Vermiculture? creepy crawlies just in time for Halloween!

I got this e-mail from The Road Less Traveled, one of my favorite stores :

What: Composting Lecture

When: October 25, 2009 3:00 PM

Price: $15.00 per person

Where:The Road Less Traveled

2204 N Main St Santa Ana, CA 92706

714 836-8727

Learn the how, what and where of vermiculture, composting with earthworms, our hungry and efficient friends! Everything you need know plus product to buy to be successful at home! handouts and snacks are included.$15, $10 w/friend

OK, in all my studies for several years now, and in the 70's as a hippie, I have never heard the word "vermiculture". And my friend, Abbot John Drais of Madre Grande Monastery was a Worm Wrangler - he taught me all about worms and castings and how valuable they are, as he spent hours digging up the earth and making the soil a perfect environment for earthworms to sell their poop for organic fertilizer. Apparently it's the shizzle.

Why is it important to green real estate? First, let's properly define it.

According to http://www.vermiculture.com/, it is "The raising and production of earthworms and worm castings"

Well, wikipedia doesn't list it, but they do list Vermicompost: "composting utilizing various species of worms, specifically red wigglers, white worms, and earthworms creating the heterogeneous mixture of decomposing vegetable or food waste, bedding materials, and pure vermicast produced during the course of normal vermiculture operations. Vermicast, similarly known as worm castings, worm humus or worm manure, is the end-product of the breakdown of organic matter by the species of earthworm." That's clear as mud!

So, why is it important to green real estate?

Worm castings used as fertilizer can help your organic garden thrive and not only make your yard a living yard ("greener" than a grass yard - see my blog: Rip up your lawn!"), it can be a profitable yard reaping expensive organic produce and herbs for your family to enjoy. Your family might end up just a little healthier eating fresh and often raw food as you save money on your grocery bill and possibly your doctor bills. A beautiful thriving garden certainly enhances the curb appeal of a home, and last but not least, think of how happy the planet will be when you are not putting toxic fertilizers into it or the storm drains to the ocean.

I suggest if you are interested at all in vermiculture, you do attend the workshop. and you won't be all "muddy" about vermiculture anymore.

How can I be Green if I Rent?

By now you have heard and seen all the tips for greening up a home you own. However, if you rent you can still green up your home and not make your landlord mad. It's as simple as changing out all the light bulbs to Compact Fluorescent, but take it a step further and get the full spectrum lighting to have daylight spectrum light inside your home. Full-spectrum output duplicates the rich, pure light of the sun. You’ll see colors more accurately, reduce eyestrain and increase your visual acuity, and they even emit small amounts of healthy UV light to help your skin produce crucial vitamin D indoors. Once you go full spectrum, you will never go back! Get them at realgoods.com or drugstore.com http://www.realgoods.com/product/home-outdoor/living+space/energy+efficiency/indoor+sunshine+cfl+bulbs.do

OK, we already know about light bulbs and bringing our own grocery bags, and reusing our stainless steel water bottles. What can you tell me that's new?
Stop your junk mail! Here's the link of the Direct Mailing Association's place to stop your junk mail (unless you roll it up tightly and use it for fire starter in your fireplace.) https://www.dmachoice.org/dma/member/home.action;jsessionid=54DDAD3A4390CB1F2F7CF5EF2E230DF5.tomcat1

Green is not just about reuse, reduce, recycle. Really? "I thought it was," you say. It's also about the sustainability of the planet and the care for the inhabitants in it. So try not to shop for items that may have been made in sweatshops. How in the world do you know where stuff comes from? The National Labor Committee's website can help http://www.nlcnet.org/index.php also, a quick Internet search can find products not produced in sweatshops, like www.rawganic.com.

Replace your bathmats (when they wear out) with organic. rawganique offers textiles that are not produced in sweatshops.http://www.rawganique.com/BAhc1.htm

And from Planet Green, some awesome advice for renters:
Talk to your Landlord - One of the biggest obstacles to living green in a rental property is the feeling of powerlessness to make changes. It's important to remember that as a tenant you are a customer and you deserve decent service. A good landlady or landlord should work with you to make your home as pleasant as possible. So talk to them if the property is drafty, the toilet keeps running, or heating systems are inefficient – after all, investing in improvements will help them to retain tenants, attract new ones, and it will increase the value of their property. The owner might be particularly amenable to funding improvements if you do the math to show them the return on their investment, and offer your labor free of charge, creating a win-win situation for all concerned.

Search for your rental on the Internet - OC Green Realty can set you up on a client gateway, which sends available rentals directly to your inbox as they become available. Save so much driving as you point and click and make notes on the houses you are interested in that we will see on our copy, and save phone calls, time, and resources by getting all the info you need to know about on a property without leaving your chair. Send me an e-mail with what you are looking for and say "I would like to be on the client gateway" No salesman will call, no obligation. ha ha, really.

Happy Renting!