushroom Hunt

Mushrooms add a delicious taste to recipes and some types are particularly renowned for their health benefits. While you can buy a variety of mushrooms at your local grocery store if you use a lot of them, it can get expensive. One solution to the high cost of mushrooms is to go on a mushroom hunt. The decision to go on a mushroom hunt isn’t to be taken lightly. It’s critical that you be able to distinguish poisonous mushrooms from edible ones before putting them in your mouth. Adding a poisonous mushroom to a recipe can result in serious illness and even death.

Before undertaking a mushroom hunt, educate yourself about the various types of mushrooms, their characteristics, and their appearance. The best way to do this is to pick up a few mushroom field guides at your local library. Read about each type of mushroom and study the color photos until you’re comfortable identifying commonly seen mushrooms.

Once you have a basic mushroom education, you can start planning your first mushroom hunt. The safest way to do this is to go with a mushroom expert who’s had experience with wild mushroom hunting. If you live in a city of substantial size, your area may have a mycology group who goes on regular mushroom hunts and you may be able to join them. Some areas also offer courses in hunting for and identifying edible mushrooms.

If you undertake your first mushroom hunt on your own, be sure to bring along a photographic field guide to identify each mushroom you collect. If there’s any doubt as to whether the mushroom you find is edible, don’t take it home. Even if you are certain as to the identity of a particular mushroom, only eat a spoonful the first day to make sure you don’t have a reaction to that particular species. You should also avoid mushroom hunting in areas that could be contaminated with chemicals or pesticides.

Mushroom hunting is best done in the fall several days after a good rainfall. Avoid hunting for mushrooms immediately after a rain because the ground and earth are generally too waterlogged. Choose areas with low growing grass adjacent to areas with trees. Mushrooms generally thrive in moderately warm, damp areas. If you choose to go mushroom hunting in a park or on private property, be sure you have permission to be there and that the area hasn’t been sprayed with chemicals.

For your mushroom hunt, bring along a knife for cutting the mushroom along the bottom of the stem. You’ll also need a large, open basket for carrying your mushrooms home. Avoid placing your freshly cut mushrooms in plastic bags since they need open access to the air.

Once you arrive home with your mushroom collection, clean each one carefully and use them in your recipes as soon as possible. If you’re not a mushroom expert, seek out a second opinion as to the edibility of the mushrooms you’ve collected. Again, only eat a small amount the first day to determine your reaction to that particular mushroom species. Over time, you’ll become more and more adept at mushroom identification.

Mushroom hunting can be a fun hobby that can also provide you with tasty fungi for your recipes. Plus, you’re saving money by not buying mushrooms at your local supermarket. Remember to always practice safety first. Only eat mushrooms you have clearly identified as being edible.

by Dr. Kristie

For more information on mushroom identification, collection, and toxicity, visit the Mushroom Expert at:

http://www.mushroomexpert.com/

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