An Almost Zero Waste Life: Learning How To Embrace Less To Live More by Megean Weldon

I am always looking for ways to reduce my footprint on the earth. Going Zero Waste has always seemed pretty daunting & downright impossible. Seeing blog posts where said blogger shows a photo of one years worth of waste for a family of four & it fits in a jar. Um, what? How? Seriously, how? This question coming from me, an Eco farmer who has been living a pretty sustainable life for well over a decade. But even I haven't figured out how to create no garbage whatsoever.

This book by Megean Weldon is much more realistic & as a result, optimistic. As the beginning of the book title says, "An almost zero waste life". Key word, almost. Finally someone who isn't going to say anyone can do the impossible by creating no garbage. Okay, wait. Yes, you could live naked in some secluded place, sort of like an animal. Maybe dig in garbage for stuff, but don't ever throw out said garbage. Hunt & forage for your food, etc. So, in theory, yes, we could go zero waste, but lets keep it realistic shall we? Running around naked is against the law nearly everywhere. Being homeless is generally frowned upon & really, who doesn't enjoy the comforts of home. Electricity, plumbing, being protected & cozy?

Rather than be judgemental or just make the reader feel like a jerk who simply isn't trying hard enough, Megean gives the reader lots of wonderful ideas to try to implement in order to reduce waste. She even frees us by saying, being zero waste is impossible. Thank you Megean!

For my own life, I am already implementing many of the suggestions in this book. I've had years to work on it after all. Some of the very suggestions now given by Megean were utilized at one point or another, but eventually given up on due to practicality. This doesn't mean what I have given up on wont be perfect for someone else. We are all individuals with unique personalities & lifestyles. The idea is to figure out what works for you.

Megean makes sure to point out that you don't just do it all at once. That's not realistic. Think in baby steps. When you run out of something, rather than buy the same something, replace it with something that is zero waste or as close to it as possible. For example, replace your paper towels with rags. Not rags that you buy, but real rags from clothes you no longer wear for whatever reason. I prefer to cut up only clothing made from natural materials (& as a result try to buy only natural clothing), but anything will do. Then launder the rags & use over & over. Nothing to buy, nothing to add to the landfill. The bonus is, by reducing your footprint, you also reduce your spending. Zero Waste living is very much like Living Simply or Living With Less.

In keeping with a smaller footprint, even this book by it's design & materials follows the ideas behind the Zero Waste movement. I always found it a bit hypocritical to write books of this type only to use toxic highly polluting materials to create the book. Oh the irony. Not only is this book super useful, it's adorable & "green".

Out of the the ten or so books my bibliophile self ordered in the past month or so, this is hands down my favorite & a real keeper, earning it a permanent spot on my shelf.

No-Waste Organic Gardening: Eco friendly Solutions to Improve Any Garden by Shawna Coronade

I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book as a full time Eco farmer. Silly silly me. I guess the word "garden" should have clued me in. If you are an experienced Eco gardener you'll probably want to give this a pass (or see if your library has it first before buying). I learned nothing from this book that I didn't already know, have tried, or am already doing. For those of you new to gardening, you will likely find this a wealth of information, as it is full of excellent low cost advice.

Pick a spot in your back yard, front yard, or both (if zoning allows), decide what type of soil you'd like to work with (till or no till - hint: you want no till), or use pots & planters if you have no space to work with. You will learn about different types of compost; how to create & use said compost. There are also tips on dealing with bugs. The author is a big fan of Castile soap which she seems to believe is an oil free soap (page 31). Castile soap is typically made with either olive, coconut, palm or some other vegetable oil; it is not oil free.  

She covers a lot of topics besides the ones I just mentioned & they are all worth trying out to see what works for you. Growing food & flowers is a learning experience (as is raising critters). You will never know everything. Mother Nature has a way of showing us growers just how little we know each & every year. I tell people that the more I learn, the more I realize that I know nothing. Not really, of course, I've learned a lot, but it really does feel that way.

Orchard produce, like berry bushes, grapes, & fruit trees are not covered.

Note: Eco gardening is a lot of work. I repeat, Eco gardening is a lot of work. Most of it is hand weeding. Don't say I didn't warn you. In the end, I hope you decide to stick with it. All that hard work has it's rewards, esp. in the middle of winter when you have all that glorious bounty put up. By January you'll be pursuing the seed catalogues, hard work forgotten in anticipation for the next growing season, which is full of endless possibilities.

Conclusion, this is a fantastic book for aspiring gardeners, wanting to organically produce their own veggies & flowers with a smaller footprint on our Mother Earth.

The Homesteaders Guide To Growing Herbs: Learn to Grow, Prepare, and Use Herbs by Kristine Brown

I run my own small Eco family farm full time. I've been doing it for over a decade & have been growing herbs & gardening even longer. I'm not a herbalist, but one does learn a thing or two by doing. I was very excited to receive this book. As always, I geek out over anything to do with herbs & growing things. Making tinctures & other goodies is another great pleasure of mine. Aside from recipes for humans, the author provides recipes for livestock & pets (of which I have all three categories). Words simply cannot adequately express just how eager I was to dive into this book.

Off I go reading this book. I'm thrown here & there, questioning the accuracy of some things. My thoughts were, She's the herbalist and she studied with Rosemary Gladstar, so surely she is right & I am wrong. Fine enough but when I see that she claims elderberry bushes grow to 25' (that's twenty five feet!), I really had to put on the breaks. I grow my own elderberry bushes. They don't grow that big. They max out at about 12.5'; about half the height she claims. Sorry, but I've never had an elderberry bush grow taller than my house. I tell myself this is likely a typo & continue to read. Then I get to wormers. OMG. She's killing me. Not dewormers. Wormers. So I guess I'm giving my animals worms then am I? No, this is to remove or kill the worms. Therefore it's de-worm. Ugh.

I also want to point out that this isn't about just herbs. She has black walnut (tree), elderberry (bush), onion (vegetable), peach (tree), raspberry (admittedly, raspberry leaf is considered an herbal, typically taken as tea or tincture), rose (bush), willow (tree), etc. Personally, I enjoy these additional foods, but I can understand it causing confusion & maybe even anger if one is looking for herbs. These additional foods have medicinal benefits & that is why they are in this book. The book really should have been given a different title as to not mislead. 'The Homesteader's Guide to Growing' is 100% correct, the remainder of the title is misleading (& it features the largest text ~sigh~). This is geared towards homesteaders which is me. This doesn't mean there isn't useful information for someone who doesn't homestead.

There are so many recipes I'd love to try, but rather than trust what is in the book, I must first research it first for safety. I'm so disappointed. I have very mixed feelings towards this book as a result. Part of me adores it. Another part of me fears it for the potential risks should there be incorrect information & I do not realize it. I have autoimmune disease & must be very careful with what my body is exposed to. Living my holistic & organic lifestyle greatly helps me manage my disease.

Unless you are highly experienced in herbal medicine, I probably wouldn't get this book (I really hate to say that). But I'm going to guess that if you are highly experienced, you wont need this book.

Angora A Handbook For Spinners by Erica Lynne

If you have an itch to have your own adorable fiber animal & you love fiber crafts, you need to read this book. This is the book I wish I had when I first started on my journey. The author is very knowledgeable in not only the care of angora rabbits, but has studied the differences in each breeds wool. She explains how each breed of angora rabbits wool performs for spinning & for how the fiber will knit. FYI: Knitting is more suited to a non elastic fiber such as angora.

This book starts with the history of angora, the development of angora as an industry, angora rabbits & their fiber, biological facts about angoras, types & grades of angora, & buying angora fiber. Phew! All that in just the first chapter!

The middle of the book focuses on how to work with angora fiber (also wrongly/commonly called wool). The author explains fiber preparation, spinning, blending, & colors. She also discusses how to create your own pure as in one hundred percent angora knitwear. Your eyes didn't deceive you. I did indeed say, 100% angora knitwear. "That's not possible" you might think. Think again. It is possible with the right angora fibers. The author explains how to make the most beautiful knitwear & even discusses the health benefits of wearing pure angora. But wait! There's more! You can weave, yes weave with angora!

The end of the book discusses producing your own angora fiber. How to find the perfect angora rabbit, travel with him or her, & how to care for him or her. She also discusses common rabbit diseases along with how to treat them. She even offers several ideas on how to properly groom & handle your angora rabbit during the long grooming process.

For such a slender, out of print book, the information within is timeless. The author is clear & professional in sharing her knowledge. The only thing I found disappointing is that the photos are in black & white. When she shows photos in regard to understanding colors, black & white photos are inadequate. The reader cannot learn nor fully appreciate the variances in colors & coat structures in the different breeds of angoras. It is also impossible to see the unique color contrasts in finished angora knitwear.

While this book is geared towards owning a angora rabbit as a pet and using it's fiber, if you are not interested in having a pet angora, it is still valuable. It can help you better understand (or if just getting started, learn) how this beautiful animals fiber behaves in comparison to other protein based fibers. It will also help you be a more savvy shopper. If you wish to use angora for spinning & other fiber crafts, this book should be on your shelf.