Sparsames Gärtnern: Gardening on a budget

https://blog.derbrumme.de/sparsames-gaertnern-gardening-on-a-budget/

Spartipps aus dem brummschen Garten. Nicht mehr, nicht weniger.

Random home #reduceReuseRecycle tip…

Mayonnaise jar lids (at least in Canada) are exactly the right thread for mason jars. Nice because buying a few plastic lids for mason jars often cost more than a jar of mayonnaise.

I composted in the city (Allston-Brighton area -- where we had a small backyard and garden area. It can be done in the cities, and worm-composters can be kept under the sink... But for the faint of heart, many places are now offering #GarbageToGarden services, or collection areas near community gardens...!

#Massachusetts Ask Your Municipality About a Low-Cost Compost Bin

"Many towns and cities use MassDEP grant funds to buy compost bins directly from manufacturers, then sell them to residents at a discount.

"To learn if the community where you live has compost bins for sale, see the List of Massachusetts Compost Bin Distribution Programs in Additional Resources [at the original link].

"The bins most commonly available are: #EarthMachine (with room for 10 cubic feet of material) and #NewAgeComposter (with a capacity of 24 cubic feet).

"Both units are easy to assemble, resist rodents, and break down organic materials well. At least half of the plastic that goes into them comes from products that consumers have used and recycled previously."

FMI:
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/ask-your-municipality-about-a-low-cost-compost-bin

Smart Can Bottle Recycling

Easy Smart Can Bottle Recycling. These efficient systems accept containers and offer prizes, making eco-friendly habits easy, accessible, and advantageous for people, businesses, and communities.

Visit Now: https://www.tomrobots.com/collections/reverse-vending-machine

A reduce, reuse, recycle… repair day, as I've sourced a replacement spray handle/wand for our long-used #garden spray tank.

A whole new tank isn't that expensive really, but I'm glad we were able to just replace the wand rather than get a new tank&hose too. A lot of plastic in that tank, and new ones are no doubt somewhat lighter built. This one is prob 30yrs old or so.

Useful for a little soapy-water spray as bugs attack the potatoes and flowers.

A productive Maker Sunday at Canberra Makerspace.

Featuring -

Harvesting electronic components for projects from old PCBs

First experimental print on the Spaces' TAZ printer after a truly epic amount of work

A nifty control knob for the laser cutter extraction fan

Mounting a 3D printed Ryobi tool holder for improved workspace ergonomics

A visitor who wants to work on a beautiful wooden sailboat at the Space

Glass bottles [sealed with plastic caps] found to contain more microplastics than plastic bottles

https://phys.org/news/2025-06-glass-bottles-microplastics-plastic.html

> Drinks including water, soda, beer and wine sold in glass bottles contain more microplastics than those in plastic bottles, according to a surprising study released by France's food safety agency Friday.

I wonder whether corks or rubber seals for canning jar could be a solution.

Recycling plasting is a joke. Reduce.

Recycled plastic can affect hormone systems https://www.gu.se/en/news/recycled-plastic-can-affect-hormone-systems

> A single pellet of recycled plastic can contain over 80 different chemicals. A new study with researchers from University of Gothenburg and Leipzig shows that recycled polyethylene plastic can leach chemicals into water causing impacts in the hormone systems and lipid metabolism of zebrafish larvae.

An idea someone should steal, and ship me a nice block of cheese if you make a go of it:

Community-centred reuse depot for packaging and shipping materials. Rather than just streamed recycling of corrugated boxes, mailer envelopes & padding, which you then go buy more of from (*ptui*) Uline, divert the clean and undamaged product, sort and store it in a central locale, and let people pick up what they need and pay what they can. #circularEconomy #degrowth #reduceREUSErecycle

o wise fediverse:

I have this pewter plate that is engraved with a facsimile of a graduation invitation. My partner's father got it for her when she graduated college.

From some web searching, I'm pretty sure pewter has almost no value whatsoever (unless historical), and this probably even less because it's personalized.

But it feels weird to throw it in the trash. Maybe I should give it to the thrift store and let them decide whether to throw it out or not?

Renewed calls to end plastic pollution on World Environment Day http://newsfeed.facilit8.network/TLBdL2 #PlasticPollution #WorldEnvironmentDay #Sustainability #EcoFriendly #ReduceReuseRecycle

okay, tell me that this ISN'T the universe giving me a sign that my move to California is the right decision:

I was trying to decide if I wanted to find a used car-top carrier to carry more stuff with me on my move...

one of my best friends just texted me and says "hey, you need a Thule car top box? A friend gave it to us a long time ago and we're not going to use it again."

And then he says *I* passed it on to him, maybe 25 years ago...

Circle of life...
Circle of Thule car-top boxes...

I'm unreasonably proud of finishing the conversion of this kid hauling bike trailer to its second life as a flatbed cargo trailer for our longtail ebikes. #CarryShitOlympics #BikeTooter #ReduceReuseRecycle

How would you approach painting these speakers?

The original fake wood texture is falling off. Underneath we have glazed particle board. I want to prime it and then paint it with a matte varnish.

Do I need to sand the particle board before applying undercoat? Do I need undercoat to begin with?

Model: Grundig Box 8000 3 Way 100/75 W

7 years ago today I got my written-off Tesla legally back on the road. Sadly it was love at first drive as I was only halfway through my fight with Tesla. Having battled & prevailed to get the info needed for the body repair I was just about to find they'd shut down all fast charging on the car. I cleared that hurdle too, eventually.
#LoveTeslaCars #HateTeslaCorp
#RightToRepair #StopBurningStuff #ReduceReuseRecycle

We have a bunch of old (empty, branded) spectacle cases. What can we do with them other than throw them in the bin?

Is there anywhere that will take them to reuse? Can they be recycled?

Curious how this goes. I seem to live in the same top-level postal code (K2G) as the #oddBunch people, and their veg delivery boxes are collecting in my garage.

They already re-use cardboard boxes - they're always labelled as chocolate bars and candies, presumably from some candy distributor.

I hope I can drop my collection of 15 or 20 boxes off for another go-around rather than send them to recycling.