(Last week, we asked readers this question: “What are some of your favorite ways to reuse items that would otherwise end up at the landfill?” Here are the responses we received.)
We have a small backyard in Hopkinton so we don’t have usable outdoor space for a compost pile. We do however, have three very hard-working tubs of red wiggler worms in our basement who “eat” all of our food wastes (except meat, dairy and citrus). We separate the worms from the amazing compost they make in the spring and fall and it all goes back into our gardens. We’ve been doing this for eight years. We throw out very little food, and we have beautiful gardens to show for it.
KIM and STEVE LAJOIE
Hopkinton
Years ago, we had a lovely cobalt blue bottle that we did not want to throw away (recycle). Appreciating the beauty of the bottle out in the sunshine, we decided that it could form the basis for an art display made up of blue bottles and other glassware being recycled or thrown away. The glass objects were placed on metal rods until we realized that lots of curtain rods and golf clubs are disposed of, so they became the holders of the glass. The result has been two large displays of blue glass near the road in our yard. This has led to an oft-viewed and photographed display seen daily by drivers and walkers who pass by.
The display has become so popular that the community participates. People frequently drop off glass bottles or vases, which are then added to the display, and so the community participation keeps it growing and changing.
A small idea for reuse has grown and grown.
MARK and DONNA CIOCCA
Penacook
That is a tougher question than I thought, because many things I used to save for a rainy day do not have a relevant audience in my household right now.
Back in the day we could have fun using oatmeal boxes, brown paper bags, popsicle sticks, egg cartons or the cardboard cores of toilet paper rolls for a host of kids’ craft projects.
But there are only so many sea creatures, monster masks, Alice-in-Wonderland flowers and miniature villages to be made, it seems, and that time has passed, at least for now.
And so I’m scanning my shelves now, hoping they will remind me of my current version of Yankee frugality. I see plastic bags air-drying for the 14th time, mason jars that get sent out full of jelly and pickles, and I gratefully collect at the end of the season to reuse, and rubber bands from the newspaper or from produce, which my husband joyfully and enthusiastically wraps around everything from photos and letters to reusable bags, whether they need one or not.
But I think the biggest way I have always focused on reusing is in my garden, and in food preparation in general.
My kitchen compost enriches my garden. Any empty plastic yogurt or hummus containers get their bottoms cut out so they can serve as collars to protect my precious seedlings from voles or other critters. The stems and rinds of many of my vegetables, even onion and carrot peels, can be tossed into a pot and used to make a great veggie broth. The broth, in turn, can be frozen (in clean peanut butter jars) then thawed at a later date, when it’s time to make a “week-in-review stew” of the various vegetables in my fridge that are at the “now or never” stage.
Right now, my pantry and fridge are practically bursting with greens, thanks to my garden and to our membership in our local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). Ok, I get it! If there is a limit to how many vegetables one can rightly enjoy and share, I haven’t found it yet.
So my mind is very busy right now figuring out how to make sure all of it gets put to good use. Chive blossom vinegar, anyone? Now is the time. Dill pesto? Why not! Rhubarb and beet greens? Try it! If I give you some, just be sure to return my containers, and all will be well.
MILLIE LaFONTAINE
Concord
I reuse envelopes that come with bills and solicitations. I use “white out” for those that are self addressed and plain sticky labels to cover those with windows.
I reuse zipper seal type bags. The first use is always food. I reuse them for sewing, gardening and office supplies, as well as for other foods such as snacks and cookies, and to refrigerate chocolate in summer.
NANCY HEATH
Epsom