Sustainable Living
When you’ve been in business doing something for more than four decades, you probably think you’re pretty good at it. The mere act of surviving all the challenges running a business throws at you says it all.
Plenty of people take their expertise for granted, though. That’s the kiss of death. The minute you think you know-it-all is the minute you don’t. I’m a firm believer in new knowledge and growth as one of the key ingredients to success in nearly anything. And why wouldn’t growth be at the heart of working in a green business like plantscaping and biophilic design?… Read More
Here Come The Plant Police
It’s been our mission at Good Earth Plant Company for more than 40 years to improve peoples’ lives through the beauty, health, wellbeing, and environmental benefits living plants bring into all the spaces around you. From a simple plant in a striking container to a complicated living wall structure, it’s our passion as well as our mission. Even after all these years, I still get excited about our work every day.
In the last 10 years, people have embraced the benefits of indoor plants and the principles of biophilic design. I’m so excited about the enthusiasm our current generation of young adults has for plants.… Read More
19 Ways to Celebrate Earth Day 2019 All Year Long
Forty-nine years ago, the first Earth Day took place in 1970. It is now an annual event celebrated on April 22, coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network. It reaches more than 192 countries each year including hundreds of communities in the United States.
Earth Day fell on the Monday after Easter this week. While the “official” day is behind us, Earth Week 2019 is still in full swing. In San Diego, it culminates in the largest free, all-volunteer Earth Fair in the United States at Balboa Park on Saturday, April 27.
We love it at Good Earth Plant Company when the rest of the world takes time to focus finding solutions we can make part of our daily routines.… Read More
Go Green on St. Patrick’s Day – and Every Day
You don’t have to be Irish (or part Irish like me) to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on Sunday, March 17. We love any occasion focusing on things that are green!
It’s more likely than not you possess some Irish heritage as part of your ethnic DNA. In June 1963, President John F. Kennedy gave a speech in Cork, Ireland and said “Most countries send out oil or iron, steel or gold, or some other crop, but Ireland has had only one export and that is its people.”
Ireland has a long history of emigration. If you were a Catholic or a Protestant from any denomination outside the Church of England, laws were harsh and the persecution was real and often fatal.… Read More
Plant A Weed and Save the Monarchs
Recently a visitor to Good Earth Plant Company asked me “Hey, what’s that tall plant growing on your green roof?” I told her it was milkweed. What I didn’t say is that it might be the most important plant on the entire green roof.
The Western monarch butterfly is one of the most recognizable insects in the world. It is called “the ambassador of nature.” In coastal California cities where migrating monarch butterflies have traditionally spent their winters like Pacific Grove, Pismo Beach, and Santa Barbara, there is a whole tourism industry built around the butterflies. Ten million monarch butterflies used to spend the winter in California during the 1980s, according to estimates.… Read More
Rain or Shine, Do Your Part to Protect Our Oceans from Stormwater Pollution
In winter 2018, the last thing we needed to worry about was stormwater pollution. We only got 3.77 inches of rain in the official 2017-2018 water year in San Diego.
Now here we are in 2019, and our first blog post of the year is about the pollution effects of all the rain we’ve been getting.
It’s great news in Sana Diego to get some drought relief, watching our reservoirs fill back up and enjoying snow in the mountains. But now we need to be concerned about managing the negative effects of all this water, such as stormwater pollution.
Stormwater runoff is the single biggest contributor to poor water quality in San Diego.… Read More
Pantone 2019 Color of the Year Sees the Light
It’s now headline news when the Pantone Company announces its annual choice for “Color of the Year” in early December. Good Earth Plant Company works with color so much, the choice gets our attention, especially the reasoning and psychology behind it.
This year’s choice for 2019 is an eye-popping pink-toned orange called “Living Coral.” It’s straight out of the natural world. Yes, it’s bold, but we love it. Here’s what Pantone’s executive director Leslie Eiseman said about the “vibrant yet mellow” choice.
“In reaction to the onslaught of digital technology and social media increasingly embedding into daily life, we are seeking authentic and immersive experiences that enable connection and intimacy.… Read More
Naughty or Nice: The Great Christmas Tree Debate
It’s that time of year. Time to decide whether you want a real Christmas tree, or an artificial Christmas tree. Likes and dislikes aside, to me the more important debate is figuring out which one is better for the environment in the long run. Like a lot of decisions in life, it’s complicated.
I recently learned where artificial Christmas trees originated. They have only been in use a few decades. Before that, a real pine or fir tree was the only option available if you wanted a Christmas tree. It changed when American toilet bowl brush manufacturer Addis Brush Company created an artificial tree from brush bristles in the 1930s.… Read More
Knock on Wood! Hedging My Bets with This Fruitful Blog
I’m always grateful when someone thinks enough of one of my blog posts to share it with other people. Thank you!
I’m going to pay it forward this week by sharing a column written last week by San Diego author and language expert Richard Lederer. You may have heard him on the radio or attended one of his presentations. Richard writes a weekly column for the San Diego Union-Tribune called “Lederer On Language.”
His most recent edition focused on language we use today that comes from a time in history when America was mainly an agricultural society. People did what came naturally when looking for ways to express their thoughts: they took inspiration from nature, from gardening, and raising crops.… Read More
Trees Are Nature’s Super Heroes
In a previous life, I must have been some kind of animal that lives in a tree. I love all things trees. I always have. One of the very first blog posts I ever wrote was about the magic of tree houses in September 2013.
Trees are at the top of my consciousness right now following my vacation trip to the Pantanal region of Brazil. It’s such a different experience being immersed in dense forests of trees, especially the amazing and unusual types of trees we saw in Brazil.
Back at home in San Diego, I’ve been thinking just how valuable trees are to us in our hot, dry Mediterranean climate.… Read More