Upcoming Eco-Friendly Events
This past Saturday, between dropping off my kids for play practice, football practice, and soccer games, I was able to quickly jump in on a great event sponsored by the Madison Environmental Commission—the Eco House & Garden Tour. I signed up for the free event ahead of time, and had scanned the list and map of the 10 houses on the tour to see which I could fit in my timing and interests. Each location had its eco-friendly focus also listed—organic garden and bees, solar energy, zero energy house, ecohouses, rain barrels, pollinator gardens, composting, etc. I decided on two ecohouses I had seen along my travels through town—one on Maple Ave and one on Walnut Street. At each house, the visitors had a personal tour by the homeowners of the amazing eco-friendly features of the house. It was so impressive how a bit of extra thought into design and elements in the house could make such a difference in reducing energy usage and affects on the environment. And these houses were all right here in Madison!
There are so many ways we could all help reduce our ecological footprint, and the Madison Environmental Commission and Sustainable NJ has a variety of other upcoming events that I’m excited to check out.
Compost and Rain Barrel Sale, orders due by October 7
Reduced prices for an Earth Machine Compost bin and 55 Gallon Rain Barrel are available if you order by October 7. See flyer above for details about how to order.
Town Wide Yard Sale, October 19, 8AM -1PM
Clear your house of unwanted items, make some money by selling them, and sell/shop sustainably to help the environment by reducing waste! In this second annual event, Madison residents are encouraged to have a garage sale and/or shop sustainably at a garage sale! Residents can pay $10 to have their location publicized in the TapIntoMadison.net master list of sale addresses that will be publicized to neighboring towns. The event is rain or shine.
Details here.
Pollinator Garden Tour, October 19, 11AM
Join a member for the Madison Environmental Commission for a tour of Madison’s public native pollinator gardens. Learn the value of the garden and relevant information about cultivating the plants seen; identify the seed on the plants and learn how to collect, store and germinate them.
All tours will start at the Madison Library in the Taber Room with a brief explanation as well as directions to the gardens on the agenda for that day.
RSVP through the Madison Public Library here.
How do Green Your Closet: A Deep Dive into Sustainable Fashion, November 2, 2PM
MEC members and colleagues from the environmentally-conscious clothing brand EILEEN FISHER will teach the basics of a mindful wardrobe and dig into clothing's unseen impacts—from the farm to the dyehouse to your closet. Learn how to identify which fibers are most sustainable; shop for simple, quality clothes; make sustainable choices about washing, repairing and caring for your clothes; and find resources for recycling textiles at the end of their life.
RSVP through the Madison Public Library here.
Community Seed Swap, November 9, 12-2PM.
Bring seeds of New Jersey native plants if you have some, or none if you don't have any. Either way, come to the swap and choose some seeds to take home. Seed sowing and cultivation instructions will be available. If you plan to bring seeds, please contact Joan Maccari ahead of time (maccarij@rosenet.org) so that they can have correct sowing and cultivation instructions for every species that will be available. This is a great way to expand your garden without having to spend big bucks buying new plants! And even better, these are great for our native NJ eco-system!
RSVP through the Madison Public Library here.
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To learn more about the Madison Environmental Commission, visit www.rosenet.org/396/Environmental-Commission
To learn more about Sustainable Madison, visit www.sustainablemadisonnj.org
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