Drop in & Learn: Conservation Landscaping & Rain Gardens

What you can do:

• Trash that fat: Let kitchen fats cool in a container – such as a used soup can – and throw it away in the trash. Wipe or scrape excess oil from pots and pans into the trash.
• Catch the yuck: Place a strainer in the sink drain to catch food scraps and other solids.
• Support local schools: Participate in the annual Great Schools, Clean Streams campaign (no child necessary to participate.) Winning schools earn cash prizes.

Learn more:   www.nccde.org/213/Fats-Oils-Grease

What you can do:

• Spy before you buy: Read the label – products labeled hazardous, toxic, or caustic are harmful. Follow instructions to use the correct amount of a product – you won’t get twice the results by using twice as much. Only buy what you need for the job you’re working on.
• Simply soap: Avoid using antibacterial soaps and soaps with microbeads.
• Cleaner cleaning: Choose non-hazardous products when you can. Lemon juice, vinegar, hot water, borax, soap and baking soda are good alternatives to harsh chemical cleansers – and less expensive, too!
• Danger free disposal: Properly dispose of leftover medication and hazardous household products. Instead of dumping medication down the drain, DE residents can dispose of medications here. Hazardous household waste can be disposed of here.

What you can do:

• Let Liveable Lawns guide your lawn care practices: Leave your grass clippings, test your soil and fertilize only in the fall if the soil test recommend it.
• Create a ‘Chemical-free Zone’: Don’t use herbicides and pesticides. Avoid applying chemicals within 20 ft. of waterways or next to or on paved surfaces.
• Predators instead of pesticides: Natural solutions such as attracting predators (birds, dragonflies, toads) and manually removing pests is usually more effective and always safer than pesticides that harm bees, butterflies and songbirds.
• Welcome wildlife: Turn your yard into a Certified Wildlife Habitat by providing food, shelter, water, and places to raise young.
• Nature needs natives: Attract birds, butterflies and other beneficial insects by planting native plants. (NPS link)

If you don’t have a yard, you can still make a difference:

• Participate in a local tree planting or restoration project
• Volunteer to help maintain a community or school garden