Organic Living
Organic Living is a lifestyle which is dedicated to making more informed choices when confronted with decisions that influence your health and the environment. It is a lifestyle that promotes sustainable development and encourages the application of natural methods in work, life and play wherever possible. More than this, to live an organic lifestyle means to enjoy the benefits of natural processes and ingredients. It is an approach to life that tries to eliminate unnecessary waste such as food waste and water waste through composting and rainwater harvesting. It is a community of likeminded people that encourage one another to grow their own fruit and vegetables; to enjoy gardening for all its physical and mental health benefits, and to spread this message to others. It is making the informed decision to buy products made from 100% recycled plastics where possible and to avoid harsh chemicals which pollute the environment and endanger wildlife. It is a lifestyle founded on three main tenets: reduce, recycle and regrow.
Reduce
Trying to reduce our impact on the environment is incredibly important. As a community, we can try to reduce our use of single use plastic items as well as our use of Earth’s precious resources such as fuel, food and water. In early 2020, the UK government’s waste advisory board reported that 4.5m tonnes of food a year is wasted, which amounts to a total worth of £14bn. This amounts to £700 for an average family with children. We can all make a difference by making small changes, we can try to not buy items we do not need. Making a shopping list for the week is a simple and easy way to reduce food waste. This same principle can be applied to single use items such as plastic straws and drinks that are sold in plastic bottles. Try to buy items that will last a lifetime. Cleaning products are now available to buy that not only use completely natural ingredients but also feature containers which are completely reusable. If we all make these small changes, we can help curb the tonnes of waste mounting in landfill.
Recycle
By now, we should all be recycling our plastics. We can also encourage commercial recycling efforts by buying products made from 100% recycled plastics. At Original Organics, we do our best to offer products made from 100% recycled materials wherever we can, from composters to dog beds. When our customers choose to purchase these products over cheaply made non-recycled products, we can continue creating and distributing products that are friendlier to the environment.
Remember – recycling doesn’t only mean plastic. Those tonnes of food waste we mentioned earlier can be recycled into incredible fertiliser for your garden. Composting is such a simple and efficient way of reducing food and garden waste - every household can and should be doing it. All sorts of composters are now available to suit the needs of any home, from hot composters that deal with waste produced by sizeable households & gardens to specialised Bokashi Bins which allow for composting to take place indoors. And what about the famous Wormery? We invented it!
Food is a valuable resource we often take for granted. But there’s one which is arguably greater, especially if you live in the UK: water. We use water every day without even thinking about it. We brush our teeth, boil the kettle, water plants and wash clothes. All these little everyday tasks soon add up. Sprinklers, for example, can exhaust as much water in an hour as a family of four uses in a day.
To make better use of your water sources, rain barrels and collection systems can be used to collect rainwater. Rainwater can be diverted through a downpipe which connects to a water butt. These rainwater systems are easy-to-fit, effective and affordable. You can collect water from various places, including your roof, garage and greenhouse. All you need is a diverter and filter and you can store this water in a water butt with a tap for easy access when you need to water your plants. By saving water you'll be saving energy, reducing your carbon dioxide emissions and you and your family will be well on your way to living a cleaner, greener life.
Regrow
So, how do you put the amazing plant fertiliser you have created through composting to good use? And what about the rainwater you have collected in your water butt?
Growing your own fruit and vegetables has countless benefits, both for you and the environment. You and your family will be eating nutritious, chemical-free food that goes straight from garden to plate - this is truly organic living. Not only will this curb the carbon emissions created as a result of the food’s transportation, it also negates the need for harmful plastic packaging.
Cultivating your own produce is simple with the help of growing kits and accessories that allow you to grow strawberries, tomatoes, salad leaves and much, much more. You can even use grow bags to grow your own potatoes with ease. To grow and regrow your own fruits, vegetables and plants means you are in control of what your food comes into contact with. You can choose to use non-harmful and non-polluting ways of gardening. Perhaps the greatest benefit of all is sharing food you have grown yourself with friends, family and the rest of the organic living community.
Read more about living an organic lifestyle over on our blog.
Remember to tag your social posts #organicliving to spread the word of our community and help others make more informed choices in the future.